At Orange Squid, we believe the best work happens when expertise meets energy, and strategy is paired with creativity. We’re not just consultants—we’re partners, challengers, and collaborators who thrive on solving the complex and the ambiguous. We know what traditional consultancies feel like—we’ve been there. That’s why we’ve built something different. We’re deliberately small, deliberately agile, and unapologetically focused on the work that matters most. With deep expertise in Strategy, Innovation, AI, and Change, we know how to deliver real value, and have fun along the way.
Here’s how we’re different:
The Senior Consultant, Partner or Director who comes in during the initial meeting and ‘sprinkles the fairy dust’ is rarely seen when it comes to doing the work. You get stuck with the junior.
We don’t hire juniors. The Partner or Senior Consultant you meet, with all their demonstrated expertise and experience, is the consultant who will be hands on with your project.
Expect smart, curious minds tackling your challenges with enthusiasm and precision. We bring clarity where there’s complexity, momentum where there’s inertia, and a lot of heart in everything we do. At the end of the day, we do this work because we love it—and because we love seeing our clients succeed. But don’t take our word for it; our clients say it better than we ever could.
The way we work with our clients is very much in a partnership model. We’re hands-on, because the best outcomes are always achieved when we all work together as one team.
We are equally comfortable – and have a proven track record of success – working closely with the Executive team; and with your newest recruits in the Grad program (and everyone in-between).
“Orange Squid was incredibly engaging to work with, sharing many interesting insights and experiences to illustrate best practice methods. The feedback from the team was overwhelmingly positive, leaving them feeling inspired and motivated. I would highly recommend Mark, Astrid and the team at Orange Squid.”
“The Orange Squid team brought some real intellectual rigour to the process and challenged us to think differently about getting insights. And most importantly they worked collaboratively with the team to up-skill them in best practices and to think differently, whilst also making the whole process commercially rewarding and enjoyable.”
“Orange Squid has a passion that is infectious. As a team, their skills are highly complementary. Mark brings expertise in competitive strategy and the technical aspects of innovation. He is a highly engaging story-teller and trainer, and has been very successful in conveying the impetus for innovation and compelling audiences to action. Astrid brings valuable insight as an organisational psychologist. By understanding the complexity of effecting change within the culture of an established organisation, she has been able to provide advice through challenging situations as the foundation for the program was laid, and then gradually embedded. They have been involved at every level of the business – from interns to the executive leadership. By making complex concepts digestible and simple, they are able to cut through and inspire employees in the business to make a direct impact that adds value. I have always found Orange Squid to be professional, reliable and to consistently produce high quality work. It has been a pleasure working with them.”
“Astrid’s presentation on ‘Building a Highly Innovative Organisation and Culture’ to the principals of our Firm was very well received. She was engaging, enthusiastic and motivating – not an easy task, as the last speaker of the day. The presentation proved to be very insightful and most importantly included practical tools that could be applied in the workplace on a day-to-day basis.”
“The team was given the challenge of how the customer benefits of Coles Financial Services and flybuys could be aligned to create unparalleled value. To solve this, Mark and Astrid helped us uncover innovative synergies and then prioritise our next steps. Their approach was consultative and outcome focused. I highly recommend their work.”
“There are 2 types of consulting firms, those flattering your ego and those helping you address your most challenging issues. Orange Squid is one of the latter. The balance of capabilities and the dynamic between Astrid, Mark and Trish result in a surgical assessment of the challenges, a documented development of options and an innovative decision process. Always one step ahead, Orange Squid delivers the extra service and advice that will position your executive team in the best situation to perform.”
“Orange Squid provides a process which can empower people to solve material challenges within any organisation. With meticulous research and convergent/divergent lead thinking, the Orange Squid team can tap into a collective creative that breaks through group think and generates highly valuable outcomes.”
Helping organisations to innovate and grow has been the focus of Mark’s entire career. In addition to completing a Masters’ Degree at the University of Melbourne (First Class Hons), Mark is an Oxford graduate (Strategy & Innovation) who has also completed the Competitive Strategy Program (BSCA) at Harvard Business School. His recent postgraduate dissertation, which was awarded a distinction at the University of Oxford, focused on commercializing innovations in established, complex organisations.
Mark has worked extensively in strategy development, innovation, and organisational transformation through working closely with senior management teams in some of the world’s most successful companies. He has delivered keynotes and workshops across the globe in the USA, UK, throughout SE Asia, India and in every state of Australia.
Mark is passionate about developing innovation and growth strategies that deliver results. With a background in both strategy consulting and innovation consulting, Mark has seen strategy, innovation and growth programs soak up resources over extended time, with limited tangible value being delivered. Through Orange Squid, he ensures that things are different!
