The Art of Transformational Presence
“Real transformation requires being in the trenches.” — Fab’s Approach
In mountaineering or climbing, there are two ways to experience a peak. The first is the “guided tour”: you pay for access, an expert shows you the route, you receive instructions, and at the end you shake hands and go your separate ways. The guide has done their job well. You’ve had an experience.
The second way is the “rope team.” Here, you are bound together by more than a transaction. When weather turns, you problem-solve as one. When the route proves harder than expected, you adapt together. The rope is a physical manifestation of mutual commitment—if one falls, the other catches. There is no exit clause mid-climb.
In my career across Vodafone, Digi.me, and now Smart Mountains and Fab Campaigns, I have found that the most valuable partnerships—the ones that transform both parties—are built on the second model. This essay argues that while arm’s-length advisory has its place, real transformation requires embedding.
I. The Limits of Arm’s-Length Advisory
Traditional advisory relationships optimise for the advisor:
- Minimise time commitment (bill hourly or per project)
- Maximise volume (serve many clients simultaneously)
- Limit accountability (recommendations, not results)
- Maintain distance (professional but not personal)
This model works well for discrete problems with clear boundaries. A legal opinion on contract interpretation. An audit of financial controls. A market research report. These are valuable services delivered at arm’s length.
But consider the most difficult challenges organisations face: cultural transformation, strategic repositioning, building partnership capabilities from scratch. These are not discrete problems. They are ongoing journeys with shifting terrain.
When the path changes—and it always does—the arm’s-length advisor retreats to “I told you what to do; execution is your responsibility.” The rope is not there when the weather turns.
The Trust Deficit
The Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (ASAP) has identified four critical pillars of successful partnerships:
- Mutually beneficial economics
- A robust governance framework
- A shared set of core operating values
- A rigorous engagement model
Joy Wilder Lybeer, in her keynote at the 2024 ASAP Global Alliance Summit, emphasised the third pillar: “How do we want to show up for each other? The logistics of acting like we’re one company when we’re really two. That’s hard and very important for the health of the partnership.”
You cannot achieve “acting like one company” when one party exits at 5pm.
II. The Science of Embedding
This principle is not merely philosophical. It is grounded in research on trust, relational contracts, and neuroscience.
1. Relational Contract Theory
Legal scholar Ian Macneil developed relational contract theory to explain why formal contracts alone cannot govern complex, long-term relationships. Macneil identified ten norms that underpin successful relational exchanges, including:
- Role integrity: Understanding and committing to your role in the relationship
- Contractual solidarity: The willingness to maintain the relationship through difficulties
- Flexibility: Adapting as circumstances change
- Harmonisation with social matrix: Aligning the relationship with broader social expectations
A systematic literature review published in Construction Management and Economics (2021) found that projects employing relational contracting principles—where partners are deeply integrated, sharing information, solving problems jointly, and maintaining continuous communication—consistently outperform those governed purely by transactional arrangements.
The research is clear: the degree of relationality in a partnership predicts its outcomes.
2. The Neuroscience of Trust
When we embed ourselves in a client’s organisation—experiencing their challenges, celebrating their victories, navigating their politics—something biological happens.
Paul Zak’s research at Claremont Graduate University identified oxytocin as the neurochemical signature of trust. His research, published in Harvard Business Review, found that when colleagues work through challenges together, oxytocin is released, which enhances empathy, increases cooperation, reduces wariness, and strengthens social bonds.
According to the American Psychological Association, shared challenge and achievement release oxytocin, making these experiences not just memorable but biologically effective in strengthening relationships.
You cannot generate this chemistry through quarterly check-ins.
3. Adventure-Based Evidence
A 2020 Harvard Business Review article noted that time spent together in challenging environments—whether navigating a mountain route or solving a complex business problem—reduces stress and enhances creative thinking. The Journal of Environmental Psychology (2019) found that outdoor experiences improve group cohesion and problem-solving.
McKinsey’s research confirms that “climbing through a canyon, hiking up to a summit, or even building a fire together requires trust—the foundation of a high-performing team.”
This is why my advisory practice incorporates outdoor experiences. Not as a gimmick, but as an accelerant. When you share genuine challenges with someone—when you’ve navigated uncertainty together—you’ve built a foundation that formal meetings cannot replicate.
III. Fab’s Spectrum: Advisory and Embedding Are Not Mutually Exclusive
Let me be precise: I am not arguing that arm’s-length advisory is wrong. I have delivered strategic assessments, due diligence reports, and expert opinions that required professional distance.
The question is not advisory versus embedding. The question is: what does this transformation require?
