About — Ashvaren Advisory

Who we are

Founded on experience, not theory

Ashvaren Advisory is a founder-led practice offering strategic, financial and operational support to creative, technology and IP-rich businesses.

The practice is led by Mike Warriner, a former General Counsel, CFO and COO. Mike trained as a lawyer before moving into corporate finance, and then into senior operating roles across the creative and technology sectors. Career highlights include the AIM listing of Focusrite plc and the sale of Spitfire Audio to Distributed Creation. That depth of cross-disciplinary experience across law, finance and operations is what Ashvaren brings to each engagement.

Ashvaren Advisory is intentionally small. That means no junior consultants, no rotating account leads and no inflated overheads. Every client engagement is led personally by Mike, ensuring depth of attention, discretion and consistency from the first conversation to the final deliverable.

Legal, financial and operational depth applied at every stage of a client engagement;
The directness to say what others will not; and
A deliberately small client base, ensuring every engagement receives full senior attention.

Mike Warriner, founder of Ashvaren Advisory

What we do

Capabilities

Strategic advisory

Commercial strategy, pricing, market positioning and growth frameworks. Grounded in real operational experience rather than models built at a remove from the business, and applied with a practitioner's understanding of what it takes to execute.

Operational design

Organisational structure, process clarity and scalable operating models. Ashvaren helps leadership teams build the foundations that allow a business to scale without losing capability, culture or the trust of its people.

Financial leadership

Part-time CFO and financial stewardship: cash flow, forecasting, board reporting, investment-ready model-building and commercial decision support. The discipline of a seasoned finance director, without the full-time commitment or overhead.

Transactions and IP

M&A preparation, EIS and SEIS fundraising structuring, IP assignment and valuation, and investor positioning. The combination of legal training and senior operating experience means Ashvaren can engage substantively at every stage of a transaction: not only the commercial strategy, but the legal and financial mechanics underneath it.

Strategic offsites and executive sessions

Bespoke sessions designed to challenge assumptions and sharpen commercial thinking at the leadership level: strategic offsites, executive teach-ins and decision-making workshops. A companion to the advisory work, not a separate discipline, and grounded in the same directness that characterises every Ashvaren engagement.

How we work

Structured for depth, not volume

Ashvaren Advisory works with a deliberately small number of clients at any one time. This is not a growth strategy. It is a quality commitment. Every engagement receives senior attention and full focus.

Ashvaren is comfortable working alongside existing advisers, accountants and legal counsel. The practice is not territorial about its role. The interest is in helping the business reach the right outcome, not in expanding the advisory footprint within it.

If Ashvaren is not the right fit for what you need, that will be said clearly. Introductory conversations are without obligation, and without sales pressure of any kind.

Ongoing retainer

For part-time CFO or COO work: typically a set number of days per month, billed in advance. Suited to businesses that need consistent senior input over an extended period.

Fixed-fee project

For defined deliverables: strategic reviews, financial model builds, planning sessions or leadership programmes. Scoped clearly and priced accordingly.

Day rate or sessional

For targeted support, board preparation, teach-ins or short-term advisory. Flexible and straightforward, with no minimum commitment.

Senior, cross-disciplinary and sole-principal by design