About us
At Outsized, we’re reshaping how independent consulting and contracting works in financial services. We’re the only platform purpose-built for experienced independent professionals in banking, insurance, fintech, and consulting – created by people who’ve walked in your shoes.
Our team comes from top consulting firms, financial institutions, and FS-focused private equity, so we know what great talent looks like from both sides of the table.
What truly sets us apart is how we work. We believe in building a sustainable, ethical talent market that benefits clients and independents alike — with fair rates, genuine partnerships, and a good dose of enjoyment along the way.
What we do
Outsized connects banks, insurers, fintechs, consulting firms, and investors with vetted independent consultants, subject-matter experts, interims, and fractionals.
We help clients fill critical capability gaps, deliver transformation and growth projects, and build agile workforce models that scale fast — without compromising on quality.
Our projects range from digital transformation and strategy to risk, regulation, data, and operations. Assignments typically run from 1–12 months, either onsite or remote.
If you want the detail, our Talent-on-Demand Report 2025 explores skill demand, day rates, and regional insights across financial services, private equity, and consulting.
What we believe in
What we believe in is as important, if not more so, than what we do. It’s our beliefs and values that shape how we interact with all stakeholders; clients, independents, and our team. There are three things we hold very dear (it always has to be three things, remember we’re ex-consultants!):
More efficient, unbiased, matching of skills and demand. When we match the right skills to the right opportunity, without any bias, the outcomes will be better for every assignment. Repeated thousands of times, this approach will lead companies to perform better, create more job opportunities, and contribute more in taxes – benefitting whole societies. In our books these are some great wins!
Being a force for good in the talent market. Some talent marketplace business models focus almost entirely on client benefits, but at the same time they lead to a race to the bottom in terms of pay and terms & conditions for freelancers. We strongly believe that it’s in everyone’s best interest, also for clients, to work for a more equitable model. Highly skilled professionals will only become (and stay) independent if they are paid fairly, set up for success, and be treated well overall. Thus, not only is it the right thing to do, it’s also in the self interest of clients.
Doing business in the right way – with all stakeholders. We have tried to summarize our core corporate values in three words: Integrity, Passion, and Accountability. What these simple words try to capture is that we always act ethically (not always the case in the broader talent market), that we are very passionate and determined, and that each and every one of us takes responsibility, think critically, work collaboratively, and act as owners.
The above values and beliefs shape all of our interactions. And here’s the thing – it’s not just in our work with clients, but also with our talent, and, importantly, within our teams. We are far from perfect and we make many mistakes, but the intention and effort is there. If you are a client or talent and have tips on how we can do better, please do reach out directly to niclas[at]outsized[dot]com. If you’ve not yet experienced working with us, take a moment to check out what clients, talent, and our team think on Trustpilot, Google, and Glassdoor.
How it all started
Outsized began with a simple frustration.
Our founder, Niclas Thelander, was working in private equity, leading the value creation efforts across the fund’s financial services portfolio companies. Time and again, he struggled to find the right external talent to deliver ambitious growth plans with the right quality and pace required. Strategy was easy to design – execution was hard to resource.
In 2016, he teamed up with Anurag Bhalla, who shared his belief that consulting and industry professionals deserved a better platform. With Anurag’s background in insurance, proposition design, and innovation consulting, the two combined complementary perspectives — and built Outsized from a PowerPoint deck, bold ambition, and a lot of coffee.
A few years later, Johann van Niekerk (ex-insurance and FS venture building) and Azeem Zainulbhai (with experience spanning banking, private equity, and venture-backed scale-ups) joined as co-founders. Most recently, the leadership team has been complemented by the addition of Sara Kahlau, an ex-strategy consultant and talent platform director, further deepening our expertise across consulting, technology, and the future of work.
Together, they grew Outsized into a trusted platform connecting independent professionals and clients around the world.
Today, we’re a 50+ strong global team with a shared purpose: helping organisations build flexible, high-performing teams through exceptional independent talent.
Where you can find us
We’re a global business with hubs in Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, India, South Africa, and Sweden.
Our reach is global, but our approach is personal. We love digital collaboration, but we also believe in real connections – hosting roundtables, breakfasts, and meet-ups that bring together clients, independents, and industry experts to share insights and ideas.