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Tessa Gough Associates
TG Associates – trusted providers of expert witness reports, and a proud member of handl Group
The ideal acquisition for handl Group is often a brand with a growing reputation, an established customer base, and a deep knowledge of their market. Ideally we also need to work with companies who are ready to make a change.
When, in 2020, the opportunity came to make TG Associates part of our group, we knew we’d found a company that ticked all of those boxes. Already successful, already well known, and already experts in the field of expert witness reports, TG Associates had reached a point where even small changes could deliver huge results.
TG Associates’ Goals
Under the leadership of owner and expert witness Tessa Gough, TG Associates had forged a strong reputation with law firms as a trustworthy partner. For over 30 years, the company had grown steadily. Work was consistent, but the business as a whole stood at a crossroads, as Clinical Operations Director Kim Morris explains:
“TG Associates already had a great reputation at the time of the acquisition. Tessa herself had built the company into a firm that solicitors insisted on working with, but we’d reached a point where we needed more time and new opportunities along with new eyes and fresh ideas to continue its growth. There was a choice – keep doing what we were doing with new people, or change and grow.
Tessa chose to grow. I honestly don’t think she could’ve envisaged where we’d be just four years on.”
If growth as a goal sounds familiar, it should. It’s handl Group’s mantra.
The Acquisition – 2020
One of the things that resonates with Kim about the acquisition process was the trouble handl Group took to learn about TG Associates and the key members of staff who remained in place. Many of the staff had been with the company for over 15 years, giving us a wealth of experience to draw upon.
“Sue Henry came out to meet me and learn about my role within TG Associates. She told me she was here to listen and learn, so we could all move the company forwards together. That’s a dynamic that filtered down through our whole team. Everyone was informed, everyone listened to.
It was never a case of ‘things are changing, get on with it.’ We took on board suggestions, we listened, we developed, and we learned.”
Along with mentoring for the existing team, one of those changes was a new Operations Director. With Tessa herself moving into a more advisory position, Andrew Moss made the move from Speed Medical to TG Associates, working alongside Kim to help drive growth. Andrew’s clear on his position as a part of the team, not a representative for handl Group:
“When I came in, it wasn’t about interference. It was about support and building on what was already here. The service TG Associates provided – and still provides – is great. Where we needed to develop was operationally. New processes, new IT systems. We got the resources we needed from handl, and we’ve gone from there.”
By supporting TG Associates with new systems and processes, by engaging with the company’s team, and by providing additional support and mentoring, handl Group has helped TG Associates build on their already fantastic reputation for a quality service.
TG Associate’s Present – and Future
Four years on, TG Associates is a key part of handl Group’s Expert Witness and Assessment Services division. There’s an overlap with other divisional firms, along with what Andrew and Kim term healthy competition. They’ve supported and collaborated with Harrison Associates, Corporé and Speed Medical, celebrating shared successes and driving each other to improve their offerings.
It’s working for TG Associates’ reputation, and their continued growth, as Andrew explains:
“On joining, TG Associates was already very successful, but it was very much a case of sticking to an established client base. Now, we’ve reached more customers and we’re working with claimant firms as well as defendants, and building a social profile that’s something we absolutely didn’t have before.”
Does Kim agree? She’s clear on how life is as part of handl Group:
“Things just work so well now.”
As a cornerstone of one of our divisions, TG Associates show that investment from handl Group means investment in what’s already working for you, support where you need it, and the resources that help take your company to the next level. That’s because your growth really is our goal
