The first of what is expected to be a slew of new consultancies set up by the directors of Davis Langdon will start trading this month.
Nick Schumann and Erland Rendell, both former equity partners of the firm, are joining forces in a new consultancy called Atorus, aimed at advising clients and designers to “deliver a smarter way of working”. The pair left Davis Langdon in October and were both tied into six-month non-compete clauses.
Davis Langdon was bought by US firm Aecom in August 2010 and has seen a string of high-profile departures. There is also speculation that more senior people will break away once the buy-in period is up in October.
“We believe that the first 20% of a project determines its success or failure. But we keep repeating the same mistakes. We want to bring about a change in the industry and provide a smarter way of working through improved procurement, better relationships and integrating technology,” said Schumann, who joined Davis Langdon in 2000 when he sold his own consultancy to the firm.
Rendell, who set up Davis Langdon’s Abu Dhabi Office and became its head of knowledge and thought leadership, said: “We will also look to bring in learning from other industries.” Rendell joined the firm after graduating 17 years ago.
The pair say that they have work in the pipeline but can’t reveal as yet who their first clients will be.
