I’ve managed a media startup from 4 to 50 staff and exited in Spring 2024. I know the pleasures and pains of moving early stage businesses through acquisition, into scaleup and maturity.
Some of the pleasures I’ve had in my career are:
- Recruiting a highly passionate and loyal team.
- Allowing the managers I hired to thrive.
- Reaching more than £1m+ a year profit.
And some of the pains:
- Having no one else but me to manage the main product.
- Scaling up in general – it’s hard and you won’t keep everyone happy.
- Having to let people go.
Getting things moving when you’re the one who has to answer 1,000 questions, is tough ask. Moving from deliverer to manager, from manager to leader, are others that few founders really get the training for.
I’m here to offer operational support to founders, such as answering questions on HR, finance and legal issues, even delivery on their main product or service. The most important part is when you move to the growth phase, and defining a clear strategy for navigating that scale. Who do you hire, and how fast? What policy is worthwhile? These are all questions to get advice on.