Tim Greenwell is engaged as a consultant in our London office and is experienced in the sports and entertainment, automotive, manufacturing and finance sectors. His work focuses on governance, risk and compliance, as well as real estate development projects and corporate investment.
Tim has more than 20 years’ experience in senior in-house roles, which has included working for 10 years at a club in the Premier League/EFL Championship and WSL as general counsel and chief operating officer. He also has extensive experience in the automotive sector, having served as UK general counsel at an automotive sales and marketing company. Tim has also led global compliance at a listed manufacturing group and gained extensive experience in corporate finance.
The breadth of Tim’s experience means that he brings a unique blend of practical legal, risk, project governance and board leadership expertise. His work in C-suite roles means that he understands how to engage with boards and build positive, influential relationships with a diverse set of stakeholders. He has expertise in effectively building and developing leadership teams, working in listed environments and in dealing with the public intensity and pressure found within the sports industry.
Tim is adept at finding solutions to even the most difficult issues and has significant experience in reputation management issues affecting both organisations and individuals, dealing with business disruptions and leading contingency planning. He has also been responsible for leading the delivery of sustainability and people strategies across multiple organisations.
Tim’s experience in sport means that he has expertise of the operation of every aspect of a sports organisation, including board, sporting, commercial and operational areas. He has provided advice on all legal and regulatory areas that impact a modern sports organisation, and is experienced in leading public responses to high-profile issues.
In addition to his work in the sports sector, Tim has considerable experience in the automotive sector. His work means that he has expertise in mitigating risk and identifying opportunities for growth and improvement throughout group activities.
Sports Industry Experience
Embedded board-led strategies and committee structures to deliver good governance and risk management to sporting, commercial and business support divisions of men’s and women’s clubs.
Delivered two ownership changes and corporate finance transactions.
Led the development and improvement of stadium and training facility venues from concept stage, through design, planning, contracting, construction and operation stages.
Worked with local councils and other key stakeholders to develop and deliver the pre-planning phase of a relevant city quarter regeneration masterplan.
Leading the incorporation, strategic development and growth of a startup women’s team.
Negotiated domestic and international transfers for men’s, women’s and academy teams.
Negotiated terms with incoming players, managers, agents and executives.
Led processes in relation to negotiation of the early termination of managers’, coaches’ and executives’ agreements.
Responsibility for stadium safety and operation, including delivery of Premier League EFL, UEFA Cup and international fixtures, as well as matches for the Women’s Euro 2022.
Advised on a range of sporting and commercial disputes, disruptions and reputation management issues. These included leading planned strategic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and nonrecent child sexual abuse cases.
Led development of safeguarding and player wellbeing functions.
Led due diligence processes and investigations processes into commercial partners, financial crime, safeguarding and wellbeing cases, employment issues, harassment and discrimination allegations, player and manager disputes, and online abuse cases.
Advised on compliance with Premier League, EFL and WSL rules and standards, including delivering advanced Premier League Diversity Standard and ongoing compliance with safeguarding standards and stadium operating rules.
Other Sector Experience
Advised on the design and delivery of a pan-European customer data warehousing project.
Delivered internal reporting and committee structures to manage risk and meet Japanese Sarbanes Oxley and NASDAQ reporting requirements.
Advised on all aspects of the design, planning and construction of a new training academy facility in the UK.
Developed crisis management and business continuity plans across UK operations.
Embedded enterprise risk management and compliance programmes across UK and global group operations.
Provided advice in relation to compliance with privacy and data protection laws and complete initial public offerings, obtained International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) certifications and delivered improved commercial performance.
Advised on all aspects of motor vehicle compliance, including vehicle homologation and conformity, as well as product liability issues.
Designed a safeguarding programme and advised on safeguarding issues in relation to young workers completing apprenticeships.