ScaleUps Podcast: Recent Episodes
Sean Steele
Founders who've scaled. Founders still striving.
What could you achieve if you knew the secrets and strategies of the Founders who've already achieved scale? Join Sean Steele as he interviews the Founders who've made it, learns from industry experts, and follows a group of Founders still striving to scale.
The ScaleUps Podcast is more about strategy and practical tools, than inspiration.
This week on the ScaleHQ podcast, learn how Ant Botica transitioned from a corporate banker to creating unforgettable yacht experiences with Solamoré Events, offering practical guidance on building a lifestyle-aligned business and overcoming entrepreneurship challenges.
In this episode of the ScaleHQ podcast, I speak with Ant Botica, Founder of Solamoré Events, to hear his extraordinary journey from the corporate world of banking to becoming the "Superyacht Guy" known for creating exciting luxury yachts events.
Ant shares his story of perseverance, passion, and his quest to build a business that aligns with his lifestyle and values.
Here are the key points we covered:
1. The Journey from Banking to Entrepreneurship:
- Ant recounts his decision to leave the banking industry after a life-changing visit to Croatia, which inspired him to pursue a more fulfilling and adventurous career path.
2. Creating Solamoré :
- We dive into how Ant built Solamoré , a referral-based business that organises exceptional yacht events in multiple countries, emphasising the importance of creating unforgettable customer experiences.
3. Challenges of Scaling:
- All Founders experience challenges, and Ant is no different. He discusses the difficulties he faced in the early stages of his business, including financial struggles, the 2008 financial crisis, the impact of COVID-19, and how he overcame these obstacles.
4. The Importance of Passion and Adaptability:
- Ant highlights the significance of loving what you do and being willing to adapt and pivot your business model as necessary to ensure long-term success.
5. Leveraging Personal and Professional Networks:
- Ant underscores the value of having mentors and a robust support network to navigate the complexities of scaling a business.
Tune in now to unlock your journey of successful scaling.
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify:
• https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple:
• https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube:
• https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website:
www.ScaleHQ.com.au/106
New Beginnings: How Living in Cyprus Transformed My Approach to Life and Business
In this week's solo ScaleHQ podcast episode, I discuss the transformative lessons I learned during my first 100 days living in Cyprus.
Like any big move, I have learned to adapt and overcome a series of unexpected challenges and discoveries that impact my family life and offer profound insights into my approach to business.
Here are the key lessons I have learned:
1. Embracing uncertainty:
Relocating to a new country has heightened my awareness of balancing certainty and uncertainty.
This lesson is vital for founders and entrepreneurs who must constantly navigate the unpredictability of business, providing insights on maintaining flexibility without losing sight of stability.
2. Importance of support systems:
The move underscored the critical role of maintaining strong relationships during periods of significant change.
I reflect on the importance of being present for my family and creating spaces that foster connection and support, paralleling the need for robust networks and support systems in scaling businesses.
3. Time management and realistic expectations:
I share my realizations about time—specifically, that everything worthwhile takes longer than expected.
This lesson is crucial for business leaders, emphasizing the need for patience and proper pacing when embarking on new ventures or scaling existing operations.
4. Reflection and adaptation:
Finally, I stress the importance of continuous learning and adaptation, whether adjusting to a new country or adjusting business models to meet evolving market demands better.
This episode is a must-listen for anyone facing or contemplating significant life or business changes.
It offers inspiration and practical advice on navigating these challenges.
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify:
• https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple:
• https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube:
• https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website:
• www.ScaleHQ.com.au/
ScaleHQ #Entrepreneurship #BusinessLeadership #LifeLessons #Podcast
This week, Sean guest stars on Guillaume Jouvencel’s podcast show, “The Podcast Gurus” to discuss the key questions Founders need to ask themselves when scaling, offering practical guidance on overcoming challenges while preparing for maximum scale and exit optionality.
In this episode, Sean joins “The Podcast Gurus” podcast to talk about the principles of scaling a business and the common challenges, while offering his strategic and seasoned insight.
In the conversation, Sean unpacks:
- The characteristics of a successful scaler, differentiating between the skills needed for starting a business versus scaling one, emphasizing the importance of vision, strategy, and the ability to execute long-term plans without sacrificing the quality or integrity of the business model.
- Tailored scaling strategies and how they vary significantly between industries, such as digital versus brick-and-mortar, highlighting the universal principles that guide his approach to scaling any business.
- The dangers of rapid scaling, including the potential pitfalls of scaling too quickly without proper foundations.
- Role of peer networks in scaling, highlighting the importance of having a robust support network, mentors, and advisors who provide invaluable resources and perspectives that aid in navigating the challenges of scaling a business.
Tune in now to unlock your journey of successful scaling.
PodcastGurus #BusinessScaling #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #ProfessionalDevelopment
This week, I explore the revolutionary outcome-aligned pricing model , revealing how this dynamic strategy can heighten your business to new levels of success.In this week's solo ScaleHQ podcast episode, I dive into the game-changing strategy of outcome-aligned pricing and how it can spark significant growth and differentiation for businesses.I share why this model is critical for any founder looking to navigate their next growth phase while exploring the advantages of using the model, such as:✓ Enhancing differentiation, ✓ Accelerating customer acquisition, ✓ Improving margins, ✓ Fostering loyalty, and ✓ Generating referralsTo help you explore this model for your own business, I also provide essential questions to consider and a success checklist to ensure your outcome-aligned pricing strategy is sustainable while effectively manages risk.IN THIS EPISODE, I COVER:• How outcome-aligned pricing is a powerful tool in a founder's toolkit to enable growth and differentiation.• Real-world examples from various industries (e.g., education with Lambda School, real estate with Place Real Estate in Brisbane, government tender processes, and digital marketing) to illustrate the application and success of outcome-aligned pricing.• How you can develop an outcome-aligned pricing model for your business to ensure sustainability and managed risk.• The importance of shared risk, where businesses take on more risk for greater rewards, enhancing trust and loyalty with clients.• How the innovative pricing approach can differentiate your business from your competitors while also aligning your business's success with your customer’s success, fostering a partnership rather than a transactional relationship.
This episode isn't just about rethinking pricing; it's about deepening connections with customers by becoming true partners in their success, creating meaningful relationships built on shared risks and rewards.#PricingStrategy #BusinessGrowth #Podcast
This week we're talking with Jaemin Frazer, the visionary behind "The Self-Permission Method," to uncover his controversial yet potentially transformative approach for fulfilling Founder potential.
In ScaleHQ’s latest podcast episode, we sit down with Jaemin Frazer, the award-winning mindset coach and author of "The Self-Permission Method: How to Succeed in Life Without Using Self-Discipline."
Dive into our compelling discussion that challenges the conventional belief that self-discipline is the cornerstone of success.
But what if self-discipline is only the key to unlocking 70% of your desired outcomes?
Jaemin introduces his groundbreaking perspective suggesting the last 30% comes not from pushing harder but from getting on better terms with yourself through self-permission which removes barriers and enables flow.
In this enlightening conversation, Jaemin unpacks:
- The common misconceptions around self-discipline why it might not be the magic fix for motivation and success we all thought it was.
- An introduction to the Self-Permission Method, Jaemin’s revolutionary approach that encourages evaluating what’s creating resistance and why, to allow a mental repositioning that allows a state of flow.
- Practical insights on how listeners can apply the Self-Permission Method to achieve their goals and actually enjoy the ride, boosting their happiness and contentment along the way.
- Real-life examples and actionable tips from Jaemin on weaving this approach into your day-to-day and big decision moments around your business and personal life.
By the end of this episode, you’ll be looking at motivation and performance through a new lens, realising that hitting 100% of your potential is more about getting yourself out of the way, rather than just hard graft and pushing sh#t uphill.
Tune in now to start your journey toward unlocking that elusive 30% of your potential that self-discipline alone can't reach.
Here's Why' on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or our website:
📲 ScaleHQ.com.au/102.
BusinessPodcast #ScaleUpPodcast #BusinessGrowth
This week on the ScaleHQ Podcast, we’re tearing up the rulebook on personal branding and why it’s not just fluff – especially for the likes of Founders want to step back from the business, not further into it.
We’re talking B2B content marketing with Robert Katai, the brains behind the B2B Creator Newsletter and a bit of a smarty-pants in helping brands stand out in a sea of digital noise.
Why bother, you ask? Here’s the kicker:
Personal branding isn’t just about getting your boring corporate headshot on LinkedIn. It’s about weaving helping the essence of “you” be seen and understand by those who matter – customers, partners, advocates, and talent.
Robert cracked open a treasure trove of insights on how to do just that, with more practicality and less fluff than you’d think:
- Why Your Story Matters: Turns out, your journey, beliefs, and insights are gold dust for engaging with everyone who interacts with your business.
- Cut Through the Noise: In a world gone mad with content, your personal brand is the beacon that guides your ship to port – or, in less poetic terms, makes you stand out.
- Engage on a New Level: We dove into how your personal brand can be a powerful tool for engagement, building deeper connections with your network.
- Attract and Retain Talent: The best talent want to be inspired by someone (that’s you), not just work for a company. Show them who’s at the helm, and show them the real you, and they’re more likely to come aboard and stay for the journey.
- Minimal Effort, Maximum Impact: Robert shares practical, actionable tips to elevate your personal brand without it becoming your new full-time job.
So, before you write off personal branding as something for the “other guys,” take a listen. Robert Katai might just change your mind as he did mine.
Catch the full scoop on this week’s episode. It’s crammed with straightforward, actionable advice that even the busiest founder can fit into their schedule.
Tune in now and start shaping the brand of “You” to help your business elevate to the next level.
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/101
100th episode!
Today I reveal my 6 biggest takeaways from 100 interviews with successful Founders and experts on scaling. And a little update on my crazy move to Europe.
After 2 years of speaking to successful Founders, experts on many aspects of business you need to master to scale, we have finally reached the 100th episode! (woop woop).
This week, I summarise my 6 biggest takeaways from the first 100 episodes.
Whether you’re a regular listener or new to the ScaleHQ Podcast, this is one you won’t want to miss this very special episode if you want to scale to 8 figures + .
Oh.. and I add a few special updates on new episode formats for 2024 AND an update on my recent crazy, life-changing move to Europe.
The highlights from this week’s episode:
🔗 03:22 Takeaway #1 - Develop a clear growth strategy to develop competitive advantage.
🔗 05:08 Takeaway #2 - Always build with an exit in mind (whether you plan to exit or not)
🔗 06:30 Takeaway #3 - Level up a few key roles as early as possible
🔗 09:17 Takeaway #4 - Don’t write off acquisitions because you’re afraid of them (I’ll explain why)
🔗 10:49 Takeaway #5 - You’ll have to listen to find out!
🔗 13:36 Takeaway #6 - You’ll have to listen to find out!
🔗 19:41 - The future of the ScaleHQ podcast in 2024
🔗 21:48 - My family’s recent crazy move to Europe - how to follow the journey
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/100
scaleup #businessgrowth #successtips
After co-founding then exiting Australia’s largest buyers agency Cohen Handler, Ben founded Buyers Agent Institute.
In just 5 years, he scaled it into a high profit, 8-figure business.
This week, I interview him to find out what his secret is to building a successful, high-growth business.
After amassing 3 billion in residential and commercial property purchases in just 9 years, Ben Handler decided it was time to exit his role as Co-Founder and CEO of Cohen Handler, Australia’s largest buyers agency and start the Buyer’s Agent Institute (BAI).
BAI is an education business focused on helping people become buyers agents.
He scaled it to 8-figures, and high levels of profitability in just 5 years.
In this episode, Ben reveals his secrets to building a lean, variable-cost business model and his approach to building predictable, scalable sales funnels that consistently produce high growth rates.
Some of the best bits:
04:06 - “Building a business with someone else is more exciting than going it alone”
26:41 - “The best marketers are expert in only one platform, do revenue shares and don’t take many clients”
31:54 - The intricacies of designing scalable sales funnels
37:09 - “People can copy your website, but they can’t copy your story”
48:29 - “The more fulfilled you are outside your work, the better your growth will be”
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/99
EducationBusiness #GrowthStrategy #SalesFunnels
This week, Talila Kroy is back to reveal how you can use strategic partnerships to take your business growth to the next level.
Customers buy from people they trust, and they like. But how do you short-cut the inevitable time it can take to develop trust with a new customer?
Strategic partnerships is one incredible way. Why?
Because recommendations from partners of your work instils instant trust in that customer, and saves you having to establish it for yourself.
Strategic partnerships are like planting an orchard of fruit trees, rather than going to the shops to buy fruit each day.. which would be like direct sales.
Yes.. it’s quicker initially to just buy that fruit directly and there’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s tiring and requires a higher workload over time.
If you plant an orchard, there’s more work upfront, but if you then nurture that orchard and allow it to grow, and mature.. that orchard (strategic partnership) will deliver ongoing, high quality fruit exactly the way you like it, season after season, after season.
This week, I have Talila Kroy from the award-winning emple (experts in developing repeatable client acquisition systems) back for a third time on the ScaleHQ podcast, sharing her secrets on how to set up enduring strategic partnerships that deliver value for both parties, in an authentic and genuine way that protects your and their brand and your respective customers.
You’ll love learning how to use strategic partnerships as a key channel that enables your business growth.
Here are the highlights of this week’s episode:
04:46 - The benefits of strategic partnerships over direct sales08:36 - The typical conversion rates in partner-delivered leads18:15 - The ingredients that make strategic partnerships flourish26:33 - Different ways of creating value for each partner (and their clients)36:08 - The rhythms that matter in the partnership as it matures48:05 - The things that can go wrong and how to avoid them
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
🔗 Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
🔗 Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
🔗 YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/98
Acquisition #Partnerships #LeadGeneration
How do you add 200m in revenue in 2.5 years?
This week Sean interviews Ben Marsonet the Group CEO of Altus Traffic to understand their rapid transformation. Ben Marsonet’s had an incredible journey.
From Traffic Controller at 18, to Group CEO of ANZ’s largest traffic management business.
2.5 years ago they had $140m in revenue, under new ownership and Ben’s leadership they now have $350m in revenue having completed 4 acquisitions in just 12 months. You’ll love this week’s humble and inspiring guest on the ScaleHQ podcast. Join us as we unpack Ben’s story, and the secrets behind this rapid growth.Some of the highlights from this week’s episode:03:55 - The current scale of Altus.
10:00 - The pivotal inflection points that have led to the significant transformation.
14:15 - When is the right time to take on private equity investment.
22:12 - The biggest challenges under private equity ownership.
26:51 - The ingredients that led to the 140m-350m. transformation.
35:42 - Ben’s biggest learning as a new CEO.-----------------------------------------------------Watch or listen to the full episode on:• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuwScaleHQ website: [www.ScaleHQ.com.au/97] (https://www.scalehq.com.au/97)#growthjourney #scaleups #ceotips
From Startups and Success to Burnout: A 15-Year Entrepreneurial Journey
Only 2.3% of businesses successfully scale beyond $10 million.
And of those, even fewer manage to succeed in building 4 successful companies in a 15 year period. But that’s exactly what Ryan Trainor has done.
Since the age of 24 Ryan has founded and led or co-founded, a labor force company, three successful education businesses and the largest video game and entertainment venues business in the southern hemisphere.
But these sorts of achievements unfortunately can take a significant toll on your physical health and your relationships with those around you.
Ryan, after burning out in 2022, realised he had to take a look at how he was managing his ambitions, his health and his relationships.
You’ll love hearing both the strategies that helped him succeed as a serial entrepreneur, and how he’s grappling with the impacts of his burnout.
Here are this week’s best bits from the full episode
02:18 - The foundations of Ryan’s repeated successes
07:48 - The issues that arise when you start assigning genius to what you’ve done
11:47 - Was building to step back a plan, or an accident?
17:25 - How to manage financial risks when you step back from CEO
23:07 - What happens when you ignore the signs on the way to burnout
33:28 - How to find success at home when you’re used to finding it in your business
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/96
BusinessGrowth #Burnout #Relationships
This week, Sean deep dives into unique approaches to events as a potential (and often ignored) way to bring potential clients through your pipeline.
Just wrapped up a ScaleHQ podcast episode with Morgan Ingram (4x LinkedIn Top Sales Voice who’s helped Salesforce and Zoom revolutionise their sales effectiveness), that's a goldmine for any business leader looking for a unique way to bring prospects into, and through their pipeline. 🎙️
Did you know that only 30% of companies are hitting their sales targets using traditional methods? 🎯
We explore why traditional tactics aren't working like they once did. 🤔
But what truly stood out in this conversation was the resurgence of face-to-face interactions and events as an interesting opportunity for deeper engagement (and usually free of creativity from your competitors so easier to stand out). 🤝
It's not just about booths at the event anymore; think hiring a bar with drinks, demos, and immersive experiences NEAR the event (listen for details) as just one example. 🍹🎉
You’ll love this week’s episode, here are some of the key bits:
03:25 - Why buyers aren’t responding like they used to
08:17 - Content isn't just king, it's the whole game! We dive into why
11:36 - Events? Think beyond booths. Imagine lounges, demos, and mini-conferences
17:39 - How you convert your interactions into business opportunities
25:11 - How to measure ROI with events
30:15 - The future of video content + live events as a unique combo
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/95
Sales #EventActivations #CustomerAquisition
Sales expert Talila Kroy breaks down her secrets to recruiting sales people, to help you take your customer acquisition to another level.
