Overview
Overview
Collaboration = Success
We believe close collaboration between professionals is the future.
Through collaborative working, professionals deliver more value and a better experience for their clients. In turn, this leads to deeper client relationships and powers business growth.
This is what we call the collaboration dividend.
Our journey...
RQ started life in 2021 with a simple observation: many of the fastest-growing professional services firms are those that deliver enhanced client value through strong, broad relationships, built on integrity.
We have spoken to countless professionals to understand what makes these collaborative relationships prosper.
RQ has designed and developed the definitive platform to unlock your firm’s collaboration dividend.
RQ’s values
Transparency
Transparency underpins trust and leads to better and more-informed decisions.
Integrity
Highly qualified, skilled and experienced individuals who work hard and do what is right; not what is expedient.
Independence
An honest, impartial perspective that always puts the best interests of clients first.
Proactivity
Always on the front foot, action is the default setting.
The RQ team
Johnny Ridd
CEO
Johnny spent his early career in the City and working as a management consultant before moving on to work with the management teams of several high growth Private Equity and Venture Capital-backed portfolio companies, helping them scale and grow.
His experience encompasses sales, marketing, data analytics and product management and prior to RQ, Johnny founded Data Science marketplace DataWrk. Johnny is responsible for setting the overall strategic direction of RQ as CEO.
Johnny holds an MSc (Distinction) and BA (First Class) from the London School of Economics (LSE) and outside of work, enjoys cooking, playing the odd game of chess and travelling.
Max Crossan
CTO
Max has over 10 years' experience as a full stack developer, building and maintaining business-critical back end and customer facing infrastructure and systems for start-ups and established businesses alike. Prior to RQ, Max co-founded Cloud Accredit - a provider of personnel management and security software for events around the world - and was a senior engineer with Frieze Art and Bridgeman Images.
Max heads up RQ's development team as CTO. Outside work, he is an avid squash player, enjoys kayaking, cycling and travelling and has a penchant for working on old motorbikes.
Mike Still
Board Adviser
Mike has over 35 years’ experience in the risk management and insurance industry. He was previously a Managing Director at Aon and Marsh across the UK and Ireland and, latterly, Chairman of Business in the Community (BITC), Scotland and Chairman of HRH The Prince of Wales’ Business Energy Resilience Group (BERG).
Today, Mike acts as a board adviser, non-executive director, and executive coach to a wide range of businesses and organisations, including leading financial planning firm, Carbon Financial Partners.
Mike advises RQ’s board on its approach to risk management and due diligence as well as its engagement with the insurance industry. Outside of work, Mike enjoys skiing, cycling, golf and cooking.
Michael Smith
Financial Planning Lead
In addition to being a Chartered Wealth Manager, Michael is a Chartered Financial Planner and holds the globally-recognised Certified Financial Planner designation.
He is also a Fellow of both the Personal Finance Society (PFS) and Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI) and as such, is one of the most highly qualified financial planning professionals in the country.
Alongside his roles on the founding teams at RQ and positive impact investment portfolio service, Wellth, Michael is the CEO of independent wealth management boutique, Chamberlyns, one of only a handful of firms in the country to hold both Corporate Chartered and Accredited Financial Planning Firm status.
Michael is passionate about improving standards and outcomes for both clients and high quality professional services firms, and is instrumental in forming and evolving RQ’s proposition.
Outside of business, Michael enjoys family time with his two daughters, reading, going to the gym and being in London. He’d also like to learn to ski, but that’s a (long) work in progress!
James van den Bergh
Board Adviser
James is the CEO of TruFin plc. James spun TruFin out of Arrowgrass Capital Partners in 2018, where he led the alternative finance team and privates business. He began his career at Merrill Lynch before transitioning into investment management in 2003. James is a CFA Charterholder.
Harry McAdoo
Accountancy Lead
Harry brings 25 years of board-level experience advising the accounting profession.
He was previously Director of Communications for the ICAEW and Director of Brand and Corporate Reputation for the ACCA. Now, as part of his consultancy work, Harry advises a CEO-led network of 20 leading professional services firms with a combined turnover of £600m.
Harry is an experienced facilitator used to running board-level workshops and strategy sessions and sits on the board of homeless charity, The Big Issue Foundation, a homeless charity. He was educated at Warwick University.