WSP creates new strategic advisory business

WSP has created a new business unit to respond to the evolving strategic needs of its clients.

Strategic Advisory will become the firm’s fifth business unit, alongside Property & Buildings, Transport & Infrastructure, Planning & Advisory and Water, Energy & Industry.

As part of its recently-launched 2022-2024 Strategic Growth Plan, WSP is reshaping itself to ensure it is optimally placed for success and growth. A key part of this growth is enhancing the firm’s advisory services offering through the establishment of its own business unit.

Strategic Advisory will be led by Ian Liddell who has been managing director of WSP’s Planning & Advisory business since January 2017. He has been succeeded in that role by Paul Reilly who joined from Stantec in early May.

With 220 people ranging from economists to due diligence specialists, Strategic Advisory will be supporting a range of public and private sector clients.

Liddell will focus on developing further the capability of WSP’s advisory services offering across the business by unlocking new opportunities in the UK and internationally, and supporting clients on their strategic and front-end priorities.

Strategic Advisory will support five core specialisms: Digital, Investor & Corporate, Economics, Development and Transformation. These will all work closely with the existing business units to diversify the firm’s offer to clients, whilst providing the full technical and professional reach of WSP.

Ian Liddell, managing director for Strategic Advisory at WSP, said: “WSP’s Strategic Advisory business will offer our clients across a range of exciting services anchored around future-ready considerations including net zero, ESG and digital. Being able to deploy front-end expertise to enable the future success of both local and national projects across the country will lead to better outcomes for both our clients and communities.”

Mark Naysmith, CEO, WSP UK & EMEIA, said: “The creation of Strategic Advisory working closely with all of our established business units is a truly exciting step for WSP, and responds directly to the ambition set out in our new growth strategy. We are able to offer our clients advisory services backed by the full technical expertise of the wider WSP business at a competitive price point, and Ian is the perfect person to make this new offering a success.”