Roughly 50% of sales campaigns fail, you can’t just hire a few people off LinkedIn with “Salesperson” as their role and hope to see your profits increase. When it comes to hiring salespeople, you need to find someone with the right motivation and mindset.
This week, Talila Kroy from emple returns to the ScaleHQ podcast.
Talila is an expert when it comes to recruiting and managing sales teams.
This episode, she breaks down her secrets to recruiting sales people, to help you increase the likelihood that you’ll end up with a high performance sales team.
Here are the best bits of this episode:
07:24 - Finding the right motivation behind salespeople18:41 - Why your culture matters so much in the hiring process22:43 - Mastering writing the job advertisement (it matters more than you think!)29:17 - Setting expectations about remuneration when hiring34:46 - Designing your first and second interviews42:56 - When do you assess your applicants?
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
- Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
- Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
- YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
- ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/94
- Free 20 minute session “Are You Sales Hire Ready?”: https://pages.emple.com.au/saleshireready
BusinessPodcast #ScaleUpBusiness #businessgrowth
How can you maximise the performance and potential of your team?
This week, Sean breaks down one of the best and most simple talent management tools around, the 9-Box Grid.
To maximise the performance and realise the potential of your team, you need a structured approach to how you assess that performance and potential, and a clear plan on how to maximise it.
Or to move them on!
Whatever the right decision is.
The 9-box grid is a commonly used framework by leaders around the world.
It's a simple diagram that allows you to assess your team members based on two important factors: their current performance and their future potential.
In this episode I unpack the 9-box talent grid, how it works, the pros and cons, and what to do with people once you've assessed where they fit!
Here are the most important parts of this weeks episode:
04:31 - What does the 9-box grid look like?
08:08 - The pros and cons of the 9-box grid
11:29 - How to assess performance and potential using the grid
18:51 - How to optimize your professional development budget
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/93
BusinessPodcast #businesspodcast #businessgrowth #ProfessionalDevelopment
Growing your company purely through word-of-mouth is a great way to build your brand, and it is a key indicator of a good business when you are able to get to 7-figures.
But if you want to scale to 8-figures and beyond, you'll need a scalable customer acquisition system. And that means if you're in a B2B business - you'll likely need sales people.
It's not just as easy as hiring a salesperson and expecting them to implement an effective sales process into your business. Unfortunately, they just do not, and will not come with that.
You'll need to build it yourself or get help from someone to do so, so that you can set those salespeople that you hire up for success.
This week, I interview Talila Kroy an expert when it comes to building and refining sales process that leads to better conversion rates in all types of businesses but particularly B2B.
This is the first of two episodes - this week is about ensuring you have the foundations in place before you start recruiting, next week we'll unpack the recruitment and assessment process.
Here are the best bits of this episode:
04:59 - The most common mistake Founders make when hiring salespeople
11:26 - Massively improve speed-to-competence by developing a success model first
15:08 - Sales remuneration design.... have I accidentally made them lazy?
21:04 - Getting the sales targets and KPIs right (and they're two entirely different things)
30:11 - How to effectively manage performance of your salesperson
37:13 - Getting onboarding right builds both confidence, and competence
43:32 - Insights into building a capability assessment model
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/92
Visit our guest:
Website: www.emple.com.au
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/emple-australia/
Unlock your sales potential with a FREE 20-minute session at
• https://pages.emple.com.au/saleshireready
🚩 Are you Sales-Hire Ready?
BusinessPodcast #businesspodcast #businessgrowth #business #leadershipinsights
When you are scaling your business, its easy for alignment that you once had to start to become loose. Priorities start taking tangents. The left hand stops talking to the right. Then you apply MORE growth pressure and all of a sudden you have a dysfunctional business that's not aligned. That's a quick way to undo all your good work. Creating alignment (and re-alignment) is a critical leadership practice when you're in a growth business. Ignore it at your peril!This week, Sean interviews Karen Traversi Kovaleski. Karen has created alignment in companies from start-up to More than $100 million. In this episode, Karen breaks down her 5 step method to realigning a business that's veering off track. Here are the best bits of this week's episode:04:58 - The challenge of alignment (and what happens when you apply growth pressure)14:31 - Karen’s 5 Steps to alignment framework20:41 - Unpacking Step 3, “Motivate”24:04 - The role of feedback loops in being able to evaluate alignment effectively34:48 - Removing the fear of failure in your team37:26 - What CEOs struggle with the most when trying to create alignment------------------------------------------------------Watch or listen to the full episode on:• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/91Visit our guest:• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karentraversikovaleski#businesspodcast #businessgrowth #podcast
When the growth in your business has stalled, it's time for new leadership and a new strategy. General Manager Alena was appointed and she tripled her business by doubling down on product and culture...
Axial Training's growth had stalled. But by appointing a new General Manager who had a vision for what the business could become, Axial had it's growth potential unlocked.
In the following 8 years, Alena Smith doubled down on product and culture, which led to 350% growth and material competitive advantages in it's market.
I don't know many owners who would be unhappy with those kinds of results from a General Manager they'd appointed!
This week, I interview Alena's to extract the lessons she learned in turning Axial around.
Here are the highlights of this week's episode:
05:04 - Alena’s story
07:01 - The Axial business model
14:31 - Differentiating on “how” you deliver, when you can’t on “the what”
20:07 - What did Alena double down on to build a competitive advantage?
30:28 - The importance and challenge of saying no to opportunities when scaling
33:29 - Stepping back and letting your team find solutions
45:46 - Figuring out what type of leader you want to be
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/90
Visit our guest:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alena-smith-02106541/
Website: www.Axial.edu.au
BusinessPodcast #GrowthStrategy #BusinessDecisions #Leadership
How do you start again? After scaling a successful services company, Esha Oberoi found herself starting all over again as a brand new start-up founder. This week I find out what lessons she integrated into this next journey.
1 in 2 Australians will face mental health illness sometime during their life.
1 in 7 Australians are on anti-depressants, whilst 1 in 3 psychologists do not have capacity to accept new clients. The increasing need for mental health support is not an isolated issue in Australia, this is a global pandemic. We need solutions to aid the under-resourced mental health workforce we already have.
This is inspired Esha Oberoi to act. The original Founder of AFEA Care Services (one of Australia’s most successful private in-home aged and disability care services) has now stepped back onto the AFEA board, and is now the Founder inspiring and driving the dynamic team behind Leora.ai, a wellbeing and self-care support bot helping companies step up support for their teams.
This week, I delve into her experience leaving a successfully scaled business to start all over again.
Some highlights from this week's episode:
02:10 - Unpacking Leora.ai
06:18 - The challenge to be solved when it comes to mental health
12:24- Taking the steps to founding a new company
21:29 - The importance of self acceptance during a step-back or exit
30:08 - Important lessons brought forward from the success of AFEA, into Leora
37:22 - Tips to scale your business to 8-figures and beyond
------------------------------------------------------
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/89
Visit our guest:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/eoberoi/
• Website: www.Leora.ai
businessgrowth #businesspodcast #softwareengineer
How many people do you need to scale to 3 million? 50? 10? How about just 2.
Every year the average household receives around 10 handwritten items in the mail. Every single item is almost guaranteed to be opened by the recipient. That means you have 100% open rates... this idea is what led Patrick Gaskin to build Cardly.
With a team of just 2, Cardly managed to scale year on year up to 3 million in revenue. What is the secret to a feat like this? This is what I'm looking to find out this week.
Here are some of the highlights:
02:50 - How cards build engagement
15:19 - What inspired the creation of Cardly
22:06 - How Cardly build a competitive advantage through personalisation
25:25 - Cardly's customer acquisition model
28:25 - Capital raising
33:09 - Cardly's scale constraints
43:07 - Patrick's most important piece of advice to scale sucessfully
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/88
Visit our guest:
LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/patrick-gaskin
Website: www.cardly.net
Markets get crowded. So how do you differentiate?
This week, I interview Rowan Kunz, who has managed to scale his business in a market with super-low barriers to entry - its as crowded as you can get!
Rowan's the Founder of Art of Smart Education, a 14-year old tutoring and mentoring business that helps high school students navigate the tricky world of succeeding academically WHILST navigating their way into the course and career pathway best suited to them.
Art of Smart have achieved 5x firsts in Australian education and built a strong competitive advantage in a crowded marketplace and this week, I wanted to find out his secrets to success so you can leverage those principles in your own business.
Here are the highlights this week: 16:28 - Tackling differentiation in a crowded, low-barrier-to-entry market 25:35 - Overcoming scale constraints 30:48 - The 3 C’s that helped Rowan scale 42:14 - If you could change anything about the education system, what would it be? 46:54 - Expected impacts of AI in education
Watch or listen to full episodes on: • Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA • Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4 • YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw • ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/87
Visit our guest: • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rowankunz/ • Website: artofsmart.com.au
qualitycontent #businesspodcast #businessgrowth
How are you managing key risks in your growing business? Burying your head in the sand works... until it doesn't.
This week I interview Dianne Gilbert, an expert in risk management for small to medium businesses. She helps Founders identify and mitigate risks to ensure they can continue to enjoy the business growth they're experiencing, and avoid ending up in court, bankrupt or dealing with unnecessary pain.
This week, we explore 3 critical risk areas in small to medium businesses and how to evaluate and mitigate them. If you want to know where to start to address cybersecurity, privacy and sham contracting risks in your business, then this is the episode for you.
Here are the highlights this week. 06:06 - Practical steps and examples to help you mitigate cybersecurity risk 20:02 - Practical steps and examples to help you mitigate privacy & data breach risks 37:00 - Practical steps and examples to help you mitigate sham contracting risks 45:02 - Dianne's 4 key priorities to help you self-assess and reduce your business risks
Watch or listen to full episodes on: • Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA • Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4 • YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw • ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/86
Visit our guest: • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianne-gibert/ • Website: https://www.certex.com.au/
businesspodcast #dataprivacy #privacymatters
If you are looking to turn uncertainty into a growth opportunity, then you need to tune in this week. Where Kerryn Fewster breaks down the secrets to...
18 years ago, Kerryn Fewster co-founded Change 2020, a company dedicated to helping CEOs navigate uncertain environments and build high performing cultures in their businesses.
This week, I interview her to explore her perspective on how CEOs can build high performing culture's WHILST navigating difficult and uncertain environments.
Here are some of the highlights this week: 04:08 - An example of a CEO successfully navigating a difficult environment 16:19 - Fully remote vs in-office vs hybrid - what does success look like? 23:20 - Kerryn’s framework for building high performing cultures 31:04 - Redefining success during uncertain times 36:36 - The very first steps to take when you hit crisis or significant uncertainty
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/85
Visit our guest:
• LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/kerryn-fewster-90940b5
• Website: https://change2020.com/
How do you build a competitive advantage? This week I break down John Knights secret to building a competitive advantage, by focusing on...
How can you create a competitive advantage for your business? This is a question a lot of business owners ask themselves on a daily basis...
Nine years ago, John Knight approached this same challenge, he decided to tackle it from a different angle to most - he decided to build a customer oriented business model. By collaborating with other networks, he was able to build a business model that allows him to maximise his businesses problem solving abilities.
This week, I get the chance interview him and try to get into the heart of what makes his business model tick.
Here are the highlights of this weeks episode:
06:50 - The genesis of the businessDEPOT business model. 17:28 - How to align interests when you have many subsidiary partners. 21:53 - Inherent challenges in a diverse services business model. 26:06 - How businessDEPOT plans to evolve over the next 10 years 31:53 - Unexpected benefits. 34:04 - How businessDEPOT has tackled workplace flexibility. 39:10 - How to entrench values and behaviours in the organisation. 44:36 - How John expects AI to impact the business
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
• ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/84
Visit our guest:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakknight/?originalSubdomain=au
• Website: https://businessdepot.com.au/
BuildTrust #ProblemSolving #BusinessGrowth
How do you get more customers in the door?
This week, Cham Tang breaks down his 3-Step Process to boost customer acquisition.
At the end of the day, the thing that keeps your business afloat is your customers, they are the ones who provide the money that drives your business.
One of the most important things to master in order to scale, is customer acquisition.
If you want to do that, you need to know how to build trust with your potential audience as first they have to like you, then trust you, then they'll buy from you.
This week I interview Cham Tang, marketing master and Co-Founder of Authentic Education.
Together we break down the secret science of customer acquisition, using Cham's 3-Step Process that you need to know to convert clicks into loyal customers.
Here are the highlights of this weeks episode: 08:11 - What is Cham’s Framework for customer acquisition? 13:44 - What do you have to get right to convert customers? 17:28 - The Seven Marketing Methods 26:21 - How to quickly build trust with your target customer 33:25 - What does a good conversion rate look like? 43:27 - How should you present your offer?
Watch or listen to full episodes on: Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4 YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast/83
Visit our guest: Cham's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chamtang/?originalSubdomain=au Authentic Education Special Offer: www.authentic.com.au/scaleup
customeracquisition #buildingtrust #marketingstrategy
How do you ensure maximise the chance of success when launching a new product or service? This week, Sean finds out from product management expert, Mike Smart...
When it comes to launching a new product or service, you don't want it to underperform. The worst feeling after launching a new product or service is realising you haven't hit the right pain points, or you haven't designed it correctly and it flops.
If you want to make sure your product and service launches find their mark every time, then this week is for you. On this week's episode, Sean interviews Mike Smart, Founder and Managing Principle at Egress solutions, to figure out how you to get your research right so you nail your next launch.
Here are some of the most valuable bits this week: 06:57 - The benefit of sales experience when developing product 10:53 - What to ask yourself before spending ANY money on a new product or service 15:23 - Just because they have a pain, will they actually pay to solve it? 21:51 - What’s more powerful? Solving a pain, or helping a customer achieve a goal? 31:43 - A fantastic and clever way to test your new product or service 42:12 - How to sort the good ideas, from the great ones
Watch or listen to full episodes on: • Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA • Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4 • YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw • ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast
Or contact our guest at: • Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/masmart/ • Website: https://egresssolutions.net/about-us/#SalesConversion #ProductTesting #ProductLaunch
How can you leverage your IP? This week Sean interviews Tina Tower to learn the secrets of turning your knowledge into more scalable growth...
Tina Tower is a multi-business founder who has sold multiple successful businesses, is an author, a speaker, and a podcast host. She is a master at packing your knowledge into an online course and getting it out into the world. This week, I interview her to learn how you can leverage your knowledge into a more scalable approach that propels business growth.
If you want to learn about how you can build a course and turn it into a scalable asset for your business, then you need to tune in this week.
Here are some of the best bits this week:
06:26 - What is the most common obstacle that business owners face after passing $1 Million?
08:16 - What percentage of revenue should you allocate to your team?
12:16 - The inspiration for Tina's business model
23:59 - How can B2B Founders leverage their IP?
31:23 - How do you manage community at scale?
37:12 - Where do you see the short-term implications of AI?
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast
Tina's website: https://www.tinatower.com/
Tina's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tina-tower-b28a5136/?originalSubdomain=au
CourseCreation #ScaleYourKnowledge #BusinessGrowth
Sean uncovers the science behind making the perfect hire with recruitment expert Roheel Ahmad.
Roheel is the Managing Partner at global talent and recruitment business Forsyth Barnes, who specialise in mid to executive level recruitment. By mixing relationship building with investments in AI and tech, they help to attract the right talent for businesses.
This week, I try to break down what you need to know to make the right decisions when recruiting for your business.
Here are some of the best bits: 08:10 - How to ensure diversity in a recruitment process 11:05 - Common mistakes Founders make on their first key hire 23:04 - How to get them to prove their skills, not just tell you they can do it 32:33 - How to set a new key hire up for success 39:42 - Example of a simple but outstanding way to make an offer 45:10 - How will the world of recruiting great people change with AI
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast
Roheel's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roheelahmad/
Forsyth Barnes website: https://www.forsythbarnes.com/
talentacquisition #businessgrowth #businesspodcast
What secrets can I learn from a digital marketing leader about how to reduce my cost of acquiring customers? Find out this week.
Most businesses in the 2-20 mil range don't have a senior marketing person. Instead they find themselves meandering through marketing ideas and strategy, just trying to get a feel for what works. But it doesn't have to be that way when you can leverage the knowledge of experts.
This week, I interview Ryan Jenkins, a marketing expert and Co-Founder of The HypeSociety. Ryan is an expert when it comes to marketing in the 7-8 figure range.
