In many organisations, portfolio is still viewed as a list of products and services – something to be expanded in the hope that more choice will unlock more opportunity. In reality, sustainable growth rarely comes from volume alone.
For high-performing businesses, a strategic portfolio is one that is deliberately designed around customer outcomes. It supports acquisition, strengthens retention and creates long-term value through clarity, consistency and service excellence.
In this blog I will be exploring how a focused, service-led portfolio can drive sustainable growth. Drawing on Chubb’s approach to connected services, cross-selling and long-term customer relationships, he explains why portfolio discipline is a critical leadership lever in today’s complex and regulated markets.
Portfolio as a Growth Strategy, Not a Catalogue
Across many sectors, portfolios grow reactively – shaped by short-term sales opportunities or competitor activity. Over time, this can create fragmented offerings that are difficult for customers to navigate and challenging for teams to deliver consistently.
In fire safety and security, where trust, reliability and compliance are paramount, this approach simply doesn’t work. Customers aren’t looking for disconnected products; they’re looking for partners who can manage risk holistically.
A strategic portfolio is therefore not about selling more things. It’s about offering the right combination of services, delivered in a way that supports both immediate needs and long-term resilience.
Portfolio as One of Chubb’s Three Ps
At Chubb, Portfolio sits alongside People and Process as one of our three strategic pillars, and it plays a central role in driving top-line growth.
Our portfolio strategy is built around:
Service and monitoring-led propositions
Multi-discipline contracts that simplify supplier management for customers
Connected services that provide insight, responsiveness and peace of mind
By leading with service, we create opportunities to capture greater share of customer spend while delivering more integrated, value-driven solutions. This approach supports both customer acquisition and retention – helping us build long-term relationships rather than transactional engagements.
However, implementing portfolio discipline is not without challenges. Internal resistance to change, legacy systems and market pressures can all pose obstacles. At Chubb, we address these by fostering a culture of continuous improvement, investing in staff training, and modernising our technology to support agile decision-making.
Connected Services and Cross-Selling with Purpose
Cross-selling is often misunderstood as simply adding more products to an account. At Chubb, it’s about identifying where additional services genuinely enhance protection, performance and compliance.
Connected services play a critical role here. By leveraging data, monitoring and integrated technologies, we’re able to:
Anticipate customer needs
Improve response and reliability
Strengthen ongoing engagement through service excellence
This creates natural opportunities to expand relationships in a way that feels relevant and valuable to customers – not forced or opportunistic. For example, one of our long-term customers faced evolving compliance requirements. By proactively offering a bundled solution that combined fire safety audits with ongoing monitoring, we not only met their immediate needs but also deepened our relationship and opened the door to additional services.
Retention Is Where Sustainable Growth Lives
While acquisition is important, long-term growth depends on retention. A well-curated portfolio makes it easier to retain customers by delivering consistent service, reducing complexity and reinforcing trust over time.
Multi-discipline contracts supported by connected services help customers see Chubb as a long-term partner, not a collection of suppliers. That loyalty is built through reliability, insight and the confidence that we’re continuously investing in their safety and resilience.
Lessons for Business Leaders
Business leaders should regularly review their portfolios, ensuring that each service or product contributes to sustainable growth. This means being willing to make tough decisions – retiring offerings that no longer serve the company or its customers and investing in those that do.
For leaders looking to refine their portfolios, consider these actionable steps:
Conduct regular portfolio reviews with cross-functional teams
Use customer feedback and data analytics to guide decisions
Develop a checklist to assess each offering’s alignment with strategic goals.
Portfolio with Purpose
At Chubb, we see portfolio as a growth engine – one powered by service excellence, commercial discipline and customer insight.
By focusing on connected services, cross-selling with intent and long-term retention, we’re building sustainable growth that benefits our customers, our people and our business.
Because when your portfolio is designed around customer outcomes, sustainable growth follows naturally – built on trust, clarity and long-term value.
Read more:
Building Sustainable Growth Through a Strategic Portfolio