Meet David Hutchinson

David Hutchinson has shown a willingness to “do whatever it takes” going back as far as 2004, the early days of AlixPartners’ first UK office.

At the time, he recalls working to 4 a.m. one night in a client’s office and realizing he had just a couple of hours to sleep, but no time to go back to his hotel, before the big 8 a.m. meeting with the chief financial officer. A problem-solver by trade–Hutchinson began his career in the 1980s as an engineer before pivoting to corporate transformations–he borrowed some bubble wrap from the client’s stationary cupboard and made himself a tidy bed under a desk, where the motion-sensor lights wouldn’t be triggered when he rolled over.

Today, AlixPartners’ London office has several hundred employees, and, after a four-year hiatus, Hutchinson has returned to the firm as a Managing Director in the Performance Improvement practice. He is excited about using this new chapter to dedicate his skills in private equity and operations to help clients at a time of global upheaval, and to help coach and develop our teams.

“With all the challenges that the world is facing, now is the time for AlixPartners” Hutchinson says, adding, “I've been really impressed by the capability that's been added in the revenue and growth areas while I've been away, as well as the strengthening of industry skills.”

He also sees a stronger focus on the UK market than in the past and notes a burgeoning list of homegrown talent moving up the pipeline into managing director roles. Developing and retaining employees, and re-recruiting alumni back to the firm, will be crucial to take advantage of opportunities, he says: “The environment over the next few years is really potent for what we offer. I think our biggest challenge will be having enough people to be able to deliver the opportunities.”

There is something in the AlixPartners DNA that does keep employees and alumni engaged with the AlixPartners community, and that “X factor” is something David wants to protect and enhance as the firm continues to grow.

Having spent nearly 15 years at AlixPartners, and watching his own children grow and enter the world of work, Hutchinson is keen to help expand on diversity and inclusion at AlixPartners. “Particularly now that my daughters are grown up and working, I really want to help make AlixPartners a more attractive place for women to join and work,” he says. “I'd like to make a meaningful difference on that in the coming years.”

From the early days of sleeping under a desk to having been a leader in the EI and PE practices, Hutchinson says the lure of the firm is simple: “AlixPartners is my natural habitat.”