Here are the best bits this week:
17:09 - How HypeSociety reduced cost-per-lead by 70% for a client 24:14 - Unconventional marketing tactics 27:39 - Marketing mistakes made along the way 31:15 - Key priorities to reduce your cost of acquisition 36:28 - Implications of AI next 12-18 months
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuwScaleHQ
website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast
You can reach out to connect with our Host directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
To connect with this week's guest:
Ryan's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanjenkins88/?originalSubdomain=au
The Hype Society: https://www.thehypesociety.com.au/
businessgrowth #businesspodcast #marketingdigital
What's the best support model when scaling? This week, I break down Advisory Boards and Governance Boards, to help you find the best model for your business.
This week I unpack a high level summary of Advisory Boards and Governance Boards.
We explore their roles in providing support to Founders who are scaling, their pros and cons, and then explore how they can work together harmoniously in a decision making ecosystem to help your business scale sustainably.
I've been a Director on the Governance Board of 5 companies, as an Executive Director. I'm also an Advisory Board professional - a Certified Chair, Fellow and Member of Faculty with the ABC - the peak body for Advisory Board Professionals globally. This gives me a unique perspective into the benefits and disadvantages of both.
So if you're looking to professionalise your company and formalise your support but wondering which model is best for you, then this week's episode is for you.
Here are the best bits this week:
01:31 My personal experience with both models
02:45 The role of an Advisory Board and where it fits best
04:20 Pros and cons of Advisory Boards
05:42 The role of a Governance Board and where it fits best
06:23 Pros and cons of Governance Boards
08:01 A great analogy for how they can work effectively together
Watch or listen to the full episode on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
ScaleHQ website: www.ScaleHQ.com.au/podcast
You can reach out to connect with our Host directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
For further information on this topic visit:
Blog post on Advisory Boards: https://www.scalehq.com.au/blog/advisory-boards
Article on Governance Boards: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/5-signs-suggest-now-might-right-time-establish-board-sean-steele
Sean breaks down 3 metaphors and 2 important mindset shifts you can use to when facing turbulence in your business.Sometimes times get tough, your business might be facing headwinds right now, and it might feel like there is no light at the end of the tunnel. If you are feeling demoralised or doubting how things are going to turn out, then this weeks episode is for you.This week, I talk about weathering the storm. With 3 important metaphors and 2 mindset shifts you can use to help you see beyond the troubles right now, and understand the bigger picture.Here are some of the best bits this week:2:10 - Metaphor 1: Think of a business like a set of undulating hills3:41 - Metaphor 2: Think of business like a stock chart5:00 - Metaphor 3: Think of business like seasons10:45 - Zooming out with your mindset------------------------------------------------------If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.Watch or listen to full episodes on:• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuwYou can reach out to connect with our Host or our guest directly via:• Sean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/• Sean's website: www.seansteele.com.au#BusinessGrowth #BusinessStrategy #EntrepreneurMindset
Sean breaks down 12 reflective questions to help you plan for an outstanding next financial year.
Time is ticking - the financial year end in Australia is almost here. Have you crafted your business game plan for the next 12 months yet?
Well you know what they say - the path that got you here won't necessarily take you there... so it's time to hit the pause button, ask yourself the right questions, set your priorities straight, and chart your course towards success.
This week Sean unpacks 12 killer questions you need to consider to build a plan that takes your business to new heights.
Here are the important parts of this weeks episode:
03:37 - Getting your mindset right before you start planning
04:33 - 4 questions to gathering learnings from the past year
06:29 - 4 questions to take stock of what's happening right now
12:00 - 4 questions to help you look into the future and plan out your priorities
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with our Host or our guest directly via:
Sean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Sean's website: www.seansteele.com.au
This week I make a guest appearance on The Silicon Valley podcast.
Hosted by Shawn Flynn, we reveal insider secrets to buying and selling businesses that will help you navigate a potential sale in the future with greater skill to maximise your outcome.
If you want to know the ins and outs of making the right moves, what to look out for in due diligence and what tricks investors play then have a listen.
Here are the best bits of this week:
03:47 - How do you cover all aspects of your business as a founder?
06:51 - How do you find the right company to scale?
10:55 - 5 things you need to make the right acquisition
19:22 - What you need to know about due dilligence
24:45 - Growing a company from 3 to 50 million in four years
30:23 - What was the most difficult change to make in a business?
39:52 - Key learnings about mergers and acquisitions
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with our Host or our guest directly via:
Sean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Sean's website: www.seansteele.com.au
This week Sean speaks to Anita and Paul, Co-Founders of Nexacu, about how they built their business and achieved a $20M exit.
This week we're diving deep into another Founder success story. This time I'm with Paul and Anita from Nexacu, a company that I started working with personally back in November 2020.
Founded in 2013, Nexacu offers practical, instructor-led training for Microsoft end-users in applications like Excel, PowerPoint, PowerBI and more. If you want to learn what it took to scale Nexacau to what it is today and hear about their experience of selling their business then you need to be tuned in this week.
Here are the best bits of this episode:07:24 How did Nexacu grow?14:48 Pushing through tough times with a company21:19 How do you prepare to sell a business?25:24 Elements that can be overlooked when negotiating32:35 Making sure you are selling at the right time36:05 How has the experience changed their perspective on business41:59 How working as a team has helped them during tough times
------------------------------------------------------If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuwYou can reach out to connect with our Host or our guests directly via:• Sean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/• Sean's website: www.seansteele.com.au• Anita's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anita-panebianco-436aa28/• Paul's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-panebianco-1b21b02b/• Nexacu: https://nexacu.com/
Is it going to be a game changer?AI has been increasingly in the headlines, particularly since the launch of ChatGPT, and most founders of a 7-figure business are thinking about how artificial intelligence will impact their business. There are lots of pros & cons but how will it impact your business and the lives of your customers?This week I interview Mike Trigg, a 25-year Silicon Valley veteran. Listen in as I try to tap into his insider knowledge to explore how AI could change the face and shape of business as we know it.Here are some of the highlights of this weeks episode:
04:50 - What benefits could AI bring to business09:09 - Where will ChatGPT and other natural language processors head in the future15:37 - Can you trust the information it gives you27:05 - Using AI to improve decision making in business33:56 - How can you ensure the privacy and protection of data used by AI38:13 - Emergent roles in business for AI
------------------------------------------------------If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.Watch or listen to full episodes on:Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WAApple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuwYou can reach out to connect with our Host or our guest directly via:Sean's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/Sean's website: www.seansteele.com.auMike's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/triggmike/Mike's website: www.MikeTrigg.com#businesspodcast #businessadvice #artificialintelligence
Sean interviews Luigi Prestinenzi, a sales expert, who breaks down his step-by-step approach to generating sales.
Luigi has hosted the SalesIQ podcast for the last 5 years and "lives and breathes sales". I have worked with Luigi on various occasions to help transform my business' sales program so I know he has tools and strategies that work.
This week, I talk to Luigi to get into the nuts and bolts of the sales process so as a Founder who might need to stimulate sales opportunities immediately, you can learn how to do that even in the toughest of markets.
Here are some of the best bits of this week's episode:
08:38 Where to focus on sales in a tough market
11:44 First steps you need to take
19:19 How to research and reach out to your IDEAL customer
27:49 Approach previous customers? or new customers?
31:40 The importance of using multiple channels for outreach
36:51 Luigi's venn diagram - critical to the sales process
41:27 Advice for Founders facing a tough time in the current environment
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Luigi's website: www.GrowthForum.io
Luigi’s Free Playbook for our listeners:• Free Playbook
This week we flip the podcast on its head, as Jaemin Frazer interviews Sean, to learn how this disruptive teen became CEO.
Sean didn't emerge from wealthy parents, a private school network or above-average academic capability to navigate his way to CEO.
You might be surprised to hear that at 14-17 he was getting suspended for breaking noses, joyriding in cars, getting arrested for shoplifting and a whole lot more.
In this week's episode we flip things on their head. Our host Sean gets interviewed by renowned author and Unhindered podcast host Jaemin Frazer, to find out just how this trouble-making teens became a CEO and 100m moneymaker.
Here are some of the best parts of this week's episode:
03:25 A troublemaking teen
9:39 Tears that led to a turning point
15:52 Working from the bottom-up in sales
26:54 The pros and cons of a competitive mindset
31:39 Bankruptcy, turnarounds and redundancy
43:07 100m in revenue over 8 years
49:27 Lessons learned, from an unlikely CEO
------------------------------------------------------
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Jaemin's Website: https://jaeminfrazer.com/
This week, Sean interviews Ryan Robertson, to discover his secrets to scaling Bittn to over 60,000 customers in 10 years.
10 years ago, Ryan Robertson created Bittn. With a vision to revolutionise the pest control industry, Ryan has built a business that makes the job far simpler, safer and more enjoyable for customers than it has ever been. In the last decade, he has scaled Bittn to become a top player in the pest control industry in Australia.
In this episode, Ryan shares with Sean how Bittn has developed smarter and safer science-based approaches to pest control and serviced 60,000 customers over the past 10 years.
Here are the highlights of this weeks episode:
05:25 How Ryan’s vision changed over 10 years11:51 How to scale a service while maintaining quality17:43 Biggest mistakes24:27 Ryan's biggest fears and risks with Bittn31:10 How Bittn makes their business environmentally conscious41:21 Slowing down to speed up
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Bittn: www.bittn.com.au
Do you need to raise some cash to fund your next level of growth?
Then listen up as Sean shares 14 ways you can raise capital for your business in this weeks episode of the ScaleUps Podcast.
Today, we're focused on capital.
If you're in need of some cash to fund your business growth, dreams and big hairy audacious goals, then you are in the right place.
This week, Sean shares 14 different ways you can get access to some growth capital to help you go to the 'next level' in your business.
Grab a pen and some paper, and get ready to learn.
Some of the highlights of this week's episode include:
02:14 - “Free” sources of capital
03:33 - Debt options
05:03 - Equity options
10:30 - Debt & equity blends
12:13 - Early-stage options
14:55 - A thought provoking question
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Survival as a business often means getting paid FAST. In this episode, Sean shares 14 of the most important strategies for 7-figure companies to survive.
Your number 1 priority as a business is survival, and without enough cash coming in, your business can't survive.
You need to have the right strategies in place if you want to keep your business afloat. In this episode, Sean shares 7 ways to improve your cash coming in, and 7 ways to reduce your cash going out.
Grab a pen and some paper, and tune in this week to learn the 14 most important strategies you need to optimise your cashflow.
Some of the highlights of this weeks episode include:01:14 - The 4 principles you to become more profitable
04:34 - 7 Strategies to get cash into your business faster
8:47 - 7 ways to reduce or slow cash leaving your business
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
cashflow #businesspodcast #businessadvice
Sean interviews Brian Wills, high school dropout turned Founder, CEO and multi-millionaire who shares lessons learned on the journey.
Brian created seven successful companies in four different industries over the last 35 years. His journey to success is filled with lots of lessons and in this episode he goes deep into sharing his experiences and philosophies on burnout, taking and managing risks, when and how to pivot and how to put your ego aside (and that is just the start!).
Some of the highlights this week include
- 07:53 The turning point in Bryan's journey
- 15:58 How to know when it's time to pivot
- 20:53 Avoiding burnout
- 23:01 How Bryan minimises his downside risks
- 26:49Unappreciated traits you need to succeed as a Founder
- 32:05 Bryan's advice to 7-figure Founders looking to scale
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Brian's Website: www.brianwillmedia.com
Brothers and co-Founders of The Back Room, Wayne & Scott share how they have scaled to 500 without losing their team culture.
In this episode Sean interviews two brothers, Wayne and Scott Findlay, co-Founders of The Back Room. The Back Room has had an incredible growth trajectory by supplying skilled accounting, marketing, legal and sales professionals to other companies across ANZ, USA and the UK. They've grown to over 500 team members in just 5 years!
The interview covers some broad ground including culture, delegation, cashflow and capital, all of which have played a part in their rapid trajectory since launch. Add to the mix the diversity and cultural challenges that come from operating across continents, you'll find their story resonates with many barriers that you might face in the future.
Some of the highlights in this episode include:
03:09 - How the boys built The Back Room
08:33 - How to lead teams across cultures
12:42 - The key decisions that enabled scale to 500 in 5 years
18:29 - Biggest challenges
31:23 - Getting the best talent for your business
43:39 - The importance of finding a Mentor
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
You can follow the story of The Back Room via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-back-room-outsourced-professionals/
Website: https://thebackroomop.com/
Natalie Simmons, founder and CEO of Barefoot Citizens Consulting, shares how important your business’ impact on society and the environment really is.For the past 15 years, data suggests that companies who’ve had a clear ESG focus have materially outperformed their competitors. And it makes sense right? They’re creating positive impacts in the world so they’re the ones we want to do business with!
Does your business have a strong understanding of its impact on others? Do you have a framework or policy that articulates your approach to ESG (Environmental Social and Governance)?
As we move into the future, more and more people and investors are putting their support behind businesses with a greater environmental or social impact. If you want to make your business model more sustainable and stay relevant in the world post-pandemic, then you might want to tune in this week.
In this episode, Sean interviews Natalie Simmons from Barefoot Citizens Consulting. She helps businesses get clear about how they can create a longer-term, positive and more sustainable impact in the world. If you are curious how your business model could become a more sustainable, then Natalie has the answers you are looking for.
Here are some of the highlights of this week’s episode:
05:26 - What is a Corporate Social Responsibility?
09:31 - Why giving through to your ESG stance and standards is important
15:24 - How the desire for purpose in the workplace has changed
22:37 - How you can create a more meaningful and sustainable business
28:21 - How your business can contribute to a bigger goal
32:55 - How to get started
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
- Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
- Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
- YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
Further resources to help you scale:
- 8-Steps to Fast-Tracking Growth and Valuation checklist: www.SeanSteele.com.au/checklist \
- Weekly ScaleSmart editions: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/scalesmart-7025214107435876352/
- ScaleUps Podcast: www.ScaleUpsPodcast.com
- Connect with Sean on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Natalie’s Website: www.barefootcitizensconsulting.com
Natalie’s Email: natalie@barefootcitizensconsulting.com
What is a “sticky business”, why should you want your business model to be stickier and how can you implement switching costs to achieve that?
A stickier business has customers who stay longer and/or spend more. Cashflow become more predictable, your competitive moat widens and your business becomes more attractive to potential investors or buyers.
In this episode Sean shares valuable lessons on how to make your business more valuable by implementing switching costs. Tune in to learn how implementing switching costs can improve your customer lifetime value, cashflow predictability, competitive moat and valuation.
The highlights of this episode include:
00:39 - What helps a business model to become “sticky”, and why should you care
01:04 - Three ways you can implement switching costs
04:31 - The benefits of building switching costs into your business model
If you got value from today's episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favorite socials:
- LinkedIn: @Scaleupspodcast
- Spotify: Spotify ScaleUps Podcast
- Youtube: @scaleupspodcast
- Apple: Apple ScaleUps Podcast
- Anchor: @scaleups-podcast
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: @seansteele
- Website: seansteele.com.au
Further Resources to help you scale:
• 8-Steps to Fast-Tracking Growth and Valuation checklist: www.SeanSteele.com.au/checklist
• Weekly ScaleSmart editions: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/scalesmart-7025214107435876352/
It takes more than just planning to master strategy, you need to be able to execute it properly, and motivate your team. These things are crucial if you want your strategy to perform how you’d envisioned.
In this episode, Sean interviews John Spence, a top 100 Business Thought Leader, and top 500 Leadership Development Expert. John shares his key frameworks, which he has developed over three decades of experience, as CEO of six different companies.
This episode is packed with insights for leaders who want to execute their strategies but ensure their team is on board with the vision.
Have a listen to this week’s ScaleUps episode:1:52 - The 5 pillars of strategic thinking
6:45 - The importance of change as a founder
13:32 - The three quotients for leadership
16:40 - The importance of accountability as a founder
24:11 - How to encourage growth in your employees
38:28 - The biggest problems John has faced as a CEO
------------------------------------------------------
If you got value from today’s episode, you can subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
You can reach out to connect with John Spence at:
• LinkedIn: John Spence
• Website: johnspence.com
Leading strategist Rosie Yeo shares the alchemy needed to uncover bold ideas and build a powerful business strategy.
The saying, “Fortune favours the bold”, is a common truth in the business world.
Growing a business always comes with a certain amount of risk, and sometimes, you just have to take that leap of faith. But how do you be bold when there are so many unknowns? And is there a formula to minimise the risks you are taking?
This week’s guest will answer those questions. Likening her work to a strategy alchemist, Rosie Yeo, founder of Bold Strategy, speaks about the critical elements that transform a cookie-cutter business strategy to one that could disrupt markets.
She shares her formula for crafting bold growth strategies, drawn from her extensive experience working with MNCs, governmental organisations and non-profits.
Tune in to our latest episode, one that will make you think twice about your current growth plans.
