Projects

Investor-backed SaaS business - CEO succession

A high-growth, investor-backed SaaS business approached a critical moment in its evolution as the question of CEO succession came into focus. Two internal candidates — the CTO and Chief Commercial Officer — were being considered for the role. Both were well-regarded, high-performing executives with strong track records inside the organisation, and each presented a credible case for appointment.

THEPA's work focused not on functional capability, but on the more complex question of CEO readiness — specifically, the capacity to operate under sustained investor pressure, ambiguity, and organisational scale. Through a detailed, psychology-led assessment of both individuals, a more nuanced picture emerged. While each candidate demonstrated clear strengths, neither showed the full range of leadership capacity required to step into the CEO role at that stage of the company’s development. In particular, the assessment highlighted the gap between success in a functional leadership role and the ability to hold enterprise-wide authority under pressure — a distinction that often becomes visible only once in role.

The findings were presented to the board and informed the final decision. Rather than proceeding with an internal appointment, the business chose to pause and re-evaluate succession, with the founder stepping back into the CEO role on an interim basis.

The work provided clarity at a pivotal moment, enabling a decision that balanced immediate leadership needs with longer-term organisational health.

Technology start-up — leadership team development

The senior team of a high-growth technology start-up sought to better understand how they operated — both individually and collectively — as the business began to scale.

While the team was talented and highly driven, there was recognition that future success would depend not only on execution, but on how effectively they could align, make decisions, and operate under increasing pressure.

THEPA was engaged to provide a deeper understanding of the team’s underlying dynamics.

The work focused on identifying individual leadership strengths, areas of constraint, and the patterns shaping how the team functioned together — particularly in moments of challenge and complexity.

This created a clearer, shared understanding of:

how each leader contributed to the whole
where misalignment or friction was likely to emerge
how to work more effectively as a cohesive senior team

Over time, the team was able to operate with greater clarity, alignment, and effectiveness as the business continued to grow.

The company went on to secure major blue-chip clients and was subsequently acquired by a private equity firm.

International infrastructure group - bid team selection

An international organisation was preparing for a high-stakes bid for a significant piece of work. Success would depend not only on the strength of the proposal, but on assembling a team capable of performing under pressure, navigating complexity, and representing the organisation with credibility at senior levels.

Participants were assessed against the specific demands of the bid process, with a focus on identifying those most likely to operate effectively in a high-pressure, externally scrutinised environment.

This went beyond technical capability, incorporating judgement on how individuals would contribute in real-time — including decision-making, resilience, and presence in critical moments. A clear, evidence-based ranking was established, enabling the organisation to select the strongest possible team for the bid. The selected individuals then undertook a targeted preparatory session to ensure alignment and readiness ahead of the process.

The organisation went on to secure the work.