The Preston Associates

What The Preston Associates does

The Preston Associates (legal entity: Thomas Preston & Associates Limited) is a London-headquartered executive coaching and organisational development consultancy founded in 2001, operating as a private professional services firm with 11–50 employees and an estimated partner network of 20+ executive coaches distributed across 16+ geographic locations spanning the UK, continental Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Its core offerings are Individual Executive Coaching (1:1), Team Coaching, and Organisational Development interventions, supplemented by specialist practices including Family Business Coaching, Diversity Equity & Inclusion coaching, Transition Coaching, a Dynamic Growth Hub for high-growth firms, Elite Business Performance, Resilience & Crisis Coaching, Board & Senior Executive Mentoring, and a REWIRED AI Bootcamp aimed at executive AI literacy. The firm also publishes thought-leadership books (Coach Yourself to Success; Coaching Power, released 2025) and offers speaker engagement services.

The firm does not operate on a technology platform; its competitive base is its hand-picked roster of coaches, nearly all of whom are former C-suite, board-level, or senior operating leaders at FTSE/global firms (e.g., former CEO Nutricia/Danone, ex-MD J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets, ex-Merrill Lynch global leadership, ex-Danone Global Executive Board). Revenue is generated through bespoke professional-services fees for project-based and retainer engagements; pricing is quote-based, not publicly disclosed, and acquisition is primarily through referrals, partner reputation, and thought-leadership content rather than a structured sales motion.

The client base consists almost entirely of global multinationals and recognised enterprises — disclosed logos include HSBC, Barclays, Bank of America, UBS, NatWest, KPMG, Freshfields, Norton Rose, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, GSK, Danone, Michelin, Waitrose, Harrods, Dyson, Anglo American, Kingfisher, and Just Eat. The firm is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors, parent company, or funding rounds; Tom Preston is the founder, David Scotland is Chairman, and Peter Thompson, who co-founded the firm at inception, has transitioned to an internal advisory role.

Name

The Preston Associates

Legal name

Thomas Preston & Associates Limited

Website

https://theprestonassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Preston Associates is a London-headquartered boutique executive coaching and organisational development firm serving global multinationals and high-growth companies through a network of 20+ former C-suite coaches operating across 16+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Executive Coaching Services

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Management Consulting Services (54161), Other Management Consulting Services (541618), Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Coaching, Mentoring & Facilitation Services (BPACANAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Founder/Entrepreneur & Family Business Executive Coaching (EDABANAM), Team & Group Executive Coaching (Leadership Teams) (EDABANAF), Strategy, Decision-Making & Business Acumen Coaching (EDABANAH), Career, Purpose & Executive Wellbeing Coaching (EDABANAI)

Keywords

• Executive coaching services
• Leadership development consulting
• Organizational development solutions
• Team coaching programs
• Executive mentoring services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices17 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Executive Coaching Services: The firm generates revenue primarily through professional services fees for executive coaching engagements. These are typically project-based or retainer engagements with enterprise clients, structured around individual coaching, team coaching, or organisational development interventions. Pricing is quote-based and tailored to client scope and requirements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Preston Associates is a boutique executive coaching firm that delivers individual executive coaching (1:1), team coaching, and organisational development interventions to multinational corporations, family businesses, and high-growth companies. Services are provided by a hand-picked network of former senior business leaders acting as executive coaches across more than 16 global locations, supported by thought leadership publications including the books 'Coach Yourself to Success' and 'Coaching Power'.

Product overview

The Preston Associates is a leading Executive Coaching firm offering a portfolio of coaching services. The core offerings include Individual Executive Coaching (1:1 Coaching), Team Coaching, and Organisational Development Interventions. The firm also provides specialist coaching services including the REWIRED AI Bootcamp, Family Business Coaching, Diversity Equity & Inclusion in Business, Transition Coaching Expertise, Dynamic Growth Hub, Elite Business Performance, Resilience & Crisis Coaching, and Board & Senior Executive Mentoring. Additionally, the firm publishes books including 'Coach Yourself to Success' and 'Coaching Power', and offers Speaker Engagement services. The portfolio is delivered through a network of hand-picked former business leaders who serve as executive coaches internationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Individual Executive Coaching (1:1 Coaching) One-on-one executive coaching for C-suite executives, senior leaders, and high-potential talent focused on individual leadership development and performance.
• Team Coaching Systemic team coaching engagements designed to help executive and leadership teams operate more effectively, with clear objectives aligned to business needs.
• Organisational Development Interventions Sustainable organisational development interventions establishing leadership culture and high-trust environments that drive business growth.
• REWIRED AI Bootcamp Bootcamp designed to help executives understand and apply artificial intelligence in their leadership practice.
• Family Business Coaching Specialist coaching addressing family dynamics, succession planning, governance, and next-generation leadership in family-owned enterprises and family offices.
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Coaching Coaching services focused on developing inclusive leadership practices and building diverse, equitable workplace environments.
• Transition Coaching Coaching for leaders navigating career transitions, role changes, and organisational transformations.
• Dynamic Growth Hub Coaching and support services for growing organisations and young businesses navigating increasing complexity and accelerated change.
• Elite Business Performance High-performance coaching for senior leaders and executives seeking exceptional business results.
• Resilience & Crisis Coaching

Named customers20 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• BetterUp: AI-augmented coaching and leadership development platform with global enterprise customers. Comparable because it sells into the same L&D budget pool and is rapidly integrating AI features that commoditize portions of traditional executive coaching.
• CoachHub: Digital-first coaching platform that scales executive and leadership coaching through a tech-enabled marketplace model. Comparable because it addresses the same leadership development buyer, but competes via digital delivery and lower price points that may pressure boutique engagement economics.

Broad incumbents

• Heidrick & Struggles: Global leadership advisory and executive search firm that bundles executive coaching with search and succession services. Comparable because it sells senior-level coaching engagements to the same enterprise buyer (CHRO/CEO) as TPA, though at much greater scale and with broader service scope.
• Egon Zehnder: Privately held global executive search and leadership advisory firm with a substantial executive coaching practice. Directly comparable because its senior-coaching engagements serve FTSE/Global 500 leadership teams — TPA's core buyer — and compete for the same coaching mandates.
• Spencer Stuart: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with a strong coaching and board-advisory practice. Directly comparable because it sells bespoke executive coaching to C-suite and board clients across multinationals — overlapping client base and engagement model.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm offering executive search, leadership development, and coaching services. Comparable because Korn Ferry's Leadership Development segment sells coaching to the same multinational enterprise base TPA targets, though with bundled assessment and broader L&D capabilities.
• Right Management (ManpowerGroup): Global talent and career management firm (part of ManpowerGroup) offering executive coaching, outplacement, and leadership development. Comparable because it competes for senior-level coaching engagements, particularly in transition and outplacement — overlapping with TPA's Transition Coaching and Resilience offerings.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with executive coaching, succession, and assessment offerings. Comparable because it competes for senior coaching mandates at the same enterprise and family-business client tier that TPA serves.

Direct peers

• BTS Group: Public boutique consulting firm specializing in leadership development, executive coaching, and business simulations for global enterprises. Closely comparable to TPA on customer base (large multinationals), boutique positioning, and focus on customized leadership programs over generic training.
• Lane4: UK-based boutique leadership development consultancy offering executive coaching, team coaching, and performance consulting. Closely comparable to TPA on geography, boutique positioning, target buyer (UK and European senior leaders), and engagement model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ThePrestonAssociates
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-preston-associates
• Instagraminstagram.com/theprestonassociates

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Preston Associates