A letter from our founder

“Six extraordinary years as chief executive of ECIS, a global membership organisation for international and independent schools whose combined annual school fees represented over $4 billion USD, taught me that the sector would benefit from a socially-conscious advisory that followed three simple principles. First, it had to be digital-first, rather than in-person-first. Second, it had to be designed around environmental sustainability, with a minimum goal to be carbon-neutral, and a stretch goal to be carbon-negative. Third, it had to be designed according to complex adaptive systems theory in order to be sufficiently responsive to help schools build value and purpose in a dynamic world. How would that approach manifest itself in terms of offerings? We would need to offer insights and analytics to help client schools make decisions, and we would have to design for digitally-available consultancy, which could be complemented by in-person advisory, as and when needed. From there, Westlake can adapt to anything. It was natural, therefore, to take a consulting company I had formed years earlier (RU Strategic, Inc., founded 2011) and transform it into Westlake, in a nod to the beautiful West Lake of Hangzhou (China), a cultural area comprising numerous temples, pagodas, pavilions, gardens and ornamental trees, as well as causeways and artificial islands, which I have had the privilege to visit several times.

To underscore our commitment to create a social benefit for the sector, Westlake will become a Certified B Corporation by 2024, adhering voluntarily to a rigorous quality assurance protocol that ensures that we take into account all our stakeholders when considering the design and impact of our advisory.”

Kevin J Ruth, PhD
Founder & Managing Director