Many business owners may see compliance as a grudge expense – something they have to spend on but would rather not think about. But ensuring compliance is not only essential for business it also helps them grow faster and make better decisions. To join us in considering its importance, we are joined by Simon Magner, the Managing Director of Iridium Business Solutions.

Rapid-fire recommendations

• Software: Xero.

• Best book or podcast:

• • Book: The Nike book, Shoe Dog.

  • Podcast: A podcast with John Sanei and Erik Kruger called The Expansive.

• Most valuable lesson learned about building a business or businesses: Communicate more than you think you need to, and as early as you can in any situation.

• Key takeaway: If you own a company and are working with a professional service provider, understand their responsibilities and how you know they are properly supporting you.

In this episode, we talk about scaling businesses with Malcolm Box, the GM of Engineering for Xero in the UK. Box has experience in software development management at Amazon Web Services, Amazon, and other companies, and co-founded his own company, Tellybug, which created TV companion apps and a scalable back-end platform for shows like X Factor and Got Talent.

Key Principles of Scalability

Some of the key principles we cover include the following:

• Identify and Parallelize Bottlenecks: To achieve technical scalability, it's essential to understand "where the bottlenecks are" and "what's the rate limiting step". The way to scale a bottleneck is to "split that work out and parallelize it," similar to how a supermarket adds more checkouts.

• Simplicity and Managing Complexity: As systems scale, they get more complicated with more code and technology. Simplicity is essential, and one must "be always trying to find ways to... rein in the complexity, rein in the chaos". This applies to business processes too; a simple process with "well-defined stages" is better than relying on one person ("Brenda") who knows everything.

• Building for the Future (The Three Fs): When building for the future, the speaker focuses on three things:

• Fundamentals: Identify the fundamental things that will always be true about the business, such as Amazon customers always wanting things faster.

• Flexibility: Build flexibility in, and make things "easy to change," by designing systems in small, simple, well-understood parts that can be "mix[ed] and match[ed]".

• Foundations: Get the critical decisions right from day one, such as how data is managed to keep it "secure and private".

• Speed vs. Sustainability (One-Way and Two-Way Doors): The risk of not changing and getting left behind is the "worst risk of all". The difference between a one-way and a two-way door, which is an "Amazon thing," is a useful mental model for decisions.

• Two-way doors are easy to go through and come back out of if the decision is wrong. The goal is to turn one-way door decisions into two-way door decisions and go through two-way doors "really quickly".

• One-way doors are irreversible, so you need to "spend more time there" and be more careful.

• The Role of Data: Data is critical because it helps in making "decisions based on evidence". The speaker advises combining aggregate data with "anecdotes" like customer comments, as these provide concrete information for improvement.

Rapid fire

• Book/Podcast Recommendation: The Curious Cases podcast, a science show.

• Best Piece of Software: "Things," a to-do list app that runs on a phone and laptop.

• One Valuable Lesson Learned About Building a Business: It is always about the people; they matter more than anything else.

• One Key Message to Take Away: AI has made new things possible; experiment with it and use it to help things scale. Also, always test whatever you are scaling, because it will break in unexpected ways.
  

Taking risks is part of every entrepreneur’s journey — but not all risks are created equal. In this episode, we explore how business owners can take smarter risks — the kind that fuel growth, not failure.

Joining us is Ian Phillips, Head of Partner Sales at Xero in the UK. Ian has seen firsthand how bold decisions, backed by data and strategy, can transform a business.

Rapid-fire recommendations

• Software: Gemini

• Podcast: The Rest is Money podcast

• The most important lesson learned about building a business: To understand the need to alter the balance between speed and quality of execution. In the early stages, speed is vital. However, as you grow, in order to scale, quality becomes more important.

• Key takeaway: Build a cadence for reviewing for KPIs, probably for a weekly basis but at least on a monthly basis. If you’re a business owner, ask your accountant to build you this and if you’re an accountant, this is the great value you can provide to your client.