Here is how I think about engagement models:
| Mode | Time | Accountability | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expert Opinion | Hours | Deliverable | Discrete questions, second opinions |
| Project Advisory | Weeks | Recommendations | Defined problem, clear boundaries |
| Fractional Executive | Days/week | Results | Ongoing transformation, capability building |
| Embedded Partner | Deep integration | Shared fate | Strategic repositioning, cultural change |
Recent research shows the fractional executive model growing dramatically—LinkedIn data indicates profiles containing “fractional” alongside C-suite titles increased from approximately 2,000 in 2022 to over 110,000 by late 2024.
But here is what matters: when action is needed, I don’t hide.
My advisory practice at Fab Campaigns operates primarily at the fractional executive level—typically 1-2 days per week, embedded as part of the client’s team rather than advising from outside. This means:
- I feel the stress when decisions don’t land as expected
- I’m in the room when politics gets difficult
- I share accountability for outcomes, not just recommendations
This is uncomfortable. Advisory relationships have emotional distance. Embedding means you feel the friction. But this discomfort is where real work happens.
IV. Actionable Implementation
How do we operationalise the embedding principle? Through specific mechanisms that demonstrate trust and create structures for deep collaboration.
1. The Information Classification Protocol (ICP)
Trust is demonstrated through information access. I use a four-tier system:
| Level | Description | Access Granted When |
|---|---|---|
| C1: Public | Marketing materials, published info | Initial contact |
| C2: Partner | Business plans, strategic priorities | NDA signed |
| C3: Confidential | Financial details, partnership economics | Relationship proven |
| C4: Restricted | Competitive intelligence, unannounced initiatives | Deep trust established |
The progression through these levels is earned through demonstrated trustworthiness. And the movement works both ways.
2. Monthly Coordination, Not Quarterly Check-ins
Traditional advisory operates on quarterly review cycles. By the time you meet, three months of drift has accumulated. Embedded partnerships require different rhythms:
- Weekly working sessions with immediate team
- Bi-weekly steering conversations with leadership
- Monthly strategic alignment with executive sponsor
- Quarterly business reviews for formal governance
3. The Fractional Partnership Director Model
For organisations needing deep partnership capability without full-time executive cost:
- 1-2 days per week embedded with client team
- Dedicated to building internal capability, not creating dependency
- Measured on outcomes achieved, not hours billed
- Clear sunset clause: success means the client no longer needs you
The Harvard Business Review article “How Part-Time Senior Leaders Can Help Your Business” (2025) documents organisations achieving 30% faster growth with fractional executives compared to traditional full-time hires.
4. The Strategic Account Manager Mindset
When working with clients, I adopt the SAM mindset: I am not serving from outside; I am an extension of the client’s team. This means:
- Participating in internal meetings (not just client presentations)
- Building relationships across the client organisation
- Understanding internal politics well enough to navigate them
- Sharing my network in service of the client’s objectives
The client’s colleagues should think of me as “one of us”—someone who happens to work fractionally rather than full-time.
Conclusion
The mountain teaches us that the quality of the relationship determines the quality of the outcome.
On a guided tour, the relationship is transactional: money for expertise. When conditions change—and they always do—the guide fulfils their contract and goes home.
On a rope team, the relationship is relational: commitment for commitment. When conditions change, you adapt together. The rope that binds you is also the rope that saves you.
I have built my practice on the second model. Not because it scales more efficiently—it doesn’t. Not because it’s more comfortable—it isn’t. But because transformational outcomes require transformational presence.
The partnerships I have built through embedding have generated more value, sustained longer, and meant more than any advisory engagement ever could. And they have taught me more than any amount of studying ever would.
You cannot cheat the mountain. And you cannot transform an organisation from the base lodge.
This is the second in a series of essays on the principles underlying Fab Campaigns’ approach to partnerships. The first principle, “Partnerships Over Transactions,” explores why mutual value creation beats zero-sum extraction.
Sources
- Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (ASAP), 2024 Global Alliance Summit, Joy Wilder Lybeer keynote on the four pillars of partnership
- Nwajei, U.O.K. (2021), “How relational contract theory influence management strategies and project outcomes: a systematic literature review,” Construction Management and Economics
- Zak, Paul J. (2017), “The Neuroscience of Trust,” Harvard Business Review
- American Psychological Association (2021), “The Science of Social Bonding”
- Harvard Business Review (2020), “Why You Should Take Your Team Outside”
- McKinsey & Company (2022), “Let Nature Boost Your Team’s Creativity and Performance”
- Yokoi, T. & Bonsall, A. (2025), “How Part-Time Senior Leaders Can Help Your Business,” Harvard Business Review
- Macneil, Ian R. (1980), The New Social Contract: An Inquiry into Modern Contractual Relations