Founders often talk about having a vision for their growing business – but do they have a vision board?
Dez Derry founded specialist legal digital agency mmadigital before rebranding to Blume then overseeing its acquisition by Sun Capital Partners in 2022. He remains a shareholder in the Manchester business, but stepped down as CEO this year.
He says building an exit plan all starts with a ‘vision board’.
“What are you looking to achieve – financially, professionally and personally? It’s then about working it back from there,” he tells BusinessCloud ahead of his appearance at FUEL Manchester 2024 next week.
“When you know the year that your business is going to hit that number – where it will attract a sizeable exit, or one big enough to fulfil the dreams on your vision board – then start speaking to corporate finance advisors and produce a sales document to tease potential buyers with.”
Liz Ashall-Payne is founder & CEO of Daresbury-based ORCHA – the Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Apps – a scaleup which is considered the benchmark of excellence for apps in the care and health space.
“Have a clear goal of what you want to achieve with your exit,” is her advice. “Start planning early, understand the market, identify potential buyers and shape your growth strategy to make the business attractive to them.”
Adam Ward is founder & CEO of Manchester-based Airtime Rewards, the fastest-growing rewards programme in the UK with 3.5 million members and 5m connected cards, incentivising 55 transactions every minute.
He says founders should focus on “building a strong team and fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation, failing fast, learning and executing”.
He adds: “Surround yourself with people who complement your skills, share your vision, and can help the business fulfil its purpose.”
Masterclasses
All three will serve as experts on the ‘growth planning’ masterclass at FUEL Manchester 2024 on Wednesday 16th October, offering direct advice to a cohort of 25+ scaling companies in a series of sessions. Beforehand there is a public-facing breakfast panel event featuring big-name speakers including Travel Counsellors CEO Steve Byrne.
Register for breakfast panel & networking
Reflecting on the last 12 years, Derry says he regrets not putting financial modelling in place sooner. “I also wish I’d got some financial muscle into the business as soon as possible,” he says. “Even in the early stages, I should have built a financial plan and objectives around that… I was running ‘from the heart’ instead of ‘from the head’ decisions for a long time, and not all over my numbers.”
When it comes to the transition phase from startup to scaleup, he says the mindset shift is around having an organisational chart then “filling those roles and letting go”.
“As a founder, you’re involved in every part of the business, all over the detail and being pulled from pillar to post… as you scale up, you have to let go and trust people, empower them.
“If you get the right people, it frees up your time to be a bit more strategic, as opposed to operational.”
Ward adds: “In a startup, agility and experimentation are key; you often operate with limited resources and must be quick to adapt. As you scale, the focus shifts to process, systems and efficiency.”
He outlines areas to consider here.
“Delegation: as a founder, you can’t do everything. You need to empower others to take ownership of their roles and give them autonomy.
“Standardisation: developing processes that can be replicated across the organisation helps maintain quality as you grow.
“Strategic vision: moving from day-to-day operations to long-term strategy becomes crucial. You need to think about sustainability, market positioning, and scaling operations effectively.
“Culture management: as your team grows, maintaining your company culture and values becomes essential.”
Ashall-Payne, however, cautions that while scaling does require a shift from hands-on control to building a strong team and trusting them, it’s still important to stay close to the business.
“You need to maintain oversight while adopting more structured processes and thinking with a long-term perspective,” she explains.
The ORCHA boss continues: “Stay resilient. Growth brings challenges, but persistence, adaptability, and a clear vision will help navigate them.
“Cash flow is always a challenge to manage, especially during periods of growth. It’s essential to keep a close eye on your revenue and expenses to ensure you have enough liquidity to support your operations.”
FUEL Manchester 2024
FUEL was created to fuel business growth for promising startups and scaleups. It’s two events in one, beginning with a whistle-stop discussion of some of the big questions facing businesses and finishing with a series of exclusive, invite-only masterclasses for a cohort of exciting startups.
Supported by GM Business Growth Hub, Bruntwood SciTech and the University of Salford Business School, FUEL Manchester 2024 takes place at No.1 Circle Square, Oxford Road, Manchester. Around 150 people have already registered for the initial breakfast panel and networking event after we revealed our full line-up of speakers. There are still a handful of places available.
We have also revealed the experts who, following the breakfast event, will pass on face-to-face advice to our cohort of 25+ startups and scaleups in masterclass pods across funding, growth planning, people & performance and technology.