Highlights of this week’s ScaleUps episode are:
08:13 – The two lenses you need when creating a bold strategy
14:18 – Why you need to scrap lengthy business plans
22:11 – 3 key ingredients in creating bold growth plans
25:15 – Real-life examples of companies with bold strategies
32:44 – Rosie’s framework to craft bold strategies
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
• YouTube:https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
businesspodcast #businessadvice #entrepreneurship #podcast
Nicola Fowkes, General Manager of Operations at #EdventureCo, shares💡 the best way to merge teams 🎳 and manage people in an acquisition 🤝, and the mistakes leaders tend to make.
Buying a business is more than just buying earnings 💰 and customers. You need to consider the intangible asset – the people 👨💼
If you’ve just acquired a business, it’s easy to shuffle organisational structures and cull teams to save money 💵
But be careful 🚨 if you want to truly derive value from your purchase.
And if you don’t get buy-in from your people, any change management plans you have will likely fail 📉
In this episode, Sean interviews 🎙 Nicola Fowkes who has over 2 decades of experience in executive leadership 👩💼 and in particular in People 👤 and Performance functions 👨🏻💻 and knows first-hand having onboarded and integrated many acquisitions the mistakes ❌ leaders often make in relation to people when buying that business 🏢
She tells it like it is, drawing experience from years of successfully steering growth 📈 and change processes in different industries such as education 👨🏫 and hospitality 🏨
Have a listen to this week’s ScaleUps episode packed with insights on:
00:00 - Intro
04:42 – How HR needs to evolve to have a performance mindset
11:03 – What to look for in a due diligence, in terms of operations and people
19:36 – Why 70% of change management fails
23:07 – How to get buy-in to your change agenda post-acquisition
29:33 – The must-dos of onboarding people once you own the business
**If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe, or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:**• Website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
podcast #businessadvice #business #businesspodcast
This is one of the most frequently asked questions I get as a mentor and advisor, from founders of service-based businesses. There’s an art to getting the right people, providing them with what they need and empowering them to do what they do best, so your business can grow sustainably.
We have compiled golden nuggets of wisdom from 5 reputable business leaders. First, there’s Liz Wiseman, best-selling author on leadership, who talks about what an impact player is and how to lead them. Bryan Watson, co-founder of Ovida, then elaborates on creating a culture of zero-blame and radical transparency.
Matt Forman, founder of XPON, speaks about building a psychology safety net for your employees that normalises trying and failing. Then we have Narelle Anderson, Envirobank founder, who distils the importance of building a culture of communication and contribution. Finally, Anneke van den Broek, CEO of Rufus & Coco, wraps it up by outlining how to transform a good team to an amazing one.
Listen to all these and more in this week’s episode:
· 05:17 – Moving away from a culture of retention to a culture of contribution
· 08:02 – The one question you must ask about your management team
· 09:23 – How to make it okay to fail for your team
· 14:56 – Building a culture of radical transparency and trust
· 19:29 – Attracting, hiring and managing impact players in your team
Enjoy!
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
· Website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
· Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
· Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
· Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
· YouTube:https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:· LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
· Website: www.seansteele.com.au
The end of the year is always a wonderful time to unwind and relax. It’s also the perfect time to take a hard look at where your business is at, evaluate what’s working and what’s not, identify the gaps, and hash out a plan for the next year.
Sean reveals the key areas you should reflect upon: business strategy, personal effectiveness, leadership, and business rhythms. Tackling all these will get you in the right mindset the instant you’re back from the holidays, instead of toiling through business as usual. And all it takes is half a day of your time.
Tune in to this week’s episode on the ScaleUps Podcast as Sean reveals….
- 01:03 - The questions you should be asking on your business strategy
- 02:09 - The FMED prescription to get you performing optimally in 2023
- 06:13 - How to know whether you’re providing the right kind of leadership to your team
- 09:24 - How to get a productive business rhythm and cut pointless meetings
Enjoy!
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
Website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
This is the first episode in a new type where we do a fly-on-the-wall series of interviews with 5 Founders who are still striving to scale. We’ll interview them 2-3 times each year for the next 3 years and follow their journey… the highs, the lows, the wins and disappointments. Some will succeed, some will falter, some may even fail. But our community will be there with them all the way, cheering them on.
Enjoy listening to our first Founder this week.. Hitesh Madan, one of three Directors of TechForce Services; the multi-award winning and (arguably) fastest growing Salesforce business in Australia that’s kicking massive goals.
They’ve won, been finalists in or been recognised in SO many awards in the last three years. From Australia’s Fastest Growing Company, to Fastest Growing Companies in Asia Pacific, ARN Innovation Awards, CRN Fast 50, Financial Review Fast 100 and Technology Fast 500… the list goes on!
Hitesh and I explore in his interview:
06:03 – The origin story of the TechForce business
09:00 – From solo to 80 team members and 4.9/5 as rated by Salesforce customers
12:14 – How they’ve approached scaling quality in a services business
18:32 – The role that mindset has played on their journey
32:36 – The nuances of making leadership work with 3 Directors
35:23 – Advice they’ve received that’s been critical to their success
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
• YouTube: https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can connect with Hitesh at:
• Website: www.TechForceServices.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hiteshkumarmadan/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Forget about having a great strategy if you don’t have great people to execute it.
Pointless.
But how do you attract great people?
It all starts with having a clear, and compelling employee value proposition which clearly reflects the commitments you’re willing to make and benefits you’re willing to offer your team members to make the environment an awesome and rewarding one to work in.
AND as a way of saying thank you for their dedication and contribution to your company’s ambitions.
This week on the full ScaleUps Podcast 10 Minute Tuesday episode we unpack how to develop or improve your employee value proposition.
We cover:
01:35 - What’s an employee value proposition (EVP) and why do you need one?
02:46 - What categories of benefits or features do best-practice companies include in theirs?
08:58 - What are some examples of top company EVPs?
11:44 - 6 steps to improving or building your EVP
This episode’s content draws on lessons within the ScaleUps Roadmap program, due for release in the first half of 2023.
Scaleups Roadmap is an exclusive cohort-based course that helps first-time Founders develop a strategy and execution plan that will enhance their growth rate, profitability, valuation & exit options.
Participants walk away with a clear growth strategy for the next 3 years, a simple 12-month execution plan, a renovated and improved business model and some new business peers.
If you’d like to join the waitlist for ScaleUps Roadmap – visit www.ScaleUpsRoadmap.com.au
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Sean directly via:
• ScaleUps Roadmap: www.scaleupsroadmap.com.au
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Lots of us Founders don’t grow up in marketing. But it’s absolutely core to helping us fulfil the potential of our businesses and maximise our impact in the world.
Bad marketing? Sub-par impact!
So what does good look like when it comes to marketing? And what are some of the simple things we can do to make our marketing better?
Enjoy this week’s episode on the ScaleUps Podcast as we interview Simon Dell, Founder of marketplace Cemoh who helps businesses find great marketing professionals. In it Simon and I explore:
- 03:50 – Three things that prevent Founders from fulfilling their business’ potential
- 18.21 – Six characteristics of good marketing strategy
- 32:38 – Five businesses doing an excellent job on their marketing
- 41:08 – One business absolutely NOT nailing it
- 43:34 – 6 tips to help you make your marketing… well… just better!
Enjoy!
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to subscribe or review us on Apple Podcasts.
Watch or listen to full episodes on:
• Website: https://loom.ly/hY5IR-8
• Apple: https://loom.ly/-oy8jL4
• Spotify: https://loom.ly/NuK50WA
• Google: https://loom.ly/Lg3t6jw
• YouTube:https://loom.ly/u_vibuw
You can connect with Simon at:
• Website: www.cemoh.com
• LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/iamsimondell
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Founders have massive reserves of energy and resilience. But it’s not infinite. So how can you tell when you’re starting to hit burnout? What should you do about it if you are? And what can you do to reduce the risk of it emerging in the future?
In this week’s episode on the ScaleUps Podcast we interview Sophie Scott, award-winning journalist for the ABC, speaker and author on burnout, longevity and happiness.
Sophie shares science-backed techniques to help Founders prevent or address burnout and increase emotional resilience for now, and for the road ahead:
13:39 – How to avoid guilt when enjoying life’s little pleasures
28:39 – Small shifts that when compounded improve mood (for you and others)
12:53 – Short bursts of stress then rest vs prolonged energy-depleting behaviours
20:45 – How to notice when you are hitting burnout (and what to do about it)
41:40 – Techniques to re-find joy in your life
48:26 – Why doing nothing about it, is a terrible option
Enjoy!
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: instagram.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH SOPHIE AT:
- Website: sophiescott.com.au
- LinkedIn: sophie-scott
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
Recently we interviewed an investment banker on how to optimise your outcome if you’re selling your business - but one of the other key team members in the deal is the lawyer.
Lawyers see the deal from a fascinating perspective as they’re thinking about risks, loopholes, terms, issues, the negotiation and when you’ve got a great one on your side they can be a force to be reckoned with for the buyer – helping you get the best bang for buck and ensuring you don’t accept any terms that aren’t reasonable or favourable for you.
In this week’s episode (our last in our “selling your business” mini-series) we interview JeromeFogel from FP General Counsel. He’s a deal maker, an innovator and a specialist lawyerwho’s advised both buyers and sellers in hundreds of transactions, capital raisings, contracts, partnerships and structures.
Today we unpack together some of the secrets from a lawyers perspective on:
05:06 - Common mistakes made by sellers
13:02 - Items found in due diligence that scuttle deals
25:35 - What a Founder should focus on in the run-up to getting a deal done
32:16 – The differences between businesses worth 3x, 5x, 10x and 20x their profit
37:56 - Negotiating tips when selling your business
Enjoy!
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
05:06 - Common mistakes made by sellers
13:02 - Items found in due diligence that scuttle deals
25:35 - What a Founder should focus on in the run-up to getting a deal done
32:16 – The differences between businesses worth 3x, 5x, 10x and 20x their profit
37:56 - Negotiating tips when selling your business
42:40 – Final thoughts from Jerome
46:31 – How to get in touch with Jerome
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
2. Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
3. Drop us a question about scaling using questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Jerome at:
• Website: https://fpgeneralcounsel.com/jerome-fogel/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/jerome-fogel-esq./
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you don’t currently have a set of Values or Operating Principles that underpin decision making and how your team show up with each other and your customers – this is the episode for you.
This week on the full ScaleUps Podcast 10 Minute Thursday episodes we unpack how to develop or improve your values or operating principles.
We cover questions like:
XXXX - Why do having Values or Operating Principles matter so much?
XXXX - Is there a difference between Values and Operating Principles?
XXXX - How should you go about developing some if you don’t have any?
XXXX - What do well-formed ones look and sound like?
XXXX - 5 words to avoid when writing yours, and
XXXX - Some examples of good and BORING ones.
This episode’s content draws on lessons within the ScaleUps Roadmap program, due for release in 2023.
Scaleups Roadmap is an exclusive cohort-based course that helps first-time Founders develop a strategy and execution plan that will enhance their growth rate, profitability, valuation & exit options.
Participants walk away with a clear growth strategy for the next 3 years, a simple 12-month execution plan, a renovated and improved business model and some new business peers.
If you’d like to join the waitlist for ScaleUps Roadmap – visit www.scaleupsroadmap.com.au
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
-
Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
• ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
• Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Sean directly via:
• ScaleUps Roadmap: www.scaleupsroadmap.com.au
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Links:
Harvard Business Review article mentioned: https://hbr.org/2018/02/ban-these-5-words-from-your-corporate-values-statement
businesspodcast #scaleupspodcast #podcast #SeanSteele #strategy
Selling your business is a big deal. It’s highly likely you’ll only ever do it once, maybe twice at the most. But there’s so much you can learn, and prepare for early, that will help you maximise the deal value.
If you’re keen to sell your business at some point in the future, you’ll love this episode. Today we interview (for the second time) Shawn Flynn, Investment Banker and mergers and acquisitions specialist who not only advises others but has built and sold his own businesses. We unpack the reality and process of selling your business, tips to help you prepare well and to maximise the potential value of your sale.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:31 – Tips and Tricks for Nailing Management Meetings
16:35 – Flexible Terms That Can Be Leveraged to Optimise Outcomes
31:51 – Buyer Secrets –Tricks Buyers Play to Create an Advantage (for Them)
44:34 – New Focus Areas You Should Expect from Buyers
53:46 – Optimise Your Screening by Mandating Minimum Information in Buyer Letters of Interest
58:10 – How to get in touch with Shawn
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Shawn at:
• Website: www.TheSiliconValleyPodcast.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnpflynn/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
During COVID many businesses shelved their international expansion plans. However, the world is opening back up and now is an excellent time to be recommencing that strategic discussion in your business.
If you’ve considered exporting to China, now might be the perfect time. This week China market expert, growth strategist, TV Host, celebrity and influencer with over 6m followers, Heidi Dugan, shares her insights into the current state of business in China, understanding Chinese consumer values, the characteristics of Western businesses who fail in their efforts to enter China and her 7 secret tips for succeeding in penetrating the market.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
00:29 – Origin of the Arete brand
04:23 – Is China open for business?
10:01 – Typical failure points when entering China
13:10 – The same goals or values mean different things in different countries
17:59 – The risk of becoming generic when seeking scale
22:43 – Western companies doing well in China
25:52 – Hit the market hard with marketing, or seep in slowly?
29:49 – Growth areas in the next 5 years in China
33:00 – Top 7 principles to succeed in China
41:24 – How to get in touch with Heidi
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
• ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
• Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Heidi at:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidi-dugan/
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/heidi_dugan/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heidi.dugan.chn/
• Website: https://www.heididugan.com/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeidiDugan
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you don’t currently have a business purpose, or feel your current purpose lacks impact with your customers and team… this is the episode for you.
This week on ScaleUps Podcast 10 Minute Thursday we unpack how to develop or improve your business purpose.
We cover questions like: Why does having a purpose matter? How do you go about developing a purpose? What to include or avoid when writing the purpose statement? What are some examples of well-written and poorly-written purpose statements.
Today’s content comes from the ScaleUps Roadmap program, due for release in early 2023.
Scaleups Roadmap is an exclusive cohort-based program that helps first-time Founders develop a strategy and execution plan that will enhance their growth rate, profitability, valuation & exit options.
Participants will walk away with a clear growth strategy for the next 3 years, a simple 12-month execution plan, a renovated and improved business model and some new business peers.
If you’d like to join the waitlist for ScaleUps Roadmap – email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Here’s What We Cover…
01:49 – Why does having a purpose matter?
02:47 – How do you go about developing a purpose?
04:18 – Top 5 tips for nailing the articulation of your purpose
06:10 – Examples of purpose’s that lack impact
07:27 – Examples of some well-written purpose statements
11:06 – Summary of top tips
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
I’m very excited today to be sharing detailed insights into what’s in the ScaleUps Roadmap program that’s currently under development.
Scaleups Roadmap is an exclusive cohort-based program that helps first-time Founders develop a strategy and execution plan that will enhance their growth rate, profitability, valuation & exit options.
Participants will walk away with a clear growth strategy for the next 3 years, a simple 12-month execution plan, a renovated and improved business model and some new business peers.
Here’s What We Cover…
01:40 – What is ScaleUps Roadmap all about
01:55 – Outcomes from the course
02:58 – Who the program is for
04:47 – How the course will be delivered
06;15 – What content will be covered
11:34 – How to learn more if interested
12:01 – New episode series - 10-Minute Thursdays
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
What’s brand positioning vs product positioning? How does messaging strategy fit in?
How do I cut through a cluttered and noisy market to ensure my offerings are communicated in a clear and unique way?
If you want some tips on how to better position your products for cut-through in the market, this is one episode you want to listen to. This week we interview John James, growth marketing expert, Director of James Hammon & Co and friend of the show on all things positioning. Full of examples, you’ll learn something new about positioning, how to do your research to find your white space and even get some golden tips on how to boost your conversions quickly.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:19 – Brand vs Product Positioning
05:40 - Why Positioning Matters
09:26 – Cirque De Soleil – Positioning or Category Creation?
12;06 – Category Entry Points or Jobs to be Done
17:00 – Positioning and Defining “Quality”
23:36 – Apple vs Samsung
26:11 – Smith and Singer
30:55 – Customer Research to Find the Opportunities
32:13 – The Gold Mine in Your “Lost Leads”
33:11 – The Golden Question for Immediate Conversion Uplift
34:56 – Product Extension Opportunities
44:48 – Don’t Obsess Over Your Competitors.. But Do Look at Them
49:30 – Don’t Do Art for Art’s Sake.. Make it Matter
50:21 – Connecting with John
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
• ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
• Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with John at:
• Website: https://jameshammon.com.au/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/officialjohnjames/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Selling your business is a big deal. It’s highly likely you’ll only ever do it once, maybe twice at the most.
But there’s so much you can learn, and prepare for early, that will help you maximise the deal value.
