FRACTIONAL COMMERCIAL & MARKETING DIRECTOR FOR SMEs · BERKSHIRE, SURREY & LONDON
When growth stalls, the answer isn’t necessarily more sales.
The cause could be your proposition or positioning, profitability, changing markets, skills and capabilities, cash flow, sustainability demands or operational challenges. That's what we'll uncover.
The problem
Sometimes the answer is more sales. But often, the underlying issue is harder to see from inside the business.
Sustainability adds another layer: customer requirements, costs, risks and potential opportunities. It can be difficult to understand how these connect to the wider business and what to tackle first.
How I work
I work in focused engagements. Most are measured in days or weeks, not months. The scope and fee are agreed upfront, so you know what you're getting and what it costs.
I start with nine questions to understand how the business is performing, where the gaps, risks and opportunities lie, and what to do next. I consider each through a commercial, sustainability and resilience lens.
What business are you really in?
Where do you make the money?
Is your business proposition accurate. Is the positioning clear to everyone?
What is your competitive position?
Is this a good market to be in?
What customers and markets should you pursue?
What resources and capabilities do you need?
What should you stop doing?
Should you do something else?
What I offer
Commercial diagnostic · £1,250 fixed fee
A focused review of where the business makes and loses money, and what may be holding it back. You leave with a clear view of the issues and a prioritised list of what to change first.
Strategy and plan reset · from £750 per day, or a fixed project fee
Where the diagnostic shows the proposition or positioning needs to change, I help you work through the options. This may include refining what you sell, repositioning the business, pursuing new markets or creating a three-to-five-year plan broken into practical stages. Scope and timetable agreed before we begin.
Sustainability support · from £750 per day, or a fixed project fee
Practical help with sustainability assessments, customer requirements and tender responses, carbon reduction, circularity and business cases for renewables—all judged on their commercial impact on your business. Scope, deliverables and fee agreed upfront.
Workshops and training · £1,250 half-day · £1,950 full-day
Practical sessions that help leaders and teams understand the issues and agree what to do next. Topics can include customer sustainability requirements, carbon reduction, supply-chain review or sustainability and marketing. Tailored to your business.
Ongoing part-time commercial director support · from £650 per month
A fixed monthly fee for an agreed number of days each month, giving you regular commercial input on pricing, positioning and key decisions. The effective day rate is lower than ad-hoc project work, with a three-month minimum term.
About me.
I’m a commercial director with more than 25 years’ experience, including roles at BBC Worldwide and Universal Pictures and managing director positions in B2B media and marketing.
I’ve worked on the commercial decisions that shape business performance, from proposition and positioning to profitability, growth and change. Since 2022, I’ve also focused on sustainability, helping businesses understand its commercial implications, including customer demands, costs, risks and resilience.
I look beyond the story a business tells about itself to understand what’s really happening, then help you decide what to do next.
Based in Berkshire, working with businesses across Berkshire and Surrey.
Tell me a little about your business and what feels stuck.
Qualifications
MBA and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM)
Future-Fit Business Benchmark Accredited Advisor
Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL)
25+ years’ P&L experience, including BBC Worldwide, Universal Pictures and SME managing director roles
Other accreditations: Accredited Carbon Literacy Facilitator; Course Director, CIM Sustainability & Marketing; Corporate Governance Institute, Board Oversight & ESG Governance.
What clients say.
Clients value the combination of commercial experience, practical sustainability knowledge and an ability to make complex issues useful and engaging.
“Gavin combines commercial thinking with practical sustainability expertise. He focuses on what sustainability means in real business terms rather than theory or ESG reporting.
He provided clear, actionable advice and a coaching style that helped us rethink how we approached the challenges we were facing.
He also delivered a written strategy document that gave us a practical foundation and pathway for moving forward.It was a strong mix of commercial clarity, practical sustainability insight and hands-on support.”
-- Nick Payne, Managing Director SA Brain
“What really sets Gavin apart is how well he gets both the sustainability world and the commercial one. That mix meant we ended up with a strategy that wasn’t just ‘nice to have’ but something people could get behind and deliver. He brought our teams along for the ride and helped us talk to clients about it in a way that felt honest, inspiring, and practical.
He made a big difference to our journey. I’m really glad we had him on board and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him to anyone looking to do sustainability properly."
-- Group Managing Director, Retail Marketing & Logistics Company
"Gavin facilitated a full-day sustainability session for a room of people from the same sector but with very different commercial priorities. He managed something genuinely difficult - bridging real commercial pressures with genuine sustainability ambition, without making either feel like a compromise.
His candour, warmth and depth of experience created an environment where people felt comfortable being honest and had their thinking genuinely challenged. Lively, enjoyable and substantive - a rare combination.
If you're looking for a facilitator who can hold a complex room and leave people energised, I'd recommend Gavin without hesitation."
-- Cheryl Chung, Corporate & Government Affairs
"Gavin is consistently helpful, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to work with. He's helped us to get started with clarity about sustainability and what this means in practice, well beyond carbon footprints. Thought-partnership in these early stages has been invaluable”
-- Saskie Dorman, NHS Palliative Care Consultant, Forest Holme NHS Hospice
"We had a brilliant workshop with Gavin – lots of fantastic insights and a whole new perspective on sustainability and marketing in a sustainable world."
-- German National Tourist Board“We would like to thank Gavin Miller for his time with the Climate Partnership Steering Group. He has had a brilliant and useful impact on business interactions and the Climate Strategy.”
-- Royal Borough Windsor and Maidenhead Climate Partnership Committee Chair
