Outsourced Strategic Project Execution support for the South African and EMEA Business Community.

First-class people. Best Practical™ approach. Scaling your ability to execute strategic objectives

Providing high-quality strategy development, execution planning, programme execution and seamless project team augmentation.

The best Strategy, Projects and Talent partner for the South African and EMEA business communities.

With Colab, uncovering business value, unlocking project benefits, and adding flexible capacity to your Project execution and PMO teams has never been easier.

We work with business leaders in South Africa and EMEA who are seeking strategic thinking and traction, effective project delivery, and additional bandwidth to capacitate their project activities.

Our South African-based team combines the benefits of world-class skills and expertise with a unique work ethic and our signature Best Practical™ approach.

Why we Exist

Colab is your strategic benefits realization partner.

Strategy Execution
Planning

90% of organizations fail to execute their strategic plans successfully, leading to a 37% financial value leak (under-performance).

Project Benefit
Realization

Over 50% of projects fail to meet their original goals, resulting in a 65% loss in benefits.

Project Talent
Augmentation

27% of Projects fail outright due to skilled resource shortages and poor capacity planning. Resource demand can spike by 60% above average levels.

Our Clients

Our clients operate in a competitive environment.
We understand the challenges you face and the quality of work you require to be successful.

Corporate Strategy and
Innovation Teams

We work with Strategy and Innovation teams seeking additional capacity for strategy development, strategic project justification, definition, mobilization and execution.

Explore how we work with Corporate Strategy and Innovation Teams

Business Transformation
Teams

We work with Business Transformation teams focussed on business & digital transformation initiatives.

Explore how we work with Business Transformation Teams

Corporate M&A Teams
and M&A Consultants

We work with Merger & Acquisition teams seeking project planning support during deal assessment and outsourced project execution during integration of target organizations.

Explore how we work with Corporate M&A Teams and M&A Consultants

Project Delivery and
Execution (PMO) Teams

We work with Project Delivery and Execution (PMO) teams seeking outsourced project support and augmentation of their execution capacity, from business case justification through mobilisation, and execution to operational support.

Explore how we work with Project Delivery and Execution (PMO) Teams

Strategy and Capability
Development Consultants

We work with mid-market and large consultants to assist and support them on their strategy- and capability development assignments.

Explore how we work with Strategy and Capability Development Consultants

“Colab was able to provide a strong project team when we needed to move really quickly on a critical project. Quantin van Rensburg – CIO – Platinum Health

Our Services

Colab provides our clients with innovative strategy consulting, project delivery and execution services, comprehensive project portfolio management and tailored talent solutions, all supported by our unique Best-Practical™ approach.

Strategic Thinking, Strategy Development and Execution Planning

Colab assists you in thinking through your ideas, connecting various elements of your core ideology, business model, value creation model, operating model, financial model, as well as your capital funding model at business, team, and individual levels.

Explore how we assist clients with strategic thinking, strategy development and execution planning.

Strategic Capability
Development

Colab utilizes data analysis, surveys, interviews, and capability inspections to create an X-Ray view of capability. This X-Ray is then evaluated in the form of a blueprint heatmap, indicating the health status of each component and where to focus.

Explore how we assist clients with strategic capability development.

Strategic Project
Delivery

Colab focuses on delivering project benefits by emphasizing key attributes that have proven successful since 2008, across more than 600 projects. We are uniquely positioned to take on tough projects. We bring in our own PMO environment, deploy strong resources, and create structure and traction to achieve project success.

Explore how we assist clients with strategic project delivery.

Project and PMO Consulting
and Services

Colab can create a new PMO, refresh an existing one, or retrofit components as needed. Our PMO-in-a-box offering, or tailored designs, can help you gain traction with your PMO and portfolio of projects.

Explore how we assist clients with Project and PMO consulting and services.

Project Team
Augmentation

Colab offers highly skilled contract and permanent project professionals who seamlessly integrate with your team dynamics. This flexible execution capacity allows you to scale effectively and achieve strategic outcomes with ease.

Explore how we assist clients with Project team augmentation.

Offshore Project
Resourcing

Colab offers highly skilled project resources to execute projects in the EMEA and South African time zones, using a remote model for organizations with a portfolio of projects and a functional PMO capability.

