Next week, my eldest child starts at uni. And it makes me wonder what kind of parent I’ve been. Not just whether I’ve had a positive influence on his character, or created enough laughter on the way. But also whether I’ve helped create a better or worse world for him to grow up in to. […]
Founders and Owners
The redundant founder / CEO
The majority of my work these days tends to be with companies that need support in scaling up. That may be because they’re on a rapid growth path, and need to ensure that the business scales robustly. Or because they’ve plateaued (or started a slow decline), with a myriad of symptoms to boot. In almost […]
Don’t build a business to sell
A lot of early-stage startups that I meet want to talk about their exit strategy. They spend a lot of time figuring out how to build a company that they can sell for a good price. If exit is your goal (and remember it may not be the only way to build something that meets […]
All it takes to turn an idea into a business
At the BCS talk that I recently did on growing a business with profit and purpose, I asked the audience what it takes to turn an idea into a business. “Grit”. “Determination”. “Hard work”. “Action”. I suspect that came from the entrepreneurs in the room. “Passion”. “A why” (eugh). “Purpose”. “Courage”. I suspect that was […]
Founders – your team aren’t all entrepreneurs. And that’s a good thing.
A common story I find when working with founders is frustration with the managers that they appoint into their business. Not responsive enough. Not thinking big enough. Not hungry enough. I always need to remind them that this is why *they* are founders, and their team isn’t. Typical founder traits are both a strength and […]