If you’re keen to sell your business at some point in the future, you’ll love this episode. Today we interview Shawn Flynn, Investment Banker and mergers and acquisitions specialist who not only advises others, but has built and sold his own businesses. We unpack the reality and process of selling your business, tips to help you prepare well and to maximise the potential value of your sale.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
04:09 – Insights into Shawn’s Background
12:05 – The Process and Team When Selling Your Business
19:39 – The Data Room, It’s Importance and Relationship to the Deal
29:37 – Maximising Value in the Deal
33:25 – Understanding Your Walk-Away Price
38:06 – Other Deal Elements You Can Negotiate to Optimise Value
44:24 – Reducing Risk for the Buyer In Order to Maximise Value
53:34 – Strategic vs Financial Buyers
58:52 – Shaun’s Podcast
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
• ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
• ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
• ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
• Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Shawn at:
• Website: www.TheSiliconValleyPodcast.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnpflynn/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
• Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Few people build and sell one business. But even fewer build a portfolio of businesses and run them in parallel. But there can be a lot of benefits. T
If you’re already running a business, but have a few other ideas you want to pursue that could become separate companies then you need to start thinking about bringing a portfolio mentality to your ventures.
Today we unpack the story of Thomas Woudwyk, Australian-born serial entrepreneur who’s scaling 4 companies at the same time through a clever approach to building a portfolio of related companies in Asia. We unpack the psychology of making a portfolio of businesses work together, financing growth and what it takes to unlock the full potential of your businesses.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:26 – Thomas’ Background
06:42 – Size, Scale and Overview of Current Portfolio
13:57 – Business Model of Pickup.PH
17:40 – Why Have a Portfolio Rather than Just One Business
20:47 – Cashflow vs Equity Businesses – The Rationale
25:55 – The Problems with Too Much Capital
31:54 – The Motivations Behind Your Approach to Capital
35:06 – Secrets to Unlocking Growth
40:42 – Challenges and Opportunities Launching Business in Developing Markets
47:08 – Thomas’ “Above All Else’s”
51:21 – How to Follow the ProSource Journey
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Thomas the ProSource at:
Website: https://www.prosource.io/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/prosourcebpo/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaswoudwyk/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
What’s the difference between an ordinary contributor, and an impact player? What differentiates them? How do you find more of them? What kind of environment do you need to create to help them thrive?
If you want to build a team of high performing impact players, you need to listen to this week’s episode with Liz Wiseman. Former senior executive turned researcher, executive advisor and best-selling author of Impact Players (How to Take the Lead, Play Bigger and Multiply Your Impact) shares the differences between impact players and ordinary contributors but more importantly… how to find or identify them, how to lead them and how to recruit for them.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:29 – Liz’s Background
05:48 – The Key Differences Between Impact Players and Ordinary Contributors
17:56 – How Upward and Outward Empathy Plays Out with Impact Players
21:01 – How Impact Players Think and Sean’s Example of an Impact Player
27:03 – How Impact Players Handle Unforseen Obstacles
33:16 – The Missing Impact Players in Your Organisation
35:19 – Starter Ingredients for Impact Players
42:09 – Finding and Attracting Impact Players
44:27 – Recruitment Tips for Impact Players - SOAR
49:24 – Being the Kind of Leader Impact Players Want to Work For
51:05 – Three Tips in Managing Impact Players Once You Have Them
53:36 – How to Connect with Liz or Learn More
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Liz and the Wiseman Group at:
Website: https://thewisemangroup.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-wiseman-group/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizwiseman/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
When you can’t afford talent who’ve already made it to an executive level, how do you get access to people with big potential that can make a huge difference to the trajectory of your business?
And once you’ve got them, what do you need to do as a leader to unlock that potential?
You’ll love this week’s interview with Bryan Watson. The former CEO of IDS and current co-Founder of Ovida transformed an electronics security manufacturer into an emerging markets smart-home leader, exiting via a sale to NASDAQ-listed Assa Abloy.
We unpack in this episode Bryan’s unique approach to recruiting and building a leadership team capable of executing such a transformation, which generated a 10x return for shareholders.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
05:00 – How Bryan Ended Up as CEO of IDS
08:00 – A Rocky Start for a First-Time CEO
12:48 – The Two Planks of their Winning Strategy
15:01 – How to Attract Top Talent When You Have Little to Offer
19:23 – Realities of a Zero-Blame and Radical Transparency Culture
25:10 – Lots of Reporting is a Great Way to Constrain Potential
28:52 – Planning for an Exit
32:33 – The Benefits of Transparency both Internally and Externally
36:31 – Incentive Alignment for Your Key Players
40:01 – Bryan’s Above All Else’s
42:04 – Bryan’s Newest Venture… Ovida
47:23 – Don’t Underestimate the Value of Your Peers as a Founder
48:42 – How to Follow the Ovida Journey
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
1.Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
2.Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
3.Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Bryan Watson and Ovida at:
Website: https://www.ovida.org/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanrosswatson/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ovida-moments/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Should strategy be done once and then just heads down until it’s delivered on? Or should it change every month or quarter based on reality?
What are the characteristics of good strategy? What are the factors that influence the ability of the organisation to execute it? Should you share your strategy with your customers?
So many questions, and so little time. But in today’s episode we give answering these questions and more a good crack.
Enjoy this week’s interview with strategy and execution specialist Jamie Christopherson, Director at Maximus International as we pull apart the development of strategy and the critical factors that influence execution. Over 18 years he’s helped organisations across the globe develop and execute on transformative strategies that have catapulted their companies to the next level, including some of our previous guests!
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
02:58 – Jamie’s Career Background
07:12 – What is Strategy?
12:00 – The Value of Outside-In vs Inside-Out Strategic Thinking
14:38 – What the Three Hindu Gods Have to Do with Good Strategy
19:52 – Good Strategy Requires a Strong Leadership Team
24:25 – Why Strategy and Operating Rhythms Are Critical if You’re Scaling
32:51 – How to Communicate Strategy Throughout the Organisation
36:14 – How Customer-Focused Is Your Strategy If You Can’t Share it With Them?
42:30 – 3 Minutes of Absolute Gold with Jamie
46:13 – How to Connect with Jamie
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
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- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT JAMIE CHRISTOPHERSON AND MAXIMUS INTERNATIONAL AT:
- Website: maximus.com.au
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/james-christopherson
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/maximus-international
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
I’m sure you’d agree that by the time you’ve got 100,000 customers on your platform, almost 1 million users and have a valuation of over 1bn you’ve probably learned a thing or two about scaling an organisation!
But Employment Hero, led by Founder and CEO Ben Thompson has not been an overnight success. There was a series of businesses Ben led before Employment Hero in the same space, solving similar but related problems with different solutions. Each were successful in their own right, but Employment Hero has expanded rapidly and globally by truly making employment easier for SMEs across the world. And they’re just getting started.
Founder psychology is everything when you’re seeking to maximise your impact and you’re going to learn a lot about how one of Australia’s most successful Founders has thought about the principles and frameworks that drive scalability, innovation and impact when you tune into this week’s episode on ScaleUps Podcast. Enjoy this interview with Ben Thompson, Founder and CEO of Employment Hero – Australia’s most recent unicorn.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
02:53 – Employment Hero’s (EH) Heritage and Reason for Being
14:42 – A Glimpse into Future EH Offerings
21:37 – The Benefits of a Remote-First Workforce
26:07 – Business Practices Critical to Scaling and Leading Remote Teams
30:07 – How Healthy Paranoia and Curiosity Supported Scale and Impact
33:48 – Better Innovation and Problem Solving via First Principles
39:01 – Surviving the Most Difficult Days
43:15 – Advice That Mattered – The Zoo vs The Jungle and Finding the Right Peers
50:25 – Ben’s Critical Advice to Founds – Above All Else…
57:03 – How to Follow Employment Hero’s Journey
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Ben Thompson and Employment Hero at:
Website: www.employmenthero.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/employment-hero/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bthompsonemploymenthero/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
A quick update on why there’s been a short gap in programming from your ScaleUps Podcast host, Sean Steele.
Doing startups is hard. Doing just one is usually enough for most people. But doing 100 in 5 years, that’s a special kind of insane or amazing depending on how you look at it!
That’s precisely what Mark McNally Co-Founder and CEO of Nobody Studios and previous guest and Co-Founder, Barry O’Reilly have done. They’re seeking to launch one hundred compelling businesses in 5 years. That’s right. One hundred.
To succeed in producing that many quality businesses you have to have learned a few things about how to filter out ideas that won’t succeed, how and when to raise capital, how to recruit great talent who together can create that magic that brings ideas to life and who can successfully and rapidly execute and iterate small tests and experiments.
If you’re a Founder who’s got a new product or service idea or business model you’d love to make fly you’ll love this week’s episode with experienced and successful entrepreneur Mark McNally, Co-Founder and CEO of Nobody Studios who’s on a mission to build 100 startups over 5 years. We explore the problems with getting big valuations too early on the journey, the ingredients that make ideas succeed, equity crowdfunding, how to avoid burnout and so much more.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:00 – The Genesis of Nobody Studios
10:54 – The Problem with Big Valuations too Early
16:47 – The Portfolio Approach to Building Startups
20:28 – Sourcing Ideas When Building 100 Companies
24:21 – The FruAgressive Concept
25:43 – Some of the Early Companies Coming Out of Nobody Studios
32:00 – Ingredients that Make Startups Succeed
36:46 – Equity Crowdfunding
41:32 – When Investors Realise Returns
45:07 – Avoiding Burnout
50:33 – How to Follow Mark and Nobody Studios
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
-
Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Mark McNally and Nobody Studios at:
Website: https://nobodystudios.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrkmcnally/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/says-nobody-studios/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Third-party cookies are about to become a thing of the past. Company’s reliant on using cookies to track users and personalise experiences to support their customer acquisition and customer experience objectives will find it increasingly difficult to kick goals without leveraging their own data.
Enter stage left, Matt Forman the Founder and CEO of XPON Technologies (www.xpon.ai) who is materially disrupting how customers gather, analyse and leverage their marketing and customer experience data to drive decisions in their business and is taking a leading role in creating blended reality virtual experiences for those seeking to reach customers in new ways.
You’ll love this week’s episode with Matt Forman, Founder and CEO of XPON Technologies where we explore the incredible growth journey of the company which in two years went from start-up to 120 team members, global reach and listed on the ASX. We explore the numerous transformational drivers of growth in the business, how XPON built their bench strength and created a unique culture that’s successfully sustaining rapid growth.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:41 – Overview of XPON
04:02 – The Problem XPON is Solving
08:28 – How XPON is Reducing Customer Churn
14:16 – The New Partnership with Google
21:33 – Pros and Cons of Going Public on the ASX
26:12 – Approach to Building Executive Bench Strength
28:31 – Applying Rigour to Finding Product-Market Fit
30:16 – Psychological Safety
31:13 – How Distribution Partnerships Supercharged Growth
32:32 – Growth By Having Ultra-Low Churn Rates
35:03 – Sage Advice When Hiring Team Members
37:31 – Most Difficult Times as a CEO
41:26 – Is There Such a Thing as Balance?
45:14 – The Business in 3 Years
47:24 – Matt’s 3 “Above All Else’s”
49:41 – How to Connect with Matt or Follow XPON
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Matt Forman and XPON at:
Website: www.xpon.ai
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/xpon-technologies/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattforman/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/xpontech
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
I know you probably think you’ve got feedback nailed as a Founder, or you’re probably not bad at least. But what about your managers? Are they nailing it? What about your team? Are they great at asking for feedback as well as giving it to each other, their one-up managers, their direct reports?
If the answer is “maybe not”, then there’s something to learn!
This week I interview Amy Sandler, Chief Content Officer at Radical Candor. Radical Candor is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling book that’s been published in 20 languages. It shares a simple framework to help you become a kick-arse boss through nailing feedback and guidance to others. It illuminates the path to building a culture in your business where people care deeply and personally yet challenge directly.
You’re guaranteed to learn something valuable that you can implement immediately in your business, enjoy this week’s episode!
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
02:05 – We Might Nail Growing a Business, But Do We Nail Feedback?
04:05 – Guidance vs Feedback – Are They Different?
07:26 – Unpacking a Framework that Helps
15:00 – Tough Feedback for Sean
22:15 – Aligning Feedback to Motivation
26:00 – Feedback as a Regular Muscle, not an Event
27:31 – Some Great Questions to Solicit Feedback
30:52 – Make Praise Specific
32:57 – Steps to Great Feedback
39:21 – Stop Rambling, Get to the Point
41:47 – The Problem with the Feedback Sandwich
44:45 – When Team Members are Not Communicating Well
52:50 – Building Safety
55:15 – How to Learn More About Radical Candor (and Free Resources)
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
-
Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Amy Sandler at:
Free Download: www.RadicalCandor.com/one-pager.
Website: www.radicalcandor.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/candor-inc/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amysandler/
Podcast: https://www.radicalcandor.com/candor-podcast/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you’re curious about early-stage megatrends that are going to shift the way your customers and employees think about your business, what they expect from you and from each other… this is your episode!
This week I interview Barry O’Reilly… best-selling author, speaker, faculty member at Singularity University on innovation, entrepreneur, advisor, co-founder of Nobody Studios and ExecCamp.. the list goes on! Barry and I unpack the megatrend of the “ownership economy” and Web3 technologies and how you might consider leveraging them in your business.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
00:49 – Intro to Barry
04:27 – Introducing the Megatrend of the Ownership Economy
09:50 – Contributors Getting Rewarded for Creativity and Content
13:18 – How NFTs and Creators Come Together
15:00 – Equity Crowdfunding
19:42 – Potential Use Cases of NFTs for Communities, Fans, Customers
26:13 – Examples of some Web 3 Projects
31:11 – How Web3 Can Be Leveraged in Traditional Industries
37:51 – The Value of Cryptocurrencies Outside Investing
44:28 – Fear and How to Deal with it as a Founder
52:47 – How to Follow Barry and Nobody Studios
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Barry O’Reilly:
Read Barry’s blog at: www.barryoreilly.com
Find out more about Nobody Studios at: www.nobodystudios.com
See how you can run an ExecCamp at: www.execcamp.com
Listen and subscribe to Barry’s Unlearn Podcast at: https://barryoreilly.com/podcast/
See what he has to say on Twitter: @barryoreilly
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
This was one of my most fun interviews to do. Why? Because we’re talking marketing with Timbo Reid.
How much time do you dedicate to marketing in your business? Does it feel like a chore or a hobby? Do you have fun doing it?
Marketing should be fun! It doesn’t have to be boring and serious and given it’s your business and you built it to have an impact, perhaps it’s time to try something new to increase that impact and find that cut-through in your market.
This week Timbo Reid, the very enjoyable-to-listen-to author, keynote speaker, marketing expert and host of the top-10 business podcast Small Business Big Marketing unpacks a literal smorgasbord of marketing gold collected over 30 years. You’re gonna finish this episode with a smile on your dial and inspired to try something new in your business to stimulate growth and maximise your impact.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:19 – Introducing Timbo Reid
06:17 – Why Marketing Your Business Should be a Hobby
09:45 – Timbo’s Marketing Career Prior to Podcasting
11:31 – Understanding Your Customer
17:10 – Pull vs Push Marketing and the Learning Hub Example
21:01 – The Recovery Room and Geek Squad Examples
24:41 – Platinum Electricians and the 21-Step Customer Manifesto
33:11 – Tom Dickson from Will it Blend and Extreme Product Demonstration
35:17 – Patty Lund Dental Transformation and Killer Innovations
38:44 – Cirque De Soleil Differentiation
41:44 – Mistakes Owners Make
48:04 – How to Follow or Connect with Tim
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Timbo Reid:
Website: https://timreid.com.au/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothyjreid/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
When you think about it, how much time and professional development attention gets given to building business acumen in your business? How much time do you spend teaching your teams about the inner workings of cash, profit, assets, growth and people? If you did, would they be able to make better decisions that would likely help the business grow?
And if you wanted to increase the level of business acumen, how would you go about it?
This week Kevin Cope best-selling author and CEO of Acumen Learning, who teach business acumen to leaders and their teams to help them grow faster and more sustainably, shares tips and strategies to help you build the business acumen of yourself and your team to help you fuel your growth.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
02:51 – The Acumen Learning Business Model
05:19 – Kevin’s Background
09:00 – How COVID Impacted the Business Model
16:29 – First Key Hires that Had Big Impact
17:14 – Self-Publishing a Book as a Lead Magnet
25:00 – The Key Levers that Drive Businesses
29:25 – Key Strategies to Immediately Improve Your Business Acumen
33:25 – Dashboarding in Practice
34:59 – Educate Your Team
38:25 – Profit as Benevolence
40:43 – Aligning Incentives with Desired Behaviour
49:01 – How to Contact or Follow Acumen Learning or Kevin
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Kevin Cope via:
Website: https://www.acumenlearning.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinrcope/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you own a property, you know the name BMT Tax Depreciation. They’re Australia’s #1 for property depreciation schedules, and number 1 by a country mile.
