Senior Executives Turn to Portfolio Careers as UK Redundancy Warnings Hit Five-Year High

Charles McLachlan Founder & CEO The Portfolio Executive

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The Portfolio Executives opens registration for its free Fractional Executive Jumpstart programme as UK job cuts reshape senior careers.

CAMBRIDGE, CAMBRIDGESHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, August 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Portfolio Executives is inviting senior leaders to register for its free Fractional Executive Jumpstart programme as UK redundancy warnings reach their highest level since 2020 and more executives consider portfolio careers.

Employers flagged 315,605 jobs for potential redundancy in 2025, the highest annual total since 2020 and a 45 per cent rise in 2021, according to Insolvency Service data obtained by Liquidation Centre through a Freedom of Information request. The firm forecasts around 327,000 redundancies across 2026.

Senior staff are feeling the pressure directly. The Office for National Statistics reported in June that payrolled employees fell by about 119,000 in the year to May 2026, while vacancies dropped to their lowest level since early 2021. The Financial Times has reported that some employers are moving their highest-paid staff to the front of redundancy lists before the cap on unfair dismissal payouts is scrapped in January 2027.

At the same time, independent leadership models are growing. The share of new executive roles that mention fractional work has tripled since 2018, according to Revelio Labs workforce data reported by Forbes in January 2026.

Fractional Executive Jumpstart responds to both trends. The free programme teaches experienced senior professionals how to move into fractional and portfolio executive work. Participants learn how to package their expertise, position and price their services, win multiple clients, and build recurring part-time leadership engagements.

The programme is led by Charles McLachlan, a former partner at a global consulting firm, founder of FuturePerfect, and creator of the Portfolio Executive Growth Academy. He teaches the transition through methodology rather than motivation.

"Redundancy at a senior level can feel like an ending, but for many leaders it becomes the push towards a better workstyle," said Charles McLachlan, Founder, The Portfolio Executives. "A portfolio career lets an experienced executive serve several organisations part-time, spread their income risk, and put decades of hard-won wisdom to work where it is genuinely needed."

The Portfolio Executives draws a clear line between a portfolio executive and a short-term freelancer or general consultant. A portfolio executive forms an ongoing, part-time relationship with each client and takes responsibility for a business function, whether as a fractional director, functional leader, strategic adviser, or C-suite executive.

Programme participants also join a community of experienced executives working across finance, operations, marketing, technology, sales, and strategy. The company says this network helps members share opportunities and build sustainable second-half careers rather than simply finding their next role.

Senior leaders can reserve a free place on the next Fractional Executive Jumpstart at https://portfolioexecutive.biz/go/flareai-fractional-executive-jumpstart/.

About The Portfolio Executives

The Portfolio Executives is a UK-based community and training platform for fractional leadership and portfolio careers. It helps experienced senior professionals transition from full-time corporate roles into part-time executive work across multiple clients. The platform is operated by FuturePerfect, a trading name of the Transformation Development Partnership LLP (Reg: OC334978), registered in Ely, Cambridge, England.

Charles McLachlan
The Portfolio Executives
+44 7799 347799
charles.mclachlan@futureperfect.company
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Senior Executives Turn to Portfolio Careers as UK Redundancy Warnings Hit Five-Year High