What does it actually take to build a high-performing team - that stands up for years to come?

In this episode I sit down with Mick Rigby, founder and CEO of Yodel Mobile, to dig into the real work behind long-term team performance. Mick’s kept his senior team together for close to a decade, grown people from interns into leaders, and adapted his own leadership style through start-up chaos, growth, and a post-sale transition into a much bigger parent company.

Here’s what we get into:

• how to grow people at the pace they are ready for
• why loyalty lasts when you back people early and often
• how neurodiversity shapes leadership, decision making and pressure
• the shift from micromanaging to macromanaging as you scale
• what part of marketing AI will change - and what it won’t touch
• why creative intelligence and human judgement are rising in value again
• the leadership habits that actually keep teams together for a decade

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What actually makes a great PR pitch land - and what gets lost when you let AI write it for you?

Lizi Sprague started out cold-calling journalists from a pitch pod and faxing press releases for London ad agencies. Now she runs Songue PR, a San Francisco-based agency helping deep-tech companies build credibility in the AI age.

This episode is part war story, part wake-up call:

• what she learned from getting rejected 63 times (and still getting in)
• how pitchcraft actually works in 2025 - and why ChatGPT isn’t your shortcut
• what UK brands keep getting wrong about launching in the US
• and why earned media is becoming critical again in a world shaped by LLM search

If you’re building a comms career, scaling a brand, or just wondering what PR actually does these days, this one’s worth your time.

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Ever landed a role you didn’t quite feel ready for - and had to get good, fast?

Brandt Bodamer knows the feeling.

He took on a digital marketing role overseas with little more than curiosity, hustle, and a copy of Digital Marketing for Dummies in his bag. That leap became the foundation of a career that’s since taken him into agency leadership and founding Adduro.io - a growing adtech firm helping brands show up across streaming and audio platforms.

But this isn’t just a startup story.

We get into:

• How to earn credibility without faking it
• What it really takes to grow fast when you feel out of your depth
• Making the shift from capable doer to credible leader
• What building a business without investor cash actually looks like

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Getting the title is one thing. Getting taken seriously as a leader is another.

Louise Thompson knows that gap well. She spent years as a comms director before moving into coaching, and she’s worked with plenty of smart marketers who’ve found the step up tougher than expected.

We get into:

• why outputs don’t cut it at senior level - it’s all about outcomes
• the behind-the-scenes groundwork that makes meetings easier
• how to stop micromanaging without losing standards
• finding a leadership style that feels like you, not a copy-and-paste

If you’ve just stepped up to head-of or director, or want to position yourself as ready for the next big leap, there's plenty here for you.

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Ever felt like you didn’t have the right background to make it in marketing?

Brooke didn’t go to uni. She didn’t have a head start or a polished CV. What she did have was persistence, a lot of self-awareness, and someone willing to throw down a challenge - in the form of a sales book and a second chance.

Today she’s Managing Director at Broadley Speaking - a sales and marketing consultancy that helps businesses find and convert high-value opportunities.

In this episode, we talk about:

• how she broke into the industry with zero formal experience
• the moment a single interview nearly derailed everything
• what rejection taught her about leadership and listening
• why she hires for attitude, not academics
• and what resilience actually looks like when you’re living it - not just posting about it

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What if the biggest threat to good marketing isn’t budgets, tech, or AI - but overcomplication?

In this episode, I sit down with Brandon Keenen - ex-CMO, ex-BuzzFeed, now founder of ViVV Labs - to dig into why marketing so often loses its way. We cover the cost of vanity metrics, the illusion of attribution, and how confidence without clarity is everywhere.

We also talk about what it really takes to move from tactical work to strategic leadership - and why simplifying your thinking might be the most powerful thing you do.

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We talk a lot about optimisation in marketing - but too often, it means nudging a button colour or tweaking a landing page.

Slobodan ' Sani' Manić wants to change that. A former developer turned conversion strategist, Sani shares how one offhand comment flipped his view of marketers, and how it led him to a mindset built around asking better questions, not just running better tests.

We dig into:

• why most marketers inherit a narrow view of their role
• how SEO and CRO became siloed (and why that’s a problem)
• what real optimisation looks like - and what stops teams doing it
• the mental trap of always spotting what’s broken
• how to stay curious (and sane) in an AI-saturated world

A great listen for anyone who wants to think sharper, work smarter, and stop pouring water into leaky buckets.

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We often use the term 'customer centricity' – but what does that really look like in practice?

Monzo Bank is well known for clarity - not just in its product, but in how it speaks. And Harry helped make writing it a core business function.

We explore how words can influence culture, shape products, and power customer experience far beyond the marketing team. We get into:

• Why Monzo unified brand and UX writing under one team
• How writing became part of onboarding for every employee, and how they built guidance people actually use
• What most businesses get wrong about tone of voice and guidelines

If you’ve ever argued that “words matter” inside a business, Harry shows you how to prove it.

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