Being #1 doesn’t mean it’s easy, in fact that can make it harder but it does afford you some benefits. This week Brad Beer, CEO of BMT Tax Depreciation Australia’s #1 for property depreciation schedules, shares the highs and lows of growing to 180 staff and market leadership (by a long way) over 24 years.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:54 – Brad’s Background
05:28 – Market Leader, By a Long Way and the Benefits
16:38 – How Technology Supports Growth
27:39 – Difficult Times as a Leader
37:44 – The Impact of COVID on the Team
41:52 – Proudest Moments as a CEO
44:53 – The Business in 3 Years
49:35 – The Four-Word Business Plan
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Brad Beer via:
Website: www.bmtqs.com.au
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradley-beer/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Resilience is far more than having coping strategies when things get tough. Resilience practices can be done proactively, intentionally, purposefully. There’s going to be a new challenge just around the corner. That’s business. That’s life. If you want to be better prepared for the next one, this week’s episode is for you.
After a devastating accident at the age of 12 leaving her quadriplegic, Stacey Copas Founder of Academy of Resilience, found strength and purpose in her new life and this week shares with you some questions, mindsets and practices to help you navigate through the next challenge in your business or life more gracefully and successfully.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:23 – Stacey’s Life-Changing Accident
08:07 – Coping with a New Reality
12:28 – The Catalyst to Begin Sharing Her Story
17:19 – Why Resilience Matters
21:04 – Current Generation and Risk Taking
24:35 – Building Resilience in Your Organisation
27:35 – Stacey’s Mantra that Changed Her Perspective
30:25 – Vulnerability as a Leader
34:31 – Seeing Change as a Positive Complacency Killer
37:19 – Where Does Personal Responsibility Fit In?
39:31 – The Danger of “Always” and “Never”
41:42 – Getting Grounded and Present, Then Asking Better Questions
45:59 – How to Follow Stacey’s Work or Learn More
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Stacey Copas via:
Website: www.howtoberesilient.com
Website: www.staceycopas.com
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
When you think about it… every bit of work your team ends up focusing on is a result of the questions you’ve asked and the answers you’ve come up with. That turns into what to focus on, how to do it, when to do it and why it’s important. Imagine if you could improve the quality of your questions by 20-50%... would you get the same correlation in improved performances?
Join us this week as we interview Warren Berger. Author or co-author of 10 books, multiple appearances on CNN, and NBC’s Today Show, and regular contributor to Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and Psychology Today where he writes the “Questionologist” column.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:25 – How Warren Became a “Questionologist”
03:05 – The Impact of Poor-Quality Questions as a Leader
06:34 – The Risk of Over-Valuing Your Experience
09:25 – The Power of What-If Questions
17:03 – The Issue with How Questions
20:33 – The Trap of Success and Expertise
24:12 – The How Might We Questions
27:26 – Questions vs Statements for Your Mission
34:00 – A Cracking Question from Intel
39:19 – How to Build a Culture of Questioning
52:26 – How to Follow Warren’s Work
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Warren Berger via:
Website: www.amorebeautifulquestion.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/warrenberger/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you’re doing well in a super competitive market but feel you’re ready to make a major step change in your business, you’ll love the story of Direct Connect. This week Paul Docherty, former Founder and CEO shares the journey of leading the business from 0m in 2006 to a sale with Lumo Energy to Snowy Hydro for $600m in 2014 and is now successfully incubating numerous startups and scaleups through BRC Capital.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
04:22 – An Overview of the Direct Connect Business
08:06 – How Much Churn in the Industry??
11:02 – The Parties Involved in the Sale of the Business
12:32 – The Critical Moment We Pounced on an Opportunity
20:33 – Having to “Right-Size” the Business
23:15 – If I Had My Time Over – Make Hard People Decisions Faster
26:26 – Key Advice and Advisors That Made an Impact
29:02 – Upgrade Your Neighbourhood
33:38 – The BRC Capital Model
38:05 – Lessons Learned from Direct Connect Carried Forward
43:04 – Paul’s Three Above All Else’s
44:48 – How to Follow Paul’s Work
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Paul Docherty via:
Website: www.brc.capital
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-docherty-54144194/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you’ve thought about international expansion as part of your growth strategy there is a LOT to get right. But there have been many failed attempts, particulary by companies from the West expanding into the East, which share common characteristics which we can learn from.
If you’ve been considering expanding internationally this is the episode for you. Steven McGiness, author of 'Surfing the Asian Wave’ and regular expert on BBC World News unpacks the primary reason why companies fail expanding into Asia and what to do about it.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:36 – The Background that Informs Steve’s Expertise
09:53 – What Does Scaling Mean and Should that be the Goal?
13:12 – The COVID-Accelerated Model of Global Citizenship
18:04 - Why Do People Fail Going into Asia?
22:23 – The Four Key Areas to Think About
29:00 – Why Do People Assume It Should Just Succeed?
31:21 – The Missed Opportunity with Marginalised Customer Groups
40:17 – How Businesses in the East Expand into the West
43:58 – The Secret Advantage that’s Easy to Establish
46:25 – What COVID Has Done to Doing Business in Asia
50:08 – How To Follow Steve’s Work
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Steven McGinnes via:
Website: https://www.stevenmcginnes.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenmcginnes/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Hopefully, everyone’s had at least one “SuperBoss”. That leader who had a transformational impact on your work, who brought out your creativity and had you desperate to give your absolute best to the job and company. Unfortunately, we’ve all experienced the complete opposite.
What are the characteristics of a SuperBoss and what can you do to become a leader who transforms the lives of those who work in your business, leaving a permanent and valuable mark on their personal and professional development?
This week Sydney Finkelstein, author of 25 books including best seller “SuperBosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent” and Professor of Management at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College helps you understand the steps you can take to become a SuperBoss.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
02:39 – Sydney’s Early SuperBosses
05:18 – The Distinguishing Characteristic of a Super Boss
10:33 – Three Bundles of Super Boss Behaviour
13:55 – The Value of Vulnerability
15:07 – Why Does Your Company and Each Team Exist?
18:34 – The Wake-Up Call That’s Driving a Need for Leadership
20:51 – Unleashing Creativity
24:18 – Leadership Behaviours that Matter When Encouraging Risk-Taking
29:51 – The Master Apprentice Relationship
34:59 – The Bus-Stop Analogy
40:21 – How Super Bosses Hire
48:07 – A Huge Leadership Mistake to Make
51:00 – How to Follow Sydney’s Work
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Sydney Finkelstein via:
Website: https://faculty.tuck.dartmouth.edu/superboss-playbook/
Podcast: https://thesydcast.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydney-finkelstein-3900032/
Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/strategic-leadership-impact-change-decision-making
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If you’re wondering what steps you should take as a Founder before you make material investments in building a sales team or are scratching your head about how to make the most of the investment in your existing team… you need to listen to this episode.
Tony Hughes has been recognised as ‘the’ expert on B2B selling, the #1 sales blogger globally, a Top 3 Sales Thought Leader globally and the most influential person for professional selling in Asia-Pacific. This week he shares his 5 secrets for Founders seeking to power-up their B2B revenues.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:10 – Tony’s Career Before Becoming a Global B2B Sales Expert
06:20 – The 5 Things Founders Need to Do to Scale Their Revenues
10:16 - #1 of 5 – Know Your Ideal Customer Profile
16:10 - #2 of 5 – Identify the Buyer Personas You’re Selling To
33:58 - #3 of 5 – Nail Your Value Narrative
36:12 - #4 of 5 – Find a Way to Break Through into Their World
44:48 - #5 of 5 – Anticipate Objections
52:42 – Attracting Top Sales Talent in a Hot Market
56:11 – How to Follow Tony’s Work
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Tony J Hughes via:
Website: www.TonyHughes.com.au or www.salesIQglobal.com or www.RSVPselling.com. Blog: http://www.linkedin.com/today/posts/hughestony
LinkedIn for Tony: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hughestony/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
There’s many ways to think about how to grow your company from a strategy and tactics perspective, but have you considered trust or inspiration as enablers of scale AND multipliers of performance?
You’re going to love listening to the world’s leading authority on trust and inspiration in the workplace, Stephen M R Covey. Having stood on the shoulder of a giant (his father was Stephen Covey of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People) he went on to build the world’s largest leadership development organisation, increasing shareholder value by 67x. His latest book “Trust and Inspire” hits stores April 5, 2022.
Don’t miss this episode.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
01:43 – Experience that Informs Stephen’s Views
06:13 – Business Doesn’t Scale Well Without Trust
09:56 – Why It’s More Important than Ever to Focus on Trust and Inspiration
13:50 – Cultural Glue vs Performance Multiplier
15:13 – How Zoom Multiplied Performance through Trust
17:02 – The Bus Stop Analogy
18:57 – Moving from Trust to Inspiration
20:53 – Why Trust Underpins Positive Risk Taking
28:39 – Three Things Founders Can Do to Build a Culture of Trust and Inspiration
33:34 – Leaders Have to Go First
37:09 – Creating Inspiration from the Inside Out or Bottom to Top
43:35 – How to Follow Stephen’s Work
45:20 – Wrap Up
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Stephen M R Covey, Author of Trust and Inspire via:
Website: www.trustandinspire.com
LinkedIn for Stephen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-m-r-covey-6400191a5/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
What is the Growth Trap and what are the giveaways? What does changing your neighbourhood mean and why is it so important for entrepreneurs? How can you practically reduce the fears that you don’t realise are holding you and therefore your business back?
You’ll have oodles to take away this week from Mark Green, Founder and President of Performance Dynamics Group who after coaching Founders and CEOs from startups to 400m in revenue has learned a thing or two about what can derail your best laid growth plans, and explains what to do about it. Don’t miss it.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:02 – What is the Growth Trap
05:40 – Mark’s Career Background
08:33 – Does Your Coach/Advisor Need to Know Your Industry?
11:44 – The 4 Circumstances that Lead to the Growth Trap
17:35 – The Difference Between the Executive and Shareholder Lenses
19:48 – Talent Retention vs Talent Contribution
24:57 – What Does Change Your Neighbourhood Mean?
31:11 – Reduce the Fear and Get Rid of the Wrong People
37:24 – What Does Leading By Example Really Mean?
45:53 – How to Connect with or Find Resources from Mark
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Mark from Performance Dynamics Group via:
Website: www.mark-green.com
LinkedIn for Mark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachmarkgreen/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Can you imagine growing your company from 0 to 4000 team members across 25 locations? Consider how it would feel when you sit down to do next year’s budget and you see that your team is on track to deliver 400-500m in revenue! Incredible.
There’s so much to learn this week from Marc Meili, Founder and Managing Director of Protech and Cernova about building brand promises that matter to your customers, when to go after top talent, acting when market opportunities present, geographic growth strategy and more. Don’t miss it.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:15 – The Protech Business Model
05:45 – The Beginnings of Protech
09:33 – The Brand Promise that Made All the Difference
13:45 – The Practicalities of Building Process to Support a Brand Promise
18:05 – Should You Negotiate Your Standards?
20:32 – Digging Deep to Afford Top Talent
25:13 – Seizing a Market Opportunity
32:04 – What Made Marc Choose an Australia-centric Strategy
39:08 – Leadership Lessons
44:37 – Marc’s 3 “Above All Else’s”
48:26 – Acknowledgement
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Marc from Protech via:
LinkedIn for Marc: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcmeili/
Website: https://www.protech.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
If there’s one very common issue in businesses that are sub 20m in revenue… it’s brand. Who are we, what do we stand for, what should our positioning be, what space do we want to own, what words do we want to own in the minds of our customers, how can we most effectively and consistently communicate that? The list goes on!
Enjoy listening to Belinda Wall, Director of Brand Amplified this week share her views on your why, positioning and differentiation, what on-brand really means and Founder & CEO personal brands. Belinda’s done it all over the last 15 years, working for agencies, running internal marketing teams for companies, consulting and acting as an Advisor on Branding to numerous companies.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
04:35 – Belinda’s Unique Angle
06:25 – What Is Brand?
14:58 – The Relationship Between Problem/Solution and Purpose
16:20 – Differentiation
28:34 – What Does “On Brand” Look Like?
39:47 – Founder / CEO Brands
If you go1t value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast |
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Belinda from Brand Amplified via:
LinkedIn for Belinda: https://www.linkedin.com/in/belindawall/
Website: www.brandamplified.com.au
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Between 2005 and 2016 Pete and his partners and team built their (originally) promotional, brand activation and entertainment marketing business from the ground up to 30m in revenue, in 2014 they started expanding internationally and by 2019 had 220 team members. After some major adaptation work during COVID but now returning to core business, they’ve seen their business soar to a likely finishing point this year of c. 220m and 400 team members.
You’ll love hearing Pete Cleary, Managing Director of Zinc Group share his learnings about growth strategy, culture, creating value, acquisitions, international expansion into 14 countries and managing capital during both growth and tough times as he, his partners and his team grew Zinc Group from 30m to 220m over the last 6 years.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
03:50 – The Business Pre-COVID
06:45 – The Business Post-COVID
08:39 – The Genesis of Zinc Group
17:12 – What We Mean By Building Shared Value
21:55 – Can You Really Control Culture?
30:02 – Learnings Expanding Internationally
34:07 – Managing Working Capital During Growth
35:12 – Things to Consider on the Way Up
39:05 – The Pivot Required During COVID
49:10 – Pete’s Three “Above All Else’s”
51:10 – How to Follow the Zinc Journey
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Pete and Zinc Group via:
LinkedIn for Pete: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-cleary-8010145/
LinkedIn for Zinc Group: https://www.linkedin.com/company/zincgroup/
Website: https://www.zincgroup.com/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Debt, venture debt, strategic equity, preferred equity, convertible notes, pre-seed angel investments, venture capital, IPOs… help!! Over your time as a Founder you end up needing different amounts and kinds of funding to support your growth to ensure you can maximise your impact. But where to start?
This week we’ve brought back Roby Sharon-Zipser, Founder and CEO of hipages who’s had experience with pretty much every type of funding you can imagine (including all the ones listed above) to unpack for us how they work in practice to help you get your head around your options.
You’ll love hearing from Founder and CEO (and second-time guest on ScaleUps Podcast) of hipages Roby Sharon-Zipser knows how to build a scalable business. Over three million Australians have connected to over 35,000 tradies through the platform, hipages recently became the number two best place to work in all of Australia and incredibly has grown revenues from 25M to over 55M over a span of 5 years.
Here’s What We Cover This Week….
04:55 – It Started with Credit Cards
05:59 – Do You Want Partners?
07:12 – Bank Debt
12:23 – Venture Debt
15:24 – Convertible Notes
24:27 – Equity – Ordinary Shares vs Preferred Equity
26:02 – Crowdfunding
26:59 – Raising Equity and Pitch Decks
28:38 – Acquisitions
36:35 – Typical Exit Paths for Equity Investors
38:39 – Strategic Investment
43:31 – Be Careful Who You Take Money From
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Roby and hipages via:
LinkedIn for Roby: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roby-sharon-zipser-8417401b/
LinkedIn for hipages: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hipages/
Website: https://hipagesgroup.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
This is a story of persistence, of passion, of pivoting until the sweet spot was found. Nihal Advani, Founder and CEO of Qualsights (formerly Georama) has had an incredible ride and has built in 10 years America’s #1 fastest growing market research company (Inc 5000). With 65 FTE and growing, he’s disrupting the traditional qualitative research market by generating deep and authentic insights for companies from their consumers in a fascinating and unique way.
You’ll love hearing from Nihal Advani, Founder and CEO of Qualsights about his biggest mistakes, how he funded growth, the dial changers that accelerated his growth and his vision for the future of qualitative insights and the understanding of consumer mindsets and preferences. His willingness to learn, commitment, adaptation and willingness to evolve his business model to find a sweet spot with the right kinds of customers has seen him catapault Qualsights trajectory in the last 4 years.
Here’s What We Cover….
03:46 – The Disruptive Qualsights Model
06:39 – How the Insights Are Generated
09:05 – Stepping Through the Qualsights Journey
14:37 – Depth vs Breadth
16:28 – How We Used Testing to Fire Bullets
17:41 – What Kinds of Funding We Accessed
23:52 - How We Sequenced Key Hires
28:49 – How We Tested for “Fit”
31:52 – How Innovation Has Kept Us Ahead of the Pack
36:08 – Next Practice, not Best Practice
38:04 – How Passion and Innovation Come Together
42:49 – Mistakes Made When Launching Product
45:40 – The Vision for Qualsights
48:24 – Nihal’s ‘Above All Else’s”
49:56 – Acknowledgement
51:50 – How to Reach Nihal and Follow Qualsights
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Nihal via:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nihaladvani/
Website: https://www.qualsights.com/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Is the goal I’m going after, worth the price I’m going to have to pay to achieve it? What’s really driving my motivation, head or heart? Is the essence of the culture I’ve developed and the impact of my product or service such that it will create positive ripples if we scale? Or will we be scaling something unhealthy?
You’ll love learning from Maryanne Mooney from the Worthy Leader who has incredible perspective on the human side of scaling and success. After building two market leading consulting firms, she transitioned to leadership coaching and has worked with over 10,000 leaders and their teams. She’s a recently published author, Facilitator for YPO (world’s largest CEO network) and President of the Board for the Senhoa Foundation.
