ADAPT provides a proven process to help you build the leadership, culture, systems and habits to be a successful business.

ADAPT was founded from discoveries made building an SME (small to medium enterprise) called acQuire. acQuire was, at its peak, 140 people with seven offices in five countries. Both companies were founded by Bill Withers, a ‘tech entrepreneur’ with a passion for (among many other things) systems thinking and the importance of data-driven decision making.

Over the 22 years that Bill was the owner of acQuire, he encountered the many unique problems that SME businesses face. When he went out to find support to overcome them, he struggled. He found that most business advice in the market was geared towards larger ‘corporate’ organisations and nothing seemed to exist to support the growth and resilience of smaller businesses.

The advice was also disjointed; having a bias towards a specific part of the business without looking at the total system.

80% of people are employed in the SME sector – so why are they so underserved in our community?

So Bill began work to developing these capabilities himself inside acQuire, to such success that in 2012, he sold acQuire to bring these same capabilities to the rest of the SME sector in Australia.

Bill launched ADAPT in 2012 and has spent years working with the team to develop a framework and coach-led program that supports business owners to build solid foundations of a truly resilient business.

Our purpose is to help owners and leaders build resilient businesses.
Our Values

 

We believe building an organisation driven by purpose and values is critical to resilience. Creating an environment centred on high levels of trust and intrinsic motivation ensures people work together effectively. Values have to be clear and truly reflect the philosophy and aspirations of the owners and leaders. Why create an organisation you don’t want to work in?

Check out our values
Meet Our Team

Our team is made up of founders, coaches, software engineers, and those that work to hold it all together and ensure we provide our customers with the best possible service we can!

Julian Carrivick

Julian loves all things technology and has a keen appetite for learning which is fortunate given how quickly things change! He joined ADAPT at the end of 2016 as a recent Software Engineering graduate and with over 5 years’ experience in support, Julian is very well placed to help you resolve any queries or issues you might encounter while using our platform.

Steve Tapley

Steve thrives off working with stakeholders, understand a problem and developing a software that makes a difference to people. He enjoys continuous learning, whether it is technical, business, or personal, and getting the best out of his team. He has over 20 years’ experience in software development, bringing a wealth of experience to ADAPT.

Renae Flegg

Renae is passionate about nurturing the ADAPT stakeholder community and believes the relationships you have with your suppliers, customers, consultants and partners are all key to your businesses success. That building strong relationships with who you work with and for is not only a smarter but more satisfying way of doing business.
Renae has spent over fifteen years working in marketing and communication roles, both in Australia and overseas, and is the Stakeholder Leader at ADAPT.

Laura Egerton

Laura has a passion for all things digital She enjoys exploring the trends in user behaviour in the digital space and finding ways to continually improve our platform using the latest technologies. Laura has over twelve years’ experience in the web industry and specialises in both user experience and user interface design, using her skills to craft a tailored and intuitive experience for ADAPT customers.

Grace Watson

Grace thrives off working in an environment where collectively we can make a difference with our contributions. She believes the positive impact from helping businesses will continue flowing on to other aspects of life. Over the past 18 years Grace has had a broad range of administration experience, working with close teams, keeping things organised and running smoothly.

Bill Withers

Founder

Bill Withers has a passion for organisational resilience. In 2013 he founded ADAPT by Design to address the many challenges business owners face, specifically in the SME sector.

Over 22 years, Bill built a software company called acQuire, servicing the global mining industry. Because of the boom and bust nature of mining, he discovered the need for a total systems approach to building business to ensure resilience.

Bill has deep empathy for entrepreneurs and values 'having a fair go' in life. He enjoys coaching and mentoring others so that they too can meet their aspirations.

Bill has won numerous awards in his time as a business owner, including Austmine Champion of Innovation Award, Best SME Succession Plan and Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Technology and Emerging Industries).

Suzanne McGrechan

Suzanne has the knowledge and proven success in developing people and culture supported by effective systems and processes. She has over 22 years’ experience from owning and managing her own businesses.

David Stephen

Dave has a special interest in forecasting, ownership and international business, having been involved in setting up businesses in Asia, Africa, Europe and both North and South America. Dave is a Charted Accountant with over 35 year’s experience.

Zoe Finlay-Jones

Zoe’s passion is working directly with founders to systemise their business in a way that supports a healthy culture and gets the found working ON their business, not IN it. After 16 years, Zoe moved back to her hometown Perth after she sold her successful manufacturing business in Sydney.

Tadhg MacCarthy

Tadhg has a keen interest in the intersection of people, process & technology. He envisions how the ADAPT method can have as positive an impact for organisations as collaborative agile methods do for technical teams.

Gillian Bester

Gillian enjoys collaborating with diverse teams to create value, while having fun along the way! With over 18 years’ experience Gillian has gained experience working with a wide range of businesses to help them solve problems using business improvement, change management, facilitation, and training tools. She has trained as a zoologist and worked as a journalist and editor before setting up her own consulting business.

What our clients think:

We work with lots of SME's just like yours. Hear some of their feedback about the ADAPT journey.

“After only 18 months with ADAPT, we have undertaken the most significant transfer of decision rights and ownership in our 40 year history.”

Dean GilkisonGilkison Investments

“Our ADAPT coach has become a mentor, a confidant, a supporter and one of our most trusted advisors. She embodies the ADAPT values and has helped guide us through both the ADAPT process and some pretty difficult times.”

JulieChemo@Home

“I really appreciate the support we get from ADAPT, both face-to-face and online. They travel along the journey with us facilitating, coaching and helping us as we learn.”

SheinaSentient

“We are finally getting to the point where the Founder can achieve his succession goals.”

ClaudiaESM Strata
Book a
Meet-and-Greet

Want to know more about the ADAPT Framework and the ADAPT Foundations program?

Book a 90-minute meet-and-greet with one of our accredited coaches and discover exactly how we can support you to build a truly resilient business.

Fill out the following form, and we will get in touch with you to schedule a Meet-and-Greet session with a coach that best suits your needs.