Episodes

  • Arjun S.: Why AI Won't Replace Consultants

    Arjun S.: Why AI Won't Replace Consultants
    Nov 13 2026
    Arjun S. is the managing director of StratAction, an AI-first management consulting firm. After more than a decade in consulting, including running a market research firm's consulting arm in Hong Kong and working at Accenture in London, he went independent in 2023 and later set up his own company. We cover: - Being part of a global layoff and choosing to build his own business as a young father - Reconnecting with old contacts with no sales pitch, just a conversation - Why you can't rely only on your network if you want more than a lifestyle business - Running LinkedIn campaigns of 1,500 to 2,500 names and getting around a 10% call rate - Using upcoming events in the Middle East as an honest reason to start a conversation - Why getting the second and third conversation matters more than the first - How AI cuts a three week market research exercise down to a few days - Why consultants will focus more on execution as AI models become standard Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    17 mins
  • Andrew Bloch: Earn, Learn and Have Fun

    Andrew Bloch: Earn, Learn and Have Fun
    Nov 13 2026
    Andrew Bloch co-founded a PR agency in 2000, sold it in 2007 and stayed on until 2020, when he went non-exec and built his own consulting firm, Andrew Bloch and Associates. He buys and sells marketing services companies with PCB Partners, recently set up Exited Founders, advises and invests in several agencies, and still handles PR for high-profile clients including Lord Alan Sugar. We cover: - Walking away from a successful agency to scratch an entrepreneurial itch - His two rules for going solo: employ no one, and only do what he is good at - "You're never going to feel ready" and backing yourself without a salary - The earn, learn and have fun test for every piece of work - Why saying no is one of the greatest strengths an entrepreneur can have - Putting his own name above the door and staying front of mind on LinkedIn and Instagram - Setting up referral fees both ways to monetise your network - Moving up market by earning the right and fishing in the right ponds Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    23 mins
  • Matt Foss: Clarity Before Delegation

    Matt Foss: Clarity Before Delegation
    Nov 13 2026
    Matt Foss coaches business owners and leadership teams. He owned and ran businesses, sold to private equity, and then built his own operating system to help owners stop being the bottleneck in their companies. We cover: - Why owners become the bottleneck, and how clear direction makes delegation easier - Why cash flow is the biggest risk when a company scales too fast - Busting through ego: closing locations to rebuild a profitable business - Moving from a referral-only practice to a course, an app and social media - Why a failed marketing hire was his own fault, and the Tesla self-driving analogy - