Simon Riley / Crowe Horwath
Excellence in Manufacturing
Ask Simon Riley what's been the biggest factor to his success and he'll tell you it's 120 mortgages. By that he means, "thinking about my teams' 120 mortgages versus my own motivates me," he says. "Every day I remind myself that my team members' families are counting on me, keeps me sharp, innovative and driven. My success is their success."
Riley is a Managing Partner, Manufacturing & Distribution Consulting in Crowe Horwath.
"We have an incredibly talented young team and in the past 12 months one of our original team members who joined us from college achieved partner and another will come through this year," Riley says. "At the end of the day you are not just what, but who you leave behind. I'm proud that I have been a part of helping develop these future leaders at Crowe."
It's probably no surprise than that Riley says it's people—especially Crowe Horwath's people—that he enjoys most about the consulting profession. "Clients and team, making a difference together," Riley says. "Developing insights, frameworks and solutions is fun, it really is, but seeing people come together to change a business and create future security for a client's business is what it's really all about."
Meanwhile, when he looks over the course of his entire consulting career, Riley says he is extremely proud of the fact that he's been able to succeed through all the volatility the business world has undergone the last several years.
He says he's been focused on building "recession resistant people and practices." Too many practices rise and fall with the economy, he says, and firms end up treating people as a variable cost. "We have invested significantly in our people's education and experiences to ensure they are recession resistant, and we have invested in technology solutions to drive subscription revenue streams to support investments in good times and keep our team safe in worst of times," Riley says.
As far as winning the Top 25 Consultants award, Riley says he admits that he feels a little undeserving. "There are so many good consultants out there supporting their clients and building strong practices, but Top 25 recognition, hopefully provides a platform to continue to share our philosophies about Crowe's values: care, share, invest and grow."
Q&A: What motivates you to excel?
Riley: "My dad—he always drove me to think beyond the obvious and to do the hard work. He bought me an old bike that had five coats of paint and gave me sand paper to get it back to metal. I'll never forget how proud he was that I stayed on it. That bike is 40 years old and does not have a scratch on it. Thanks dad!"
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