Here’s What We Cover….01:01 – Humble Beginnings
08:05 – Where Maryanne’s Perpsective Was Formed
12:57 – To IPO, or to Not? That is the Question
17:40 – Do You Need to Exit at All?
22:09 – Perspective Creating Questions
29:13 – Are You Really Doing it For Your Family? At What Cost?
35:00 – Ecology Checks When Goal Setting
37:11 – Are you Scaling Something Healthy?
44:08 – Thoughts on Motivation And What Nourishes You
48:44 - How to Follow Maryanne
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Maryanne via:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mooneymaryanne
Website: http://www.worthyleader.net/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Think about it for a minute. Accounting is not boring. Far from it. The Accountants get to see all the juicy stuff! The fails. The partnership blow ups. The cash issues. The incorrectly structured businesses that end up paying too much tax. The list goes on.
What they’ve seen go wrong and the resulting lessons learned can be incredibly instructive for Founders seeking to scale up.
What should you do now, to navigate around avoidable pain later?
Bradley Conn (Head of Accounting at businessDEPOT) isn’t your typical accountant, he’s far too interesting to wear that hat. Evidenced by the yellow surfboard on the wall in the background.
And this week in less than 50 minutes he imparts his wisdom with you on the key things he sees Founders get wrong, with the benefit of decades of experience and hindsight.
Fantastic insights and stories from Brad that will have you thinking deeply about whether you’ve had the right conversations with your business partner, your accountant, and yourself to avoid all the future pain you possibly can.
Here’s What We Cover….01:53 – The businessDEPOT Business Model
05:49 – From Surgeons to Cattle Station Owners
09:54 – One Hundred Thousand for Restructuring Due to the Wrong Structure
12:44 – What was the opportunity cost on top of the restructuring cost?
13:42 – When would have been the right time to get that structure right?
15:52 – Having a Decent Financial Plan and Cashflow Forecasting
19:44 – What’s the ideal length to do your cashflow planning for?
23:00 – Start with Worst Case Scenario
24:30 – What Purpose Did You Build the Business for at Inception?
27:40 – An Owner Who Lost His Mojo
28:46 – Evaluating What Gives, and Takes Away Your Energy as a Founder
30:12 – Spend Your Time on the Things That Create the Most Value
33:28 – Don’t Get Your Receptionist to be Your CMO and CFO
36:05 – Paring Less Experienced Resources with External Experts and Mentors
40:02 – Shareholders Agreements – What Conversation to Have and When
44:26 – Google It – But Then Mediate It If Needed
46:09 – The 6P’s and Why Planning Is Important
48:04 – Acknowledgement
49:29 - How to follow what Brad’s doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Imagine starting a company that has nothing to do with your area of expertise. And, as a first time Founder, then taking that to 35m in revenue in just 5 short years.
That’s precisely what Owen Franklin did starting in 2016 with his ecommerce business Blue Summit Supplies. Now Amazon's top third-party supplier of office supplies.
You’ll love listening to the mind of Owen …. he’s so down to earth yet so razor sharp. E-commerce office supplies may not sound exciting but you’ll love hearing how he’s built enduring and inspirational value for his ecosystem of customers, partners and team members.
Here’s What We Cover….02:20 – From 0 to Amazon's Top Third-Party Supplier of Office Supplies in 5 Years
04:38 – The Genesis of the Business
07:15 – Developing Pricing Advantages
10:47 – Mindset, Scale and Vision
16:05 – Long-Term Optimisation
18:17 – Starting with Why
20:21 – Key Moments on the Way Up
28:16 – Challenges on the Way
29:37 – Managing Cashflow
35:20 – Ray Dalio’s Principles – Life Changing
42:07 – What are you proudest of?
43:54 – What would you do differently if you had your time over again?
48:42 – Owen’s “Above All Else’s
49:46 – Acknowledgement
51:35 – How to Follow What Owen and His Team are Doing
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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**Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Owen via:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ofranklin/
Website: http://franklincreativesolutions.com/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
What do you think it would take to scale your company beyond 100m in revenue? Some pretty significant smarts, blood, sweat and tears. Now imagine doing it three times in 30 years! Incredible.
In this episode, we speak with John Katzman, the Founder and CEO of three companies that have sailed past $100m in revenue and still going; Princeton Review, 2U and Noodle. An unbelievable achievement! I know you’ll love hearing his insights into the value of spectacular CFOs, approaches to funding and how to bring great people together to achieve something worthwhile. Don’t miss it.
Here’s What We Cover….
01:59 - Overview of John’s Three Edtech Companies
04:17 - The Genesis of the Princeton Review
07:13 – Unpacking Funding for the Businesses
12:52 – Philosophies Around Raising Capital
16:02 – The Value of Spectacular CFOs
19:21 – Strategies that Changed Growth Trajectory
21:51 – The Genesis of the Noodle Brand
22:32 – What Lights John Up in Business
26:12 - Learning from the Biggest Mistakes
29:50 – Most Challenging Time
33:57 - Is there something that you would do differently?
37:47 - What the business will look like in three years?
41:05 - John’s “Above All Else’s”
45:58 - How to follow John and Noodle
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with John via:
LinkedIn for John: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jkatzman
LinkedIn for Noodle: https://www.linkedin.com/company/noodleeducation/
Website: https://www.noodle.com/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Like to learn the secrets of selling that have helped mid-market companies on 3 continents add multi-million dollar deals they didn’t think they could win? Over the last 20 years Peter Strohkorb has discovered what has changed with buyers and how organisations need to adapt.
You’ll love hearing in this episode Peter’s views on the problems with the current sales funnel, what “Smarketing” is and why it matters and what to do when someone asks you to “send them a proposal”. And that’s just the starting point.
Here’s What We Cover….
03:34 – Peter’s Career Journey and Genesis of His Philosophies
09:24 – The Origin of the Sales Funnel Most People Still Use
11:57 – Problems with the Current Sales Funnel Model
17:08 – What Are Lean Forward Moments
19:34 – What to Today’s Buyers Expect
21:31 – What Language to use to Create Lean Forward Moments
23:16 – The Challenge for Startup Founders
27:54 – What is Smarketing and Why Does it Matter
29:38 – Other Mistakes Made in the World of Sales for Start-Ups
34:50 – To Think About Competitors, or Not?|
37:16 – From Adversarial Relationships to Informed Buying Decisions
39:58 – What to Do When Someone Says “Send Me a Proposal”
43:11 – How to Deal with Pricing Objections
46:59 – How to Sequence Building Up a Sales Function
54:09 – Manage Sales First
55:41 – Metrics that Matter
57:49 – Analysing the 90% You Don’t Convert
1:02:40 – “How Buyer-Focused Is Your Sales Funnel” - Free Diagnostic Assessment
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Can you imagine growing your business to 50m in 15 years? What about scaling your 28m business to 50m in just 3 years?
That’s precisely what Owen Firth did between 2007 and 2021 with his education brands within the Gradability group; Performance Education and ReadyGrad.
Learn in this episode about Owen’s views on how to consciously build culture. His insights into the first thing he thinks about every morning as a Founder. His thoughts on how to positively leverage a healthy discomfort about the future.
Here’s What We Cover….01:12 – The Gradability Group Brand Journey
08:25 – The Growth Achieved in Metrics
12:32 – How Owen Thought About Differentiation
15:43 – What Problem Are You Trying to Solve?
17:53 – What I Thought About First, Every Morning to Enable Scale
20:01 – Measuring Quality of Sales and Outcomes, Not Just Sales
23:05 – Inflection Points As We Scaled
25:34 – Organisational Models That Suit Geographically Distributed Businesses
28:00 – Becoming Bloody-Minded About Culture
30:14 – How do you recruit for cultural fit in practice?
33:15 – Cultural Fit vs Cultural Contribution
34:33 – What role did your strengths and weaknesses play in the sequencing of key hires?
35:14 – The Value of Coaching for Founders
36:53 – What are you proudest of?
38:46 – Key Moments We Celebrated
40:47 – What’s critical advice you got on the journey, and from whom?
44:25 – Perfection vs Getting Comfort at 80%
46:11 – What the Business Will Look Like in 3 Years
49:06 – Owen’s “Above All Elses’s”
51:55 – Acknowledgement
53:24 - How to Follow What Owen and His team Are Doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Steve from the Nudge Group via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevegrace/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thenudgegroup/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/give_it_a_nudge/?hl=en
- Website: https://www.thenudgegroup.com/
- Email: steve@thenudgegroup.com
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
How can you 4x-5x your business in 5 years? How can you think more strategically about your category and where you can redefine it?
In this episode with Anneke van den Broek, Founder and CEO of Rufus & Coco I guarantee you’ll come away inspired. She’s taken some huge risks. From starting the business pregnant with her first child, to putting her house on the line, to backing an international expansion strategy (and ultimately succeeding but not without challenges), she and her team have achieved a huge amount.
From humble beginnings in 2008, Rufus & Coco is now a trusted household brand, available in ten countries, selling an average of 4,500 products per day. It is currently the no.1 Australian brand in the pet accessories grocery category.
In this episode, we talk about:
00:27 – Overview of Anneke’s Background
03:59 – The Stats that Support the Australian Pet Market
06:07 – The Genesis of Rufus & Coco
09:37 – Putting the House on the Line
16:05 – Financing Growth
18:07 – Growing By Stealth in the Category
22:09 – Assessing Your Team’s Strength
26:37 – Challenges in Expanding Internationally
35:00 – Lessons From Books that Helped Me Succeed
46:04 – The Business in 3 Years Time
48:48 – Anneke’s Three “Above All Else’s”
49:39 – Acknowledgement
50:50 – How to Follow Anneke and Rufus & Coco
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
— Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
— Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
— Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
— ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
— ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
— ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Rufus & Coco and Anneke:
— LinkedIn for Anneke: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anneke-vdb/
— LinkedIn for Rufus & Coco: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rufus-&-coco/
— Website: https://rufusandcoco.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
— LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
— Website: www.seansteele.com.au
How do I accelerate my growth trajectory? Should I take on a capital partner? If so, who would I choose and why? How can they help me? Do they take full control of my business? Help!
Learn all about what a growth-equity investor does in this illuminating episode with Mark Bryan from Pemba Capital. For those who’ve not been exposed to a strategic capital partner you’ll find it a super insightful look into one the ways you can seek some external help to speed up your potential exit be that a trade sale, IPO or alternative without losing control of your business.
In this episode, we talk about:03:31 – Overview of Pemba Capital
09:22 – Where It All Started for Mark
11:17 – Reverse Engineering Your Org Structure
13:51 – The Difference Between Capital, and a True Partner
16:45 – Key People in Your Team
20:42 – How to Accelerate Through Buy and Build Strategy
24:01 – The Two Payday Model
26:02 – Who Should be Incentivised
27:24 – Approaches to Business Optimisation
29:36 – Size and Scale Attracts Buyers
31:20 – Agreeing Strategy Before the Sale, Not After
34:16 – Style of Exit Works Back from Founder Motivations
36:08 – How to Evaluate Whether a Capital Partner is Right for You
39:18 – Who Drives the Decisions Post Partnering?
45:12 – Acknowledgement
47:36 – How to Follow Mark and Pemba
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
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- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Mark via:
- LinkedIn for Mark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-bryan-8407881/
- LinkedIn for Pemba: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pembacapitalpartners/
- Website: https://pemba.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
ASX listed hipages gives homeowners a fast and smart way of connecting with local tradies who can get their jobs done right and gives tradies the technology they need to manage their workflow, record-keeping and more.
CEO of hipages, Roby Sharon-Zipser truly embodies a learning and growth mindset. He’s innovating in their category, has successfully led the company through transformative organisational and technological change and has built a purpose and values-led culture and ethos.
What was the outcome of their efforts? It made them the number two best place to work in all of Australia and grew revenues from 25M to 55M in a span of 5 years. Remarkable growth.
You’re going to love this episode, where Roby shares how he and his hipages team soul-searched during troubled times, doubled-down on solving more problems for a narrower set of customers, transitioned from a transactional to relational model and changed their operating model to better align teams with strategic goals and initiatives. A great team who’ve achieved great things!
In this episode, we talk about:
02:48 - The Genesis of hipages
07:06 – The Growth Period from 25m to 55m
09:23 – Standing Out (The Supermarket Analogy)
16:00 – Growth Strategy
19:06 – War Stories
21:38 – Transactional to Relational Business Models
36:28 – Learnings on the Bumpy Road of Success
44:33 - Acknowledgement
45:26 - How to Follow Roby and hipages
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
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- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
You can connect with Roby via:
- LinkedIn for Roby: linkedin.com/roby-sharon-zipser
- LinkedIn for hipages: linkedin.com/hipages
- Website: hipagesgroup.com.au
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
As former Chief Growth and Strategy Officer of the Publicis Group, third largest communications firm in the world with 82,000 FTE and a globally renowned speaker and author Rishad Tobaccowala inspires leaders to stay relevant in a world that is changing fast.
Rishad has a clear vision, informed by 37 years of experience in growth, strategy and innovation on how to succeed in scaling and achieving your potential as a Founder or Leader.
This episode is packed full of wisdom and inspiration from the four keys to being a successful entrepreneur, when trust will be most important, what great strategy looks like and how to stay relevant.
In the episode, we talk about:
03:43 – Rishad’s Career Path
05:47 – Vision or Opportunity
09:36 - Giant Steps
11:47 – Building Trust When it Matters
14:48 – Rishad’s 5 P’s
20:02 – Growth Strategy and Why You Should Tell Your Story in only 9 Slides
27:57 – Change is Difficult: How to Incentivise Change
33:37 – Execution and Why People Matter
38:57 – Delivering Data and Remaining Relevant
44:09 – Why You Should Always “Err In the Direction of Kindness”
47:14 – Learning in Times of Change Within a Company
49:52 – Acknowledgement
50:11 – How to Follow Rishad
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:
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Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Rishad via:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rishadtobaccowala/
Website: https://rishadtobaccowala.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHjj8y_haWujxV-0u1eLnGA/videos
Podcasts: https://rishadtobaccowala.com/listen
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Envirobank makes recycling rewarding. They’ve developed and executed clear strategy, innovated and leveraged technology to stay ahead of their peers and taken a lead on social responsibility, caring for the environment and empowering their team. The result of their efforts? Significant positive environmental and economic impact. Oh year.. and revenue growth from 5m to 23m in 5 years and heading towards 30m+ very quickly. Nothing to sniff at!
Founder and Managing Director of Envirobank Narelle Anderson is a true leader. She believes in building a culture based on values, clarity of mission and strategy, ownership and empowerment. She enables each person to know the ultimate goal but also what success looks like for them on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. In 2015 Narelle was voted as one of Australia’s top 50 influential women entrepreneurs.
In the episode, we talk about:01:49 – Introduction to Envirobank
02:53 – Changing Behaviours: Carrot, Stick or Other?
07:45 – Drivers of Growth from 5m to 23m
13:43 –Cashflow Challenges in Fast-Growing Businesses
15:28 – People Aren’t Robots
25:03 – The Power of 2-Way Communication
30:07 - Winging It vs Strategy As You Grow
33:39 – Decision Making at Envirobank
44:50 - How to Follow Narelle and Envirobank
45:43 - Acknowledgement
If you got value from today’s episode, please remember to:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are pub-lished at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Envirobank and Narelle via:LinkedIn for Narelle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/narelle-anderson-78067810/
LinkedIn for Envirobank: https://www.linkedin.com/company/envirobank/
Website: https://envirobank.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Vantage Performance is such a unique business. They’ve completed more than 170 successful turnaround engagements, saved over 19,000 jobs, have a 100% success rate in securing more time and support from financiers, have won the most National Turnaround Awards of any company (14) and have now launched a unique system for fast-tracking business growth for any business seeking to scale.
Leading this impressive company is Michael Fingland, the calmest guy in the scale-up ecosystem you’ll ever meet.
You’ll love this episode where Michael shares his top tips for companies seeking to scale learned through the 170 turnarounds that he and his team have executed. He shares his perspectives on cashflow management, customer concentration, three-way forecasting, understanding your purpose, one page dashboards, Hedgehogs (from Jim Collins) and more.
In the episode, we talk about:
01:17 – 170 Turnarounds and 85% Success Rate
04:13 – Michael’s Career Path
07:23 – Critical Focus #1: 13-Week Cashflow
10:17 – 30% of Clients Are Out of Cash Because They Grew Too Fast
12:40 – 50% of Businesses that have a Record Year, Collapse the Next Year
17:18 – Never Let One Customer Represent More than 25% of Your Revenue
21:45 – The Difference Between Cash and Profit
23:50 – Why Three-Way Forecasts Are So Valuable
27:53 – Understanding Your Why and Your Purpose
31:13 – Growth for Growth’s Sake
35:04 – Pareto Principles
36:59 – Ideal Customer Profiles
38:29 – The One Page Dashboard
40:09 – The Hedgehog Principle
41:32 – The Commercial Model for Turnarounds
49:30 – Surrounding Yourself with Other CEOs/Founders
54:45 – Self-Care for Founders
56:14 – Acknowledgement
58:25 – How to Follow Michael and Vantage IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
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- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH VANTAGE PERFORMANCE AND MICHAEL VIA:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vantage-performance/
- Website: www.vantageperformance.com.au
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIFerLxmqL44N6ClzNnK7nw
- Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/vantage-performance-podcast/id567930642
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
Aspen Medical is more than just a health business. It is a company that is transforming people’s lives and creating positive change throughout the world.
