Right Lane Consulting becomes foundation and staff owned firm
Right Lane has transitioned its ownership to a foundation and staff owned model, becoming the first privately-owned Australian management consulting firm to adopt such a structure.
Following the transition, 55% of the ownership of the Melbourne-based consultancy is in hands of Right Lane Foundation, a not-for-profit charitable purpose Australian public company registered with both the ACNC and the ATO, with its own board operating independently of Right Lane Consulting.
The remaining 45% of Right Lane Consulting has been retained by the firm’s management and staff.
To fund the transaction, the Foundation will use dividends earned from Right Lane Consulting over the next few years to pay for its majority ownership. After that, the Foundation will invest dividends which it receives into supporting charitable organisations and their projects across a range of sectors including health, education, social welfare, human rights, environment and public benevolent institutions.
Brainchild of the transition is Right Lane’s founder Marc Levy, who said that the firm – which was Australia’s first B Corp consultancy (achieved in 2015) – aimed to formalise and embed its purpose within its strategy and operations.
“For many years Right Lane Consulting has had a simple, but powerful, purpose, to contribute to a better society by helping organisations that do good do better. The move to create a majority foundation ownership structure enshrines that mission into our legal structure and that’s important for how we operate and the organisations we support.”
Founded in 2008, Right Lane Consulting supports clients with strategy, organisation and growth in the ‘purpose economy’, including in the superannuation industry, the public and social sectors and healthcare. The firm employs roughly 40 consultants and staff, and was last month named one of Australia’s top consulting firms for 2022.
Next phase
“We are now focused on the next phase of our development as a firm which we believe will show other professional services firms that there are more progressive ways of doing business,” said Levy.
Leading Right Lane into its next phase is Chiara Lawry, who succeeds Levy as CEO, who in turn transitions to the role of Chairman.
Lawry has been at Right Lane for three and a half years, having previously worked at Boston Consulting Group, and as a policy advisor at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
“Foundation ownership shows Right Lane can be a highly efficient and successful company, and make a positive impact on the world in which we operate. It also sends an important message to everyone who works in our company, and to our clients, about what we stand for,” said Lawry.
Foundation ownership structures are popular overseas, particularly in Northern Europe, and are used by some of the largest and most successful corporate organisations in the world, including Ikea, Zeiss, Robert Bosch and Rolex.
