What this engagement actually is
Independent appraisal, capital structure, due diligence and business case work supporting equity, debt and acquisition decisions.
Senior practitioners construct an appraisal framework around a specific opportunity, build or interrogate the underlying model, test capital structure alternatives, run downside scenarios, and produce a structured commercial view. The posture is analytically independent: the analysis reflects what the data and the evidence support, not what a sponsor or vendor would prefer to see.
On due diligence engagements the work involves challenging vendor assumptions, validating numbers against external evidence, and reporting findings to the investor in a form the committee or board can act on. Outputs are framed as analytical work product; we do not undertake regulated investment advice and we are explicit about that distinction in scope and in deliverable. The objective is a view that holds up to external review by lenders, auditors and counterparties.
What you get
Six concrete deliverables. Each is an artefact on a shared drive, not a promise.
- Investment appraisal pack with IRR, NPV, payback and risk-adjusted returns under multiple capital structure scenarios.
- Capital structure and funding options analysis comparing equity, debt and hybrid instruments with downside coverage.
- Financial due diligence report identifying assumption risks, quality of earnings adjustments and commercial exposures.
- Independent challenge document setting out where vendor or management assumptions diverge from the evidence.
- Board-grade business case suitable for investment committee, lender or board approval submission.
- Portfolio or asset performance review for funds and family offices, with attribution and forward outlook.
How long, how priced
Engagements are priced on a fixed-fee basis once the decision, the committee audience and the data room access are confirmed. Typical appraisal and due diligence work runs four to six weeks; portfolio reviews and retained analytical relationships are sequenced to the client cadence rather than to a fixed window.
A senior practitioner leads scope, build, challenge and delivery. Where the engagement runs alongside an active transaction timetable, the team is scaled to the committee deadline; the senior layer is not delegated to a junior to meet pace. Post-delivery support through the approval process is included within a defined query window.
Best for
Three sectors where this service typically comes first.
Financial Services and Investment
Independent appraisal and portfolio analytics for funds, family offices and merchant banks.
Healthcare and Life Sciences
Appraisal for institutional capital deploying into care, infrastructure and life sciences.
Real Estate and Development
Acquisition appraisal and fund-level performance review across asset classes.
A typical engagement
Three phases. Senior practitioner involvement at every stage.
Discover (week 1)
The investment thesis is briefed in detail, the decision and the committee audience are defined, data room access is confirmed, and the scope and timeline are agreed in writing. Where the engagement is being run against a transaction deadline, the work plan is sequenced to the committee date rather than to an aspirational duration. The output of this phase is a scope of work and a data request, not a draft view.
Design (week 1 to 4)
Vendor or management assumptions are reviewed against external evidence. The underlying model is either built independently or interrogated cell-by-cell, depending on the engagement type. Capital structure scenarios are run, peer benchmarks are sourced, and issue areas requiring management input are surfaced early rather than late. Sensitivities are designed against the questions the committee will ask, not against generic upside and downside.
Deliver (week 4 to 6)
A findings report is issued with a structured sensitivity pack and a recommendation set out in committee language. The work is presented to the investment committee or board, follow-up questions are addressed through the approval process, and where the deliverable is a business case it is finalised in the form required by the approving body. Independent challenge findings are documented separately so that they survive the transaction file.
When the question is bigger than the numbers
GIVE Consultancy, one call away
GIVE Analytics is one of three firms in the GIVE Network. The non-financial dimensions of most engagements (legal structuring, market research, communications, people, regulatory positioning) are addressed by GIVE Consultancy Limited, a separate firm operating under the same standards. The GIVE Foundation, the charitable entity through which both firms donate ten per cent of annual profits, is held separately again. The network exists because consequential decisions rarely have a single dimension; clients tell us they value being able to draw on adjacent capability without renegotiating confidentiality. We do not cross-refer unless the client asks us to.
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GIVE Foundation receives 10% of profits from every engagement. See the giving model (opens in a new tab).
Confidentiality
Engagement details are not disclosed publicly. Past work is summarised by sector and analytical question. References are made available privately, with consent, at the appropriate stage. The same standard applies to anything you instruct us on.
Discuss a Investment and Commercial Analysis engagement
A 30-minute introductory call, in confidence. We will tell you if this service is not the right starting point.