Monkhouse & Company team enjoying a corporate event at a large indoor venue.

Sun, sweat and scaling up: a week with Smartsourcing

Updated 9 July 2026

A scorching week in Cebu with Smartsourcing: scaling fast and proving culture’s what happens when no one’s watching.

Dominic Monkhouse on founder mode vs manager mode startup leadership

Why founder mode beats manager mode: Redefining start-up leadership

Published 7 October 2025

Founder mode isn’t chaos, it’s clarity. It’s staying close enough to the work to actually know what’s real.

Panel of three professionals discussing fundraising strategies in a challenging market.

E349 | Raising money in a tough market: Lessons from Paul Archer, Jo Saxby and John Readman

Updated 9 July 2026

Raising venture capital has never been straightforward. But in the UK right now? It’s painful. Series A deals are thin

Person writing on a glass board covered with colorful sticky notes.

Why your 32-page strategic plan is bollocks (but this isn’t a silver bullet either)

Updated 9 July 2026

Your 32-page plan is wallpaper. The one-pager? A compass, not a cure-all. Execution beats documents every time.

Illustration of the startup founder's seven-stage growth curve.

There ain’t no party like an S-curve party: Why success is never a straight line

Updated 9 July 2026

Scaling a startup isn’t a straight line. It’s an emotional rollercoaster of chaos, growth, burnout, and reinvention.

Bright yellow sign with "Love to Learn" message on a white wall.

Back to my roots: dyslexia, audiobooks, and why I won’t shut up about education

Updated 9 July 2026

Not all kids need a better attitude. Some just need a different format.

Business growth with increasing percentages and stacked coins, symbolising success.

Measure what matters, not what’s easy

Updated 9 July 2026

Stop measuring crap under the streetlight. The real levers are hiding in the dark. And that’s where the money is.

Wooden game pieces on a target, symbolising precise customer delivery.

Targeted delivery: Giving customers what they actually want

Updated 9 July 2026

Stop serving crisps to everyone. Serve steak to the few who pay the bills and rave about your business.

Team building icons with a focus on talent pipeline development.

Build a talent pipeline, not a hiring frenzy

Updated 9 July 2026

Stop hiring in panic mode. Build a system that finds, grows, and keeps A-players before you need them.

Business team celebrating success with thumbs up and star awards.

Stop babysitting your business: How Culture Design will set you free

Updated 9 July 2026

Design culture on purpose. Or spend your life babysitting a business that never grows up.

Teamwork and leadership development in a scenic outdoor setting.

From 7-day grind to 2-day CEO: Developing your leadership team

Updated 9 July 2026

Stop being the bottleneck. Build leaders who run the business without you. And finally get your life back.

business growth teamwork

Why your weakest processes are actually your ticket to efficiency

Updated 9 July 2026

Your weakest link isn’t your biggest liability. It’s your biggest lever. Fix it fast, or keep faffing forever.

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