Today, we are diving into some of the details surrounding data protection for small and medium businesses – from what it is to why it matters and, specifically, what smaller businesses need to keep in mind.

To help us unpack this topic, we are joined by Danie Strachan, a Senior Privacy Counsel who guides organizations through complex privacy laws, turning them into actionable strategies. Danie advises clients globally, blending legal precision with business pragmatism.

Key takeaway:

You have to figure out what data you have. Then you can figure out how to use the data responsibly and how to unlock intelligence from that data. You can still achieve your business goals while being compliant and maintaining trust.

Accounting and TikTok? Gone are the days of the stereotypical man in a drab gray suit with a calculator. Today, young accountants are paving the way for a new generation of accountants who are in touch with tech and are sharing the gift of financial literacy not only with their clients but with the wider world by creating educational content.

In this episode, we speak to Grace Hardy, an enthusiastic accountant who has successfully managed and expanded her own business. Grace is a strong advocate for apprenticeships and is committed to promoting financial literacy among young people. We’ll be diving into how she uses social media to spread her knowledge and make accounting cool as well as how she taps into tech more generally to provide insights and support to the small businesses she serves.

Rapid-fire recommendations

• Software: Engager and TikTok
• Podcast: Jay Shetty's podcast with Emma Watson
• Most valuable lesson learned about building a business: There's never a right time. Starting is the hardest part and there's never a perfect time to start. Stay in your lane; do things your way.
• Key takeaway: Anything is possible.

We are surrounded by data. But just because we've become proficient at collecting it doesn't mean we're good at understanding it or using it to its full advantage. How do you know if your company is reading data correctly? What should you be doing differently to make the most of it?

To answer that question, we sit down with Arnaud Petriolle, the Senior Director of GTM Finance at Xero in the UK. Arnaud has a background in finance and strategy and consulting and finds himself at the intersection of finance, go-to-market strategy and data. So, he's well positioned to help us with this timely question.

Rapid-fire recommendations

• • Software: Spreadsheets (Excel and Google Sheets)
  • Book: Deep Work by Cal Newport
  • Key takeaway: The goal isn’t to collect more data; it’s to make better decisions. Data only creates value when it changes behavior. You can have the perfect dashboard, but if it doesn’t lead to different actions, it’s basically just cosmetic. Obsess over clarity. Don’t try to read all the data; learn to read the data right, ask better questions about it, and have the courage to act on what the data tells.
    

How do you build a team that cares as much about the bottom line as you do? That's the million-dollar question for every business owner, and today, we have the answer. It's not just about a paycheck; it's about making everyone a partner in the company's success.

Our guest is Rob Gallaher, the author of the new book, Profit Sharing: The Power of Shared Success. Rob dives deep into why simply giving bonuses doesn't work, and how true, transparent profit sharing is the key to creating a truly loyal and engaged workforce.

Learn more about Rob Gallaher and his work below:

https://profitx.co/

https://try.profitx.co/

https://a.co/d/3UZGkWb

www.linkedin.com/in/robertgallaher

https://www.facebook.com/1robertgallaher1

Today, we’re tackling a question that every leader and manager is asking: how do you make AI practical and usable for the people actually running your operations — the leaders who aren’t coders and the teams on the shop floor? Hoping to help us tackle this question is today’s guest, Derek Crager. Derek is the founder of Practical AI and creator of Pocket Mentor which happens to be the world’s first voice-accessible, industry 4.0 - customer support system. In this episode, we’ll explore how voice-first AI is reshaping industrial support, transforming knowledge transfer, and making AI a tool everyone can actually use.

Rapid-fire recommendations

• Software: ChatGPT the project mode
• Book: The Journeyer by Gary Jennings
• What is the most valuable lesson about building a business: You can’t do it alone. You need partners and help. They will understand your "missing link" and cover the additional skill sets you lack.
• Key takeaway: Don’t be afraid of AI. Understand that there are ways to implement AI that don’t cost capital expenditure.