Explore how we assist clients with Offshore Project Resourcing.

Trusted by companies of all sizes

Engagement options:

Need to make your business strategy happen?

We offer a range of engagement options tailored to your needs.

Modular

Time Commitment:
1 day to 6 weeks

Service Offering:

ThinkPartner, PM for a day
Discovery X-Rays
1-Page Strategy Execution Plan
In-a-box solutions
Modular consultant led engagements
Time-boxed, agile
Pre-packaged “In-a-Box” fast-tracked deployments
Quick traction
Short commitments
Not ready for big investment
Don’t have skills or time internally

Projects

Time Commitment:
SOW (Scope of Work) & Project Timeline

Service Offering:

Project setup for success
Client represented
Colab managed
Ownership for traction
Skills, Structures, Governance, Platform
Start-to-end managed consulting project
Scope-driven
Utilizing Colab delivery capability (PMO in a box)
Quick traction
Visibility, ownership & progress
Strategic projects that can’t afford to fail
Projects approved for implementation
Professional project delivery required

Managed

Time Commitment:
As required

Service Offering:

Oversight & content support
Quality assurance
Training / coaching
Methods, frameworks & tools
Highly skilled project resources
Wrapped as a service with:
- Oversight & content support
- Quality assurance
- Training / coaching
- Methods, frameworks & tools
Wheel-in capability
Quick mobilization required
Flexibility
Need capability and capacity for a period without hassle

Augmentation

Time Commitment:
24-month contract (30-day exit)

Service Offering:

Top Project Talent
Colab employed
Client managed
Can be wrapped as a service
Highly skilled project resources for SA market
Highly skilled Offshore resources for EMEA market
Flexible, off-payroll capacity
Colab employed - Client managed
Contract or Permanent
Expertly matched to your needs
Reduced employment hassle
Light recruitment burden
Need flex capacity as extension of own internal capability

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you engage with your clients?

We offer a range of engagement options tailored to your needs. Options include modular consultant-led engagements, managed strategic consulting service, project delivery services, as well as project resourcing services for the South African and EMEA business communities. These engagement models can easily be combined or tailored to suit your needs.

Your team is based in South Africa, so how do your working hours align with EMEA?

Our team is based in South Africa, which aligns closely with EMEA. We align our team’s contractual working hours to that of our clients.

How does Colab manage remote working?

Colab has embraced remote working since 2020. Our aim is to become a natural extension of your team, which works best with regular and real-time communication. This can be through email, Microsoft Teams, phone calls, or other forms of communication that suit you and your team. Additionally, having a consultant who works remotely offers the benefit of increased flexibility and access to a broader talent pool, ensuring you get the best expertise regardless of location.

You are based in South Africa, but will we have an opportunity to meet you in person if we’re in EMEA?

While our client delivery team is based in South Africa, we regularly visit EMEA to meet with both existing and potential new clients. We always welcome the chance to meet face-to-face, as it helps us build stronger relationships with our clients, in addition to helping us better understand how we can serve you.

How does Colab handle confidentiality and conflict of interest?

We take confidentiality and conflict of interest very seriously. Our employees are bound by individual confidentiality agreements and declarations of interest in their employment contracts with Colab. Additionally, we recommend that our clients have Colab resources sign non-disclosure agreements during their onboarding process when they join the client team as contract resources.

What is the Best-Practical™ approach?

The Colab Best-Practical™ approach is our trademarked framework, and is characterised by simplicity value extraction and light governance suited to the client environment. We take best practices and tailor them to practical use, while we skilfully facilitate the best solution for our client’s needs.

Can Colab help us develop our business strategy?

Yes, certainly! We assist you in thinking through your ideas, connecting various elements of your core ideology, business model, value creation model, Go to Market (GTM), operating model, financial model, as well as your capital funding model at the business, team, and individual levels. We employ short, modular engagements to diagnose the current situation, analyze data from existing practices, and co-create conceptual solutions, ultimately generating traction to move the idea to implementation.

We already have a business strategy, but we’re struggling to execute it. Can Colab help us prioritize?

Yes, absolutely! Colab specializes in helping businesses to break down their overall strategy into manageable chunks, using our Best-Practical™ prioritization approach and innovation frameworks. Furthermore, Colab will help you execute and deliver the projects and programmes following from the strategy, as well as track the performance of the strategy execution.

