LDC Top 50 2025
Jen Elliott
CEO
EPM
From an early age, Jen Elliott knew she wanted to lead a business. “My dad was a managing director, so I had insight into how a company worked from a young age.” She joined Cambridgeshire-based education consultancy EPM as an alternative to university and was immediately keen to invest in it.
“I wanted to help shape the business, not just work in it.” Rising to CEO, the company sold in 2017, before she and a business partner bought it back in 2023. Today, EPM’s 188-strong team supports over 2,500 schools and 200 trusts, and has launched a network for education leaders. “I love helping young people supercharge their careers.”
I want to help young people supercharge their careers, because I know how important that was to me.”
Q&A
What’s the biggest business lesson you’ve learned?
When you grow with a business, you can end up with blinkers on. In 2017, we sold EPM to Citation Group because the market was consolidating fast and we needed the strength of being part of a bigger organisation to succeed. That sale process taught me more than I could have imagined.
I realised how different internal and external business language can be – from the KPIs investors care about to how you frame a company’s value. I thought I understood business, but a sale process is an education in itself! Six years on, we became less strategically important to the group and needed major investment in tech. So, at the end of 2023, we bought the business back. It was a brilliant chance to reset our strategy.
How do you approach culture and leadership?
People are everything. We have 188 staff and a Glassdoor rating of 4.7. I run a monthly engagement committee with reps from every team; they bring ideas and issues that might not surface otherwise. I want our employees to feel listened to and valued. And I’m not afraid of hiring people better than me. One of the best things I can hear is someone saying, “I want your job.” I don’t feel threatened by that kind of ambition. I’ll support it all the way.
What do you do outside of work to relax?
I rarely switch off, but tennis and yoga are my escape – they demand complete focus, which makes them the perfect antidote to a busy mind. I have two teenagers and my son has just started work experience here. I’ve invested in other businesses and am keen to build a portfolio in different sectors where I can add real value and share everything I’ve learned throughout my career so far.
