Challenge the decision.
Before you own the consequences.
Independent challenge of major strategic decisions before capital, reputation and management attention are committed.
Challenge before commitment.
By the time a major proposal reaches the board, months of work and significant reputational capital may already be invested in getting it approved.
We independently interrogate the problem, assumptions, economics, alternatives and ability to execute — before the decision becomes difficult to reverse.
When everyone around the decision is saying yes, who is asking why?
Independent interrogate gives the board a voice with no incentive for the answer to be yes.
“If the stakes are this high, who is paid to challenge the decision?”
From proposal to independent board view.
Frame
Define the decision and what success must look like.
Interrogate
Interrogate the evidence, economics and critical assumptions.
Listen
Interrogate sponsors and people closest to execution.
Stress-test
Test alternatives, downside and failure scenarios.
Conclude
Give the board a concise independent view.
We interrogate the thinking behind the decision.
Major decisions are rarely undermined by a lack of intelligence. They are undermined by the biases smart people do not realise they are carrying into the room.
Confirmation Bias
Anchoring Bias
Overconfidence Bias
Optimism Bias
Groupthink Bias
Authority Bias
Sunk Cost Bias
Incentive Bias
Base-Rate Neglect Bias
Action Bias
Deal Fatigue Bias
Expert Bias
Scarcity Bias
Forecast Illusion Bias
Liking Bias
Framing Bias
Revalidate what you have already committed to.
The money already spent is gone. The decision is whether the next rand, the next month and the next hour of management attention are still justified.
Existing initiatives are re-tested on forward-looking economics — not sunk cost, organisational momentum or the need to defend the original decision.
Big decisions deserve independent challenge.
of acquisitions are done for the wrong reasons.
“If 30% of your enterprise IT projects are delivering no value, why are you letting them continue?”
“If your board doesn’t understand AI, how can it challenge the investment case?”
Before the point of no return.
“When a major initiative succeeds, everyone owns it. When it fails, everyone looks for a scapegoat.”
A conclusion the board can act on.
Proceed
The case withstands independent challenge.
Proceed with conditions
Resolve specific risks or assumptions first.
Reconsider
Material weaknesses require the case to be rebuilt.
Stop
The evidence does not support further commitment.
THE FALSE ALIGNMENT TRAP
The silent assassin of change programmes.
Everyone nodded. Everyone agreed. Everyone left the room with a different understanding of what had been agreed.
Before you commit, challenge the decision.
Bring us the decision. We will interrogate the assumptions, expose the biases, test the alignment and challenge whether the expected value is real.
No implementation agenda. No technology to sell. No incentive for the answer to be yes.
Challenge a Decision
Brian Gubbins
Brian has spent over 30 years advising organisations through transformation and turnaround, including a decade as a Partner in a leading international consulting firm in London and South Africa. He subsequently held senior executive roles in international technology and consulting businesses.
Today, Brian divides his time between business advisory and social impact initiatives.
Independent judgment. No implementation agenda. No technology to sell.
Alec has spent more than 30 years leading technology transformation across some of the world’s most complex organisations, including Anglo American, IBM, PwC, Sasol and, most recently, ABB, where he served as Global CIO.
Named Swiss CIO of the Year in 2021, Alec brings deep practical experience of large-scale technology investment and transformation.
Alec specialises in challenging enterprise technology and AI investment — ensuring that major programmes are commercially grounded, executable and capable of delivering measurable value.
Taddy is one of the 21 Icons of South Africa and a globally recognised social entrepreneur who has dedicated much of his career to transforming education and expanding economic opportunity.
Recognised by the World Economic Forum as both a Global Leader of Tomorrow and Young Global Leader, Taddy founded South Africa’s first free university and today leads an education model reaching approximately 3,500 students annually, with plans to scale to 5,500.
An actuary, educator and social entrepreneur, Taddy combines commercial rigour with decades of practical experience in social impact.
He specialises in challenging CSI and social investment strategies — helping organisations direct their resources towards interventions capable of producing measurable, sustainable and lasting social impact.
Andrew has more than 30 years of experience driving revenue growth within major technology organisations, including Dimension Data and NTT Ltd.
His experience spans sales strategy, marketing investment, commercial execution and operational enablement, with particular expertise in technology-led sales and marketing.
Andrew specialises in challenging sales and marketing strategies and expenditure — identifying what genuinely drives revenue, what fails to deliver, and where organisations can improve commercial returns from their investment.
Anton has extensive experience across corporate finance, investment banking and private equity. He led Specialised Finance and Investment Banking businesses at Investec and ABSA respectively, before building a successful career in private equity.
Anton brings an investor’s discipline to major corporate investment decisions.
He specialises in challenging capital allocation and acquisition decisions — testing whether capital is being deployed to the right opportunities, at the right valuation, with realistic assumptions about value creation.