Mini-guide to high growth

 

 

 

If your company is growing fast, it’s exciting – but it can also be a mad scramble. 

 

So it’s important to do what you’re least likely to do: stop, take stock and think strategically. 

 

The Brighton and Hove Chamber of Commerce’s ‘High rise debate on high growth’ did just that.  Sponsored by Barclays at the i360, it gave the panel and audience, a chance to explore the things that will keep them on that high-growth curve: staff, systems, culture and funding.  

 

First stop: your people and your purpose.

 

 

 

But how do you know whether your new team members will do your company justice? 

 

As James Dempster, MD of Cobb Digital and one of the panellists, pointed out: “Employing the right people is really, really important, particularly amongst your sales team. They have to live and breathe your company’s ethics, because if they are going off and promising things that they can’t deliver, that is no good. Equally, if they don’t understand what your business is about, and are promoting that in a wider market, that is no good either.”’

 

Richard Heggie, another panellist, is Head of the High Growth and Entrepreneurs Proposition at Barclays. He agrees that maintaining your culture is a challenge when your team is expanding at speed:

 

 

 

 

 

Nikki Gatenby, the third panellist, is Managing Director of Propellernet, a digital marketing consultancy.  She knows a thing or two about creating a thriving culture. For the last four years Propellernet has been ranked within the top 10 Best Places to Work in the UK.  This has not happened by happy coincidence:

 

 

 

 

‘Yes!’ I hear you cry, ‘but how do we embed it? We’re growing so fast, we’ve got 101 things to think about. Won’t telepathy work?’

 

Well, no.  You need to overt and upfront about what you believe in. Back to Nikki:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since 2012 Propellernet has grown steadily, 20% year on year. Its team has increased from 15 to 50 people during that time.  

 

Compare that to James Dempster’s experience of  business growth.   Thanks to Cobb Digital’s merger with Leapfrogg, another well-established agency, his team doubled overnight. Literally:

 

 

When you have a growth spurt like this, it’s tempting to sit back for a while and, well, just enjoy it.  That’s understandable. But try not to sit back for too long.  James: 

 

 

 

 

 

While Cobb Digital’s recent growth happened organically, many other companies have to apply for funding to feed their expansion. And as Barclay’s Richard Heggie points out, getting the right type of funding at the right time is crucial:

 

“Which stage of funding is your biggest challenge? It is not as simple as, ‘my bank won’t give me a loan to start my business’. It’s, do you find the challenge at Series A or Series B level? Is it equity investment or more innovative venture debt that you need? 

 

“Many companies don’t understand the right type of funding for the right stage of development. I see people coming and asking for bank debt when bank debt is not the right type of funding for their particular stage of growth. So we see our role as connecting you to the right type of funders, who might be able to help you to grow.”  

 

 

As joint founder and Managing Director of Plus Accounting, Paul Feist has years of experience helping successful businesses to expand.  As the fourth panellist, he described how he worked alongside a client to win £1.8 million worth of funding. The money was provided by 242 separate investors who were marshalled together by one venture capitalist company. 

 

If this is the route you want to take, be prepared to do a lot of homework. Paul:

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, creating a five year plan like this, is done on the assumption that everything in your house is already in order; that all your existing accounting and legal information is up to date and ready for inspection.  This is vital for due diligence.

 

 

 

But, as one member of the audience pointed out, due diligence works both ways.  Weze McIntosh is Managing Director of Purepotions, which makes natural products for people prone to dry skin:  

 

 

 

 

Paul Feist echoed Weze’s experience: you have to identify investors with right mind set.  People who understand what you, and your company, are all about.  It comes back to purpose:

 

 

 

As several people pointed out, there’s always the fear that outside investors will change the culture of the company they are buying into – damaging the very things that make that company distinctive and brought it growth in the first place.  Vital things, like a clear sense of purpose. Richard Heggie sums up:

 

 

 

 

Or, put it another way, Nikki-Gatenby-style:“If you put people and purpose first, the money will come.”

 

Right. You can take that finger off the pause button now.  

 

As you were.  

 

Happy growing.