We’re losing track of all the projects in our business. Can Colab help us?

For sure! Setting up strategic benefit realization roadmaps, capital funding roadmaps, resource capacity plans, project progress registers and prioritizing projects that will deliver the most business value, is our forte. Also, in addition to delivering projects, Colab also specializes in project performance tracking. We make your project investment performance visible.

What does Colab do differently?

At Colab we believe in our Best-Practical™ approach, which is characterized by traction, simplicity, and light governance. This enables you, our client, to execute your strategy faster and reach profitability sooner. Our facilitative approach enables us to lead our clients to unlock benefits as we partner with you through the transformation journey.

What sets Colab apart in Project Delivery?

Colab was founded on the principle of delivering tangible project results, not just managing project activities. This ethos is embedded in our culture of taking ownership for outcomes, understanding our customers’ needs, being transparent, and caring for people.

What are Colab’s areas of expertise in Project Delivery?

We tackle the challenging strategic projects that drive significant organizational change. Our expertise lies in Business Transformation projects, ICT Projects, and Merger & Acquisition projects.

Can Colab take on difficult projects?

Colab is uniquely positioned to take on tough projects. We bring in our own PMO environment, deploy strong resources, and create structure and traction to achieve project success. This approach means we create some initial discomfort as we move the organization, but the benefits of our methods soon become evident in the integrated team.

How does Colab set up successful projects?

At Colab, we use a structured, facilitated approach that sets up challenging projects for success within a month, incorporating all the essential components needed for successful execution. This method is the fastest way to transition a project from stagnation to productive momentum, reducing the lengthy and often painful planning phase.

Can Colab set up a new PMO?

Yes, certainly! Whether your need is for a large or small business, a strategic portfolio office, a large program office, or an operational project office, Colab can assist. We can create a new PMO, refresh an existing one, or retrofit components as needed. Our PMO-in-a-box offering, or tailored designs, can help you gain traction with your PMO and portfolio of projects.

What roles do Colab specialize in for Team Augmentation?

In addition to specializing in PMO and Project Management roles, such as Programme Managers, Heads of PMO, PMO Managers, PMO Specialists, Project Planners, Project Managers, Scrum Masters, Project Administrators, and others, we also specialize in various other IT roles, such as Business Analysts, Process Engineers, Data Engineers, Software Developers, Solutions Architects, Data Analysts, and the like. In short any role that a project needs for a period of time.

What are the benefits of using contract resources?

Utilizing contract resources allows you, as a business leader, to maintain a flexible, off-payroll workforce that can scale according to your demand needs. This flexibility enables you to focus on driving strategic results. Additionally, contract placements simplify recruitment and help reduce the risk of costly mis-hires.

Does Colab offer only contract placements, or do they also provide permanent placements?

We offer both contract and permanent placements, depending on our clients’ needs. We also offer a temp-to-perm option.

How long will it take to place a contract resource at my company?

Our aim is to have a shortlist of top candidates on your desk within 7 days from date of enquiry, then it depends on your internal commercial and interview processes and the availability of the chosen resource. We have placed people within one week but typically it can take between 2 and 7 weeks to place a contractor.

Will I need to sift through a stack of CVs to find the best candidate?

No, Colab handles that for you. We take the stack of CVs off your desk and onto ours. After a thorough screening process, we use our proprietary matching model to send you only the top 3 CVs for the position.

Can I appoint a contract resource permanently?

Yes, that is the benefit of the temp-to-perm model. You can start by appointing a resource on contract, and if the individual is a good fit for your company culture and way of working, you can go ahead with a permanent placement.

How can I get started?

Simply complete the Contact form below, and one of our managers will contact you shortly. You will experience that it’s easy to do business with Colab.

First-class people. Best Practical™ approach. Scaling your ability to execute strategic objectives

The best Strategy, Projects and Talent partner for the South African and EMEA business communities.

Why we Exist

Strategy ExecutionPlanning

Project BenefitRealization

Project TalentAugmentation

Our Clients

Corporate Strategy andInnovation Teams

Business TransformationTeams

Corporate M&A Teamsand M&A Consultants

Project Delivery andExecution (PMO) Teams

Strategy and CapabilityDevelopment Consultants