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Field Notes

Field Notes are Optiroute's working notes from the field: short, honest, evidence-based briefings on the governance and sustainability issues UK SMEs are facing right now.
Bought In, Hollowed Out: Lessons from ‘The Big Con’
Bought In, Hollowed Out: Lessons from ‘The Big Con’
THE SHORT ANSWER Consulting has become an effective means of extracting value in modern business. This is not a criticism of individual consultants, who often provide valuable expertise, but a structural observation: most consulting models reward time spent and increased complexity, rather than the development of internal capability. The key governance question is not whether...
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Does your governance work for or against you?
Does your governance work for or against you?
THE SHORT ANSWER Every organisation has governance structures. The key question is whether yours was intentionally designed for current and future needs, or if it relies on inherited templates and outdated decisions. Governance acts as the organisational map, while strategy is the compass. Most businesses have a strategic direction, but fewer have a meaningful governance...
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The Tipping Point Within: Who are your 25%?
The Tipping Point Within: Who are your 25%?
THE SHORT ANSWER It is not necessary to achieve unanimous support before initiating climate action within your business. Research on social tipping points indicates that when approximately 25% of a group adopts a new norm, the rest often follow suit. For example, in a business of 40 people, this equates to ten individuals; in a...
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The Protocol Paradox: The Global Circularity Protocol
The Protocol Paradox: The Global Circularity Protocol
THE SHORT ANSWER The Global Circularity Protocol represents the most credible effort to establish a common business language for circularity. Its impact depends on whether businesses use it to foster new conversations rather than just to measure existing activities. WHAT IS THE GLOBAL CIRCULARITY PROTOCOL? Launched at COP30 in November 2025, the GCP is the...
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Is your business conserving resources or squandering them?
Is your business conserving resources or squandering them?
THE SHORT ANSWER Conservers view resources as assets, extracting them responsibly, maximising their use, and designing for value recovery during and at the end-of-life. Squanderers, by contrast, operate linear systems that prioritise profit and disregard residual impacts. Most businesses fall between these approaches. Bridging this gap presents both a business opportunity and an environmental imperative....
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Signal or Noise? What is really going on with ESG?
Signal or Noise? What is really going on with ESG?
THE SHORT ANSWER Political debate over ESG has increased. Some large businesses are scaling back public commitments, and changes in US climate policy have created uncertainty in Europe. For UK SMEs, delaying sustainability efforts may seem sensible, but research shows this is a strategic error. Commercial indicators point to a different path for SME competitiveness....
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Bought In, Hollowed Out: Lessons from ‘The Big Con’
ConsultancyProjectsSustainabilityUncategorized

Bought In, Hollowed Out: Lessons from ‘The Big Con’

February 23, 2026

THE SHORT ANSWER Consulting has become an effective means of extracting value in modern business. This is not a criticism of individual consultants, who often provide valuable expertise, but a structural observation: most consulting models reward time spent and increased complexity, rather than the development of internal capability. The key governance question is not whether...

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