As soon as you meet Mark, you can’t escape his passion for delivering tangible results. In his spare time, he flies light aircraft, dives in caves and on shipwrecks, plays the drums and studies, lots!
Astrid is an Organisational Psychologist and (together with Mark) is the co-founder of Orange Squid. The research that underpinned her Master’s degree in Organisational Psychology focused on organisational culture, innovation and decision-making processes in organisations. Astrid continued her postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics where she focused on innovation and entrepreneurship in organisations. These critical areas of focus have played a central role throughout Astrid’s career in Australia, as well as in the Netherlands.
Astrid has worked with some of the world’s leading organisations in a large variety of industries where she has driven organisational cultural change that delivers growth through innovation. After Astrid’s research revealed the key elements which typically underpin high performance innovation cultures, her desire for delivering holistic approaches to organisational change grew significantly. Astrid has become extremely passionate about developing cultures in which innovation can thrive, in a way that supports the very specific strategies and structures of Orange Squid’s clients.
In her spare time Astrid loves to drink great coffee with her friends (and lots of it – there is no such thing as too much coffee for the Dutch!); spending time in Europe to catch up with family; seeking adventure in places all over the world; and researching!
Trish is a highly skilled and experienced researcher who specialises in exploratory research at Orange Squid. She has worked (and in addition to her work at Orange Squid, continues to work) as a researcher at Melbourne University, as well as in a Senior Researcher role at the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute.
With a Master’s degree in Law (from Melbourne University), a degree in Education, and professional accreditation from the Research Society, Trish brings extraordinary research
expertise and breadth of knowledge to every project. Trish has worked in Geneva at the International Service for Human Rights, at the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection, and as a Legal Case Officer at the Migration Review Tribunal.
Trish is a keen road cyclist, as well as a dedicated reader and writer of fiction. It’s fair to say she enjoys travelling too, given that she has visited 47 countries!
Helping organisations to innovate and grow has been the focus of Mark’s entire career. In addition to completing a Masters’ Degree at the University of Melbourne (First Class Hons), Mark is an Oxford graduate (Strategy & Innovation) who has also completed the Competitive Strategy Program (BSCA) at Harvard Business School. His recent postgraduate dissertation, which was awarded a distinction at the University of Oxford, focused on commercializing innovations in established, complex organisations.
Mark has worked extensively in strategy development, innovation, and organisational transformation through working closely with senior management teams in some of the world’s most successful companies. He has delivered keynotes and workshops across the globe in the USA, UK, throughout SE Asia, India and in every state of Australia.
Mark is passionate about developing innovation and growth strategies that deliver results. With a background in both strategy consulting and innovation consulting, Mark has seen strategy, innovation and growth programs soak up resources over extended time, with limited tangible value being delivered. Through Orange Squid, he ensures that things are different!
As soon as you meet Mark, you can’t escape his passion for delivering tangible results. In his spare time, he flies light aircraft, dives in caves and on shipwrecks, plays the drums and studies, lots!
Astrid is an Organisational Psychologist and (together with Mark) is the co-founder of Orange Squid. The research that underpinned her Master’s degree in Organisational Psychology focused on organisational culture, innovation and decision-making processes in organisations. Astrid continued her postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics where she focused on innovation and entrepreneurship in organisations. These critical areas of focus have played a central role throughout Astrid’s career in Australia, as well as in the Netherlands.
Astrid has worked with some of the world’s leading organisations in a large variety of industries where she has driven organisational cultural change that delivers growth through innovation. After Astrid’s research revealed the key elements which typically underpin high performance innovation cultures, her desire for delivering holistic approaches to organisational change grew significantly. Astrid has become extremely passionate about developing cultures in which innovation can thrive, in a way that supports the very specific strategies and structures of Orange Squid’s clients.
In her spare time Astrid loves to drink great coffee with her friends (and lots of it – there is no such thing as too much coffee for the Dutch!); spending time in Europe to catch up with family; seeking adventure in places all over the world; and researching!
Trish is a highly skilled and experienced researcher who specialises in exploratory research at Orange Squid. She has worked (and in addition to her work at Orange Squid, continues to work) as a researcher at Melbourne University, as well as in a Senior Researcher role at the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute.
With a Master’s degree in Law (from Melbourne University), a degree in Education, and professional accreditation from the Research Society, Trish brings extraordinary research
expertise and breadth of knowledge to every project. Trish has worked in Geneva at the International Service for Human Rights, at the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection, and as a Legal Case Officer at the Migration Review Tribunal.
Trish is a keen road cyclist, as well as a dedicated reader and writer of fiction. It’s fair to say she enjoys travelling too, given that she has visited 47 countries!
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