How do you launch and scale a business with an average employee age of 24?

Alex Bodini is Co-Founder & Group CEO at Spin, a creative-first social agency. Over 9 years, he's grown the business to 75 people.

In this episode, Alex shares how he:

• Uses the High Challenge, High Support framework to drive supportive performance growth
• Takes on the role of 'Chief Repeating Officer' when introducing new concepts to the business
• Has invested in a 'professionalising the business' initiative for the past 2 years, bringing in senior talent to shape structures and processes
• Shifted the business from being a stepping-stone employer to a destination employer
• Focuses on creating enough headroom for all their talent to continue growing
• Acquired other agencies and worked to integrate their operations and cultures

Alex uses the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) to guide everything they do, from setting Rocks to running Level 10 Meetings, and assessing the team regularly with the People Analyser.

How can you make a genuine and positive difference to the entire sector you operate within?

Sam Gregory is co-CEO of the PR agency Tangerine, leading a team of 110 people. She took over the business in 2011 and has overseen significant growth since then.

In this episode, Sam shares how she:

• Puts entrepreneurial spirit and courageous thinking at the heart of everything they do
• Embeds a culture of bold, brave, and creative work aligned with clients' business objectives
• Prioritises a clear vision and overarching business plan as her number one focus
• Maintains full transparency internally with their business plans, decision-making and financials
• Strongly believes in the benefits of their Employee Ownership model
• Actively recruits apprentices to access raw young talent and keep the business at the cutting edge

Sam is dedicated to creating a workplace where everyone feels genuinely valued. And it’s working - last year, Tangerine was featured in Campaign’s Top 100 Best Places to Work.

How do you bring together two well-established businesses to create a new entity?

Phil Fearnley is CEO of the creative company, House 337. He led the creation of the business in 2022 by merging 200+ people from two separate businesses, ODD and Engine.

In this episode, Phil shares how he:

• Brought together two businesses by leveraging their joint histories to forge a shared future
• Set up seven internal teams to lead the integration and formation of the new company
• Had the team create highly original core values - Alchemic, Inventive and Soulful - that the business could truly own
• Personally ran workshops with every single team member to reinforce these values and their importance
• Made 'House' central to their new name to reflect a culture of membership and belonging
• Refuses to tolerate "Big I Am's" who undermine a team mentality

Phil is also a former Wales U21 rugby player. He applies team principles from his playing days to foster a true team ethos.