At the helm of this incredible enterprise is Glenn Keys, a man who believes that both integrity and fabulous staff are key components when taking your business to the next level.
With a focus on better understanding cultural differences, discovering the specific needs of clients, and delivering outstanding services with a long-term perspective in mind Glenn now has over 7000 staff working for Aspen Medical both nationally and internationally. And, over $1.3 billion worth of contracts as a result.
However, success hasn’t come without its challenges, so be sure to tune in to this episode for a candid discussion on the highs and lows of Glenn’s journey.
In the episode, we talk about:
01:12 - The Initial Vision for Aspen Medical
02:45 - Problem Solving Approaches and Client Categories
05:46 - The Crisis Mode Approach and Working Together with the Client
07:55 - The Importance of Co-Creation and Establishing Client Trust
09:02 - The Inception of Aspen Medical and the NHS
13:47 - Finding and Retaining the Right Staff
15:14 - Initial Challenges
18:43 - Challenges of a COVID Environment
20:10 - Being Able to Say No
21:18 - Talent Pooling and the Culture of Agility
23:24 - Key Aspects of Aspen Medical Project Management
24:58 - How Various Systems Evolved Enabling Scale
28:02 - The Need to Meet High Standard Expectations of Clients
29:38 - Steps to Achieving a Profitable Business
32:25 - Aspen Medical’s Approach to Scaling and Their Legacy
38:21 - Aspen Medical Three Years from Now
40:35 - Key Advice from Glenn Keys Regarding Success
42:44 - Where to Find or Contact Aspen Medical IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
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- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH ASPEN MEDICAL AND GLENN VIA:
- LinkedIn: au.linkedin.com/company/aspen-medical
- Website: aspenmedical.com
- Twitter: @GlennKeysAspen
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
How do you differentiate yourself in an ultra-competitive market that’s pretty much been doing the same thing for last 50 years?
And how do you scale from a standing start to 2m and expand globally in the middle of a global pandemic?
That’s precisely what Steve Grace from the Nudge Group has done, and this is off the back of growing a recruitment firm from 2m to 45m over 9 years.
HERE'S WHAT WE COVE IN THE EPISODE....04:06 – The Unique Nudge Group Business Model
10:10 – Nudge Group Key Differentiators
13:25 – Growth Numbers and Metrics
15:55 – Did you set out to scale or did it just happen?
18:17 – The Key Decisions That Amplified Growth Trajectory
21:03 – Did you take on any funding to enable growth?
24:29 – How do you balance certainty and conviction with flexibility and humility?
26:49 – What advice has changed how you think and who gave it to you?
30:00 – What’s been one of the biggest mistakes and what did you learn?
33:11 – Choose Your Business Partner Wisely
36:17 – If you had your time over again, what would you do differently?
36:41 – Trusting Your Gut
39:07 – What will the business look like in three years?
43:01 – The Communication that Matters to Your Team
44:04 – Steve’s Three “Above All Else’s”
46:52 – Acknowledgement
47:47 – How to follow what Steve’s doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
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- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Steve from the Nudge Group via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevegrace/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thenudgegroup/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/give_it_a_nudge/?hl=en
- Website: https://www.thenudgegroup.com/
- Email: steve@thenudgegroup.com
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Founders face challenges every day and every week. Sometimes it feels like all you deal with is problems but that of course is part of the fabric of building a successful business.
Some challenges represent major learning moments, and it’s in that space that companies and their ability to succeed in the future are often defined.
Elyse Dickerson has solved some big ones in her six and a half years as CEO and co-Founder of Eosera Inc. Drawing on her own extensive experience, seeking input from key advisers and just hustling like crazy she has navigated the pitfalls and now has her products in 13,000 stores across the US after just six and half years. Amazing!
This is a fabulous, not-to-be missed episode where Elyse shares the key moments that forged the success of Eosera in a way that you’ll learn a lot from.
Here’s What We Cover….
01:50 – From 15 Years in Big Pharma to a Medical Start-Up
04:54 – There are Many Million Dollar Ideas that Solve Problems
05:18 – How do you know if the market is big enough for the problem you want to solve?
06:12 – Six and a Half Years of Scaling Up
09:22 – Pitching to Land That First Big Account
11:28 – How do you prioritise when everything demands your attention?
12:04 – Why Guidance from Key Advisers is Crucial
14:42 – How did you fund your start-up when the banks said no?
17:38 – Learning About Myself through the Process
19:32 – Advice on Recruiting and Growing Your Team
23:11 – When a Failure Becomes a Success
29:46 – Making A Hard but Ethical Decision
36:06 – How do you find your balance?
40:11 – What I'm Proudest of Along the Journey
41:41 – What will the business look like in three years?
44:07 – Elyse’s Three “Above All Elses”
45:16 – How to Follow Elyse
45:59 – Acknowledgements
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
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Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Elyse via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elysedickerson/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/eosera-inc./
- Website: https://eosera.com/
- Website: www.EARcareMD.com
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Not totally sure whether this week’s guest actually sleeps, but somehow he’s built and/or sold 12 recruitment businesses in less than two decades, and is still going!
Some of his insights regarding seeking out top talent and attracting them to your opportunity and automating everything you possibly can, seem sensible. Rational. Logical even. But how many of us are really nailing these two incredibly critical enablers of scale?
Enjoy this week’s episode where Ephram Stephenson shares his journey of building and selling 12 recruitment businesses by the age of 44 from a standing start as a backpacking telemarketer on $13.50 per hour at the age of 24.
HERE'S WHAT WE COVER....01:47 – The Genesis of the Kona & Co Brand
03:28 – How I Got Started in Recruitment
07:35 – The Value of Doing the Right Thing By Your Clients, Over the Long-Term
12:34 – The Brand Journeys and Success Achieved
15:41 – How We Grew From 14mil to 60m in 18 months
17:38 – Recruitment Scaling is Underpinned by Rainmakers
19:28 – How did you fund your scaling?
21:53 – How We Approached Differentiation in Each Brand
27:25 – Hire Top Talent, or Hope You Can Grow It?
29:30 – Finding USPs When Markets Change
31:49 – What advice helped you get through the GFC and COVID?
34:08 – My Biggest Mistake
37:41 – A Key Concept That’s Really Impacted by Ability to Scale – Leverage
39:54 – What Gives You Energy, and What Takes It Away?
41:27 – The First Recruitment Agency to Offer Daily Pay
45:44 – The Value of Automation
48:05 – The Business Three Years From Now
50:11 – Ephram’s Three “Above All Else’s”
52:36 – Acknowledgement
54:48 – How to Follow What Ephram’s Doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
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Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Ephram (currently of Collar Group) via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ephramstephenson/
- Website: https://www.collar.group/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
When do you stop saying yes to all customer types and all jobs for those customers when aspiring to grow?
Should you niche down, or stay broad? Can you keep scaling if you niche down on a key customer type?
How do you get yourself out of the way if you’re no longer the best person to run the business operationally? Will your ego cope with that?
These are precisely the kinds of challenges that Chris Eldridge from 4Impact has overcome to grow the company from 0m to 20m in the first 15 years, then from 20m to 40m in the last 5 year. That’s quite a journey!
HERE'S WHAT WE COVER IN THE EPISODE....01:57 – The 4Impact Business Model
05:53 – How Our Focus Changed Over Time As We Scaled
07:22 – What were the key technologies you mastered?
09:36 – Growth Metrics
12:25 – The Systems and Processes That Were Holding Us Back
17:11 – The Highs and Lows of Co-Founding and Business Partnerships
19:49 – What did you learn from that experience?
23:29 – Why did you take on an Advisory Board and how did it help?
29:54 – Reflections on How We (and I’ve) Changed Since Establishing an Advisory Board
32:50 – How We Funded Our Growth
36:46 – Managing Your Cashflow
37:37 – Who was your first key hire and what value did they create?
39:22 – If you had your time over again, what would you do differently?
42:37 – Work From the Customer’s Problem, Backwards
42:45 – My Biggest Mistakes
44:54 – What will the business look like in three years?
43:01 – The Communication that Matters to Your Team
46:30 – Chris’ Three “Above All Else’s”
48:13 – Acknowledgement
48:51 – How to follow Chris
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Chris from 4Impact and Business Balance Sheet via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopherpeldridge/
- LinkedIn 4Impact: https://www.linkedin.com/company/4impact/
- Website Business Balance Sheet: www.businessbalancesheet.com.au
- Website 4Impact: https://www.4impact.com/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
It can be like watching grass grow when you’re a first-time Founder.
It’s constant pushing. It’s incremental gains, not leaps and bounds. It’s a few steps forward, but even more back as you figure things out. Drive, adapt. Drive, adapt.
But when you stick at it, anything is possible.
Just ask Kelly Broderick, Co-Founder of Cleanworks. A cleaning company that took 15 years to achieve their first 6.5m in revenue from a standing start, but in the next 5 years tripled the size of their business to 18m.
And now they’ve got their sights set on 50m and they now have the experience, confidence, customers, team and a never-say die attitude.
Nothing’s going to stop them now.
You’re going to love this episode with the straight shooting, no fluff, Kelly Broderick.
HERE'S WHAT WE COVER....00:35 – The Cleanworks Business
02:56 – The Genesis of the Business
05:41 – How have you set yourself apart from the competition?
07:52 – The Growth Metrics, The Story in Numbers
09:26 – What were some of the moments that changed the dial on your growth trajectory?
10:15 – Going Deep on One Customer Type and Industry
14:50 – How did you build your team to get yourselves out of the way?
16:15 – Working the Org Chart Backwards From Your Target
18:47 – Our Biggest and Key Hire that Changed the Game
20:05 – How did you fund your growth?
24:37 – What makes you come alive in business?
27:55 – Books and Methodologies That Influenced the Journey
33:08 – What advice did you receive that stuck with you?
33:33 – The Story of the Grasshopper, Success Takes Time
36:41 – What would you do differently if you had your time over again?
38:06 – The 50m Big Hairy Audacious Goal
39:13 – Kelly’s Three “Above All Else’s” for Founders Striving to Scale
41:54 – Acknowledgement
43:06 - How to follow or get in touch with Kelly
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:1. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
-
Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
-
Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
Follow us on your favourite socials:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast/
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLlvcqAuqJMYBVUBoiixChQ
You can connect with Kelly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-broderick/
- Website: https://www.cleanworks.com.au/
or you can reach out to connect with Sean directly via:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile/
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Join us before you start listening to the ScaleUps Podcast for a quick 10-minute introduction, where Podcast Host Sean Steele explains:
What is the ScaleUps Podcast all about? Who's the intended audience? Who is this Sean Steele guy? What kinds of guests should I expect to hear and learn from in the first 10 or 20 episodes?
If you're the kind of person who needs context and a "why" before you can truly listen, this introduction is for you! If that's not you and you're ready to just listen to some amazing Founders share their wisdom to help you scale your business, then skip this introduction and just jump right in to the first episode with Esha Oberoi.
There are many people who can provide guidance and advice on what TO do to scale a company. And of course many are credible in doing so.
However there’s few that have seen thousands of examples of businesses not making it. Businesses failing. Partnerships that disintegrated. Finances that were poorly managed.
Culture’s that led to the downfall of the organisation.
Stipe Vuleta has seen it all. And whilst his legal expertise is solvent and insolvent restructuring, and he’s seen thousands of cases over 16 years. He’s also the Managing Director of Chamberlains Law Firm and has led their growth from an office of 11 FTE to 120 FTE and 13 divisions in 4 years.
What an amazing story and episode. Incredible and unique insights that any striving Founder should take heed of. What NOT to do, to avoid failing while scaling.
HERE'S WHAT WE COVER....
00:28 – Stipe’s Upbringing and Chamberlains Law Firm Overview
10:30 – Culture – Not of the Organisation, of the Founders
17:09 – The Pyramid of Personal Values – Which Do You Have?
22:28 – The Empire Builder vs the Farmer
26:33 – How To Value Your Contribution and IP in a Partnership
30:21 – Acknowledge Your Contributions and Those of Others Openly
31:46 – You’ve Got to Give Before You Can Get
33:03 – Contingent Liabilities (And Why They Really Matter)
36:48 – Which Founders should stockpile cash to hedge against future risks?
41:25 – What Helped Us Grow from 11 FTE to 120 FTE and 13 Divisions in 4 years
45:12 – Collections of Lawyers vs Law Firms
47:10 – The Parallel with Cirque de Soleil
48:06 – You Must Tackle the Difficult Cultural Decisions Early
49:31 – Acknowledgement
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH STIPE, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF CHAMBERLAINS LAW FIRM VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/stipe-vuleta
- Website: chamberlains.com.au
- Tiktok: tiktok.com/@stipevuleta
- Instagram: Instagram.com/stipevuleta
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: www.seansteele.com.au
Can you imagine achieving a 16% compound annual growth rate, not for 5 years, but for 32 years?
Is it possible to accelerate your growth via strategic distribution or sales and marketing partnerships, rather than going it alone?
That’s precisely what Richard Katzman did between 1978 and 2010 before selling the Kaz Group to Helen of Troy. He grew the company from 5m to 500m over that period. WOW!
Here’s What We Cover…
00:49 – The Kaz Group Business Model
04:10 – Kaz Group Differentiators
06:37 – Sell First, then Run Like Hell to Deliver
12:24 – How did license partnerships change your trajectory?
18:20 – How did you manage product price and positioning in your category?
19:25 – Who were your key hires and how did they change the business?
24:04 – How We Managed Funding Our Capital Requirements for Growth
27:24 – What books or frameworks were most influential on your journey?
36:08 – My Biggest Mistakes
37:27 – You Don’t Want to Run Out of Cash
38:46 – Don’t Just Take People’s Word For It
40:51 – The Team at 5m and 50m is Different to the Team You Need at 500m
44:05 – Who did you lean on when the going got tough?
44:50 – The Story of YPO (Young Presidents Organisation)
48:24 – Richard’s Three “Above All Else’s”
51:52 – Growing Revenues vs Profitability
55:11 – Acknowledgement
56:20 – How to follow what Richard’s doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: instagram.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH RICHARD (FORMERLY OF KAZ GROUP) VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rdkatzman
- Website: kaz.com (acquired by Helen Of Troy)
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au
Imagine starting a business at 24 and growing to 350 full-time equivalent staff in 13 years. Staggering!
The learnings about you as an individual, a leader and an entrepreneur all needing to come together to enable your teams to create this incredible scale.
That’s precisely what Esha Oberoi did between 2008 and 2021 with Afea Care Services and Inebura, and she’s only just getting started.
Open your mind, open your heart and get ready to absorb some incredible wisdom!
HERE'S WHAT WE COVER....
00:43 – The Afea Care Services Business Model
01:14 – What is Inebura and Where Does it Come From
04:18 – How the Care Industry Has Changed in Australia
05:09 – The Growth Metrics
07:10 – Afea Care Services Differentiators
08:41 – What are tangible examples of how you’ve done culture differently?
13:13 – How We Accelerated Through Technology
16:50 – Challenges in Building Your Own Tech-Stack
18:38 – Get Into the Detail, or Look Out!
20:00 – How a Flat Organisation Has Helped Us Scale
21:38 – Putting the Cart Before the Horse
23:50 – Getting Your Key Hires Lined Up
27:17 – What makes you come alive in business?
28:40 – Who do you lean on to get through tough times?
31:14 – Critical Pieces of Advice I’ve Received
34:35 – What are you proudest of?
35:29 – If you had your time over again, what would you do differently?
38:33 – Three Years from Now
42:19 – My Three “Above All Else’s”
43:33 – Acknowledgement
44:51 – How to follow what Esha’s doing
IF YOU GOT VALUE FROM TODAY'S EPISODE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:
- Rate and review us on ApplePodcasts
- Register to be the first to know when new episodes drop and free tools are published at www.scaleupspodcast.com, or
- Drop us a question about scaling using Speakpipe on the website, or email questions@scaleupspodcast.com.
FOLLOW US ON YOUR FAVOURITE SOCIALS:
- ScaleUps Podcast on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Instagram: www.instagram.com/scaleupspodcast
- ScaleUps Podcast on Facebook: www.facebook.com/scaleupspodcast
- Watch the full episode at ScaleUps Podcast on Youtube: www.youtube.com
YOU CAN CONNECT WITH ESHA VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/esha-oberoi
- Website: afea.com.au
- Website: www.inebura.com.au
YOU CAN REACH OUT TO CONNECT WITH SEAN DIRECTLY VIA:
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/seansteeleprofile
- Website: seansteele.com.au