Build a Scalable & Sellable Consulting Business Through Better Margins & Smart M&A With Adam Rubins

Description:

Adam Rubins helps agencies and creative businesses grow, fix their margins, and realise value through M&A, exits, and smarter operating models.
After a decade at Disney and 14 years as CEO of global agency Way To Blue, he now advises founders and boards across entertainment, consumer, and digital.
This conversation is for consulting and agency owners who want to scale without burning out, and eventually create a business that’s actually sellable.

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Links:

StreamYard (for guest): https://streamyard.com/rz2gmm2jfk
YouTube (for sharing):    • Build a Scalable & Sellable Consulting Bus...  
Apply to be a guest: https://ghapodcast.com/application-to...

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Adam's Bio:

Adam Rubins is the founder of The Arc Consultancy and Now Next Why, where he advises agencies and creative businesses on growth, M&A, and leadership.
Previously he spent 10 years in international marketing at Disney (Buena Vista International), then became CEO of Way To Blue, scaling the agency to 12 offices, 150+ staff and around $15m in revenue, acquiring four agencies and exiting to Miroma Group in 2018.
Since then he has advised and brokered deals across the entertainment and marketing space, including the sale of MXW to Trailer Park Group and OC’s acquisition of Zero Degrees West, while serving as a board-level advisor and CEO coach focused on performance without burnout. He is a LinkedIn Top Voice in the agency and entertainment space.

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Show Notes:

Adam has sat on every side of the table: client-side at Disney, agency-side as CEO of Way To Blue, and now advisor, investor, and non-exec through The Arc Consultancy and Now Next Why.
At Disney he spent 10 years in international marketing (BVI), helping the studio hit number one in most of those years with titles like Finding Nemo and Pirates of the Caribbean. He then took Way To Blue from a boutique shop to a 150+ person, 12-office, ~$15m revenue agency before selling to Miroma Group in 2018.
Today Adam works with agencies and creative businesses that feel stuck between rising costs, shrinking retainers, and pressure on margins. He focuses on the levers that actually move enterprise value: pricing, GP per head, org design, positioning, and where M&A (buy or sell side) makes sense.
He’s deeply embedded in the entertainment and marketing ecosystem, advising on deals like MXW’s sale to Trailer Park Group and OC’s acquisition of Zero Degrees West.
A big part of his work is helping CEOs perform without burning out. Adam’s advisory and coaching combines commercial rigour with a clear view on leadership, wellbeing, and culture.
For consulting firm owners, this is a practical masterclass in how to scale, prepare for exit, and navigate consolidation without sacrificing your team or your sanity.

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Proposed Interview Structure:

1. You’ve gone from Disney to agency CEO to advisor and M&A specialist. What was the moment that pushed you toward consulting founders instead of running another agency yourself?

2. When an agency or creative business comes to you, what’s the real problem underneath the brief, is it usually a margin issue, a positioning issue, a leadership issue, or something else?

3. Who are your ideal clients today in The Arc Consultancy, what size and type of agencies do you focus on, and who tends to bring you in: founders, CEOs, investors, or corporate development teams?

4. You’ve built a strong presence as a LinkedIn Top Voice and clearly rely a lot on relationships in the entertainment and marketing ecosystem. What’s actually worked best for you to attract new advisory and M&A work that consulting firm owners listening could realistically copy?

5. Advisory and M&A deals involve long cycles and emotionally charged decisions. How do you typically move from an early conversation into a signed engagement and ultimately into a completed deal?

6. Once someone becomes a client, what’s your method for building long-term relationships, what do you do to ensure trust, repeat work, and clients coming back over multiple stages of their growth?

7. As a consultant yourself, where do you find you get most stuck right now? is it educating founders on valuation, navigating consolidation, or something entirely different (if at all)?

8. Looking ahead a few years, where do you see the biggest opportunities in your work?