Managing Director

Inara; Greater London; On-site; GBP 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity shares

Permanent role

CEO runway

Job summary

Inara in London is seeking a Managing Director (Future CEO) to take strategic and commercial ownership now, with a clear, realistic path to the CEO.

This tech consultancy spans AI, Data, Software, Cloud and DevOps, delivering end-to-end client value from strategy to live systems, while you lead from the front in a scale-up phase.

You’ll own the strategy, GTM, and day-to-day leadership of a 30-40 person business, with real input into its next chapter.

Qualifications

• Consulting background with money-making and value delivery understanding.
• Proven experience scaling a consultancy through scale-up.
• Strong strategic and commercial leadership credentials (P&L, GTM).

Responsibilities

• Setting and driving strategic direction for the business as it scales.
• Owning go-to-market, positioning, and growth with customers.
• Representing a broad technical offering across AI, Data, Software, Cloud and DevOps in market.
• Building and deepening relationships with people and shaping the proposition.
• Leading and growing the team through a genuine scale-up phase.
• Acting as the public face of the business in the market.

Skills

Consulting background

Experience scaling a consultancy

Market-facing leadership

P&L ownership

Go-to-market strategy

Job description

Managing Director (Future CEO) | Scale Up, Technology Consultancy (London)

This isn’t a caretaker MD role. My client are building to scale fast, and we’re looking for someone who can take genuine strategic and commercial ownership now, with a clear, realistic path to CEO.

The opportunity

This technology consultancy are embarking on an ambitious, yet realistic path for growth. Their core disciplines span AI, Data, Software Engineering, Cloud and DevOps, giving clients genuine end-to-end support from strategy through to live, running systems rather than a narrow specialism. The foundations are there, and now it needs someone who can lead from the front: market-facing, close to the customer, and genuinely driving the go-to-market rather than just running delivery.

You’ll own the strategy, the commercial direction and the day-to-day leadership of a 30-40 person business, with real input into where it goes next.

What you’ll be doing

• Setting and driving strategic direction for the business as it scales
• Owning go-to-market, how we position, win and grow with customers, not just how we deliver for them
• Representing a broad technical offering across AI, Data, Software, Cloud and DevOps in market, and translating that capability into client value rather than jargon
• Building and deepening relationships with the people, and shaping the proposition around what they need next
• Leading and growing the team through a genuine scale-up phase, not managing a steady state
• Acting as the public face of the business in the market as its profile grows

What you’ll bring

• Consulting background essential - you understand how a consultancy actually makes money, wins work and delivers value, not just corporate strategy from the outside
• Proven experience scaling a consultancy - specifically through a scale-up stage, this is non-negotiable; general scale-up experience outside consulting won’t transfer the same way
• Comfortable operating credibly across a broad technical remit - AI, Data, Software, Cloud and DevOps - client conversations will span all of these, even though this is a commercial leadership role rather than a hands-on technical one
• Strong strategic and commercial leadership credentials - P&L ownership, go-to-market decisions, team building
• A genuinely market-facing track record - comfortable being the name people know, not just a name on an org chart
• PE exposure a strong plus - board-level reporting, investor relationships, or experience building a business toward an exit-ready position

What’s on offer

• Equity shares in the upside you’re building, not just a salary
• A permanent role, this is about building something and staying to lead it
• A genuine, realistic runway to the CEO seat as the business scales toward its next chapter

If you’ve done this before, taken a consultancy through its awkward scale-up years and come out the other side, this is that role again, with a bigger prize at the end of it.