What if your exit plan never arrives?

Most founders treat their exit like a far-off dream; something they’ll figure out someday. But that vague timeline sabotages your team, your business, and your freedom. In this solo episode, Bill breaks down the real cost of waiting too long to plan your exit.

Topics explored in this episode:

(0:25) The Exit Date is Uncertain

*Time creeps up on you faster than you think.

*One day, you’ll realize you want to retire and there’s no one who can take on the business.

(1:15) Client Case Study

*When you untangle a founder from the business, the team suffers.

*The founder and team have decades of ingrained habits that make a succession difficult.

*It took this client 6 years to properly sell.

(3:15) ‘Someday’ Timelines Hurt Everybody

*You can think about exit plans as early as the first year of business.

*This allows you to build a company culture around the ‘exit strategy’.

*The team gets a chance to be excited about their individual ownership in the company.

Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth.

Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop

Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGall

Bill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach

Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up Performance Platform, which includes coaching, learning, software, and summit. We share how the fastest-growing companies succeed where so many others fail. We help leadership teams with the biggest decisions around people, strategy, execution, and cash so that they can scale up successfully and beat the odds of business growth.

Did you enjoy today’s episode? If so, then please leave a review! Help other business leaders discover Scaling Up Business with Bill Gallagher so they, too, can benefit from the ideas shared in these podcasts.

Subscribe via Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3PGhWPJ

Subscribe via Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3PKe00u

Bill on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/billgall/

Bill on Twitter/X: https://x.com/billgall

What Can You Learn About Scaling from the Very Early Days of Amazon?

In this episode, Bill sits down with John Rossman, former Amazon executive, author, and expert in leadership strategy, to uncover the secrets behind Amazon’s remarkable scalability. From launching the Amazon Marketplace in 2002 to writing The Amazon Way, John shares leadership lessons and operational principles that any business can adopt. This conversation is a masterclass in customer obsession, high standards, and building mechanisms that scale.

Topics explored in this episode:

(02:00) Playing Bigger is Actually Safer

*How John Rossman went from traditional consulting to shaping one of Amazon’s most successful platforms.

*The unique operating tempo and mindset inside Amazon.

*Why high standards are scalable, and low standards are not.

(11:20) Scaling Is Just a Series of Experiments

*You never want to have all your eggs in one basket.

*If you’re trying to juice your business for -today’s profitability-, you’re setting yourself up for a big risk.

*After being let down by Fedex during the holidays, Amazon knew they had to take their delivery network in-house.

(19:00) Stay in the Problem-Solving Headspace a Little Longer

*Find small ways to test solutions to big customer problems.

*Don’t go all-in or spend big $$ on customer problems without testing the available options.

*Study history and past patterns from other companies to understand how problems get solved in a smart way.

(31:15) Reinventing the Business Model: The Amazon Way

*John shares examples of Fortune 500 companies and how they failed to scale.

*How Amazon out-thought competitors with better models, not bigger teams.

*The mindset shift leaders must make to scale.

(39:15) Leadership Isn’t a Trait. It’s a System.

*Don’t wait for a profit decline. Amazon doesn’t.

*Don’t leave your leadership up to chance.

*How to build culture by design, not by accident.

Thanks to John Rossman for being on the show!

Learn more about The Amazon Way: https://the-amazon-way.com/

Connect with John: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-rossman/

Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth.

Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop

Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGall

Bill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach

Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up Performance Platform, which includes coaching, learning, software, and summit. We share how the fastest-growing companies succeed where so many others fail. We help leadership teams with the biggest decisions around people, strategy, execution, and cash so that they can scale up successfully and beat the odds of business growth.

Did you enjoy today’s episode? If so, then please leave a review! Help other business leaders discover Scaling Up...

What if stepping away from your business is the most productive move you could make?

In this solo episode, Bill Gallagher explores the strategic importance of taking time away from the business in order to work on the business. Drawing from his own experiences and the breakthroughs of top leaders.

Topics explored in this episode:

(02:03) The Brain Needs a Break

*Breakthroughs happen after breaks.

*Stories from clients who saw massive clarity after they stopped grinding.

(03:42) Executing vs. Leading

*Constant doing keeps you reactive.

*When you always work in the business, you stop working on it.

(05:02) Trusting the Team

*Getting away tests your systems and your people.

*If things fall apart when you're gone, it's not a vacation problem.

(08:03) Breaks Create Capacity

*When you return, you’re sharper, more creative, and more useful.

*Distance gives you perspective and perspective gives you power.

Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth.

Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop

Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGall

Bill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach

Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up Performance Platform, which includes coaching, learning, software, and summit. We share how the fastest-growing companies succeed where so many others fail. We help leadership teams with the biggest decisions around people, strategy, execution, and cash so that they can scale up successfully and beat the odds of business growth.

Did you enjoy today’s episode? If so, then please leave a review! Help other business leaders discover Scaling Up Business with Bill Gallagher so they, too, can benefit from the ideas shared in these podcasts.

Subscribe via Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3PGhWPJ

Subscribe via Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3PKe00u

Bill on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/billgall/

Bill on Twitter/X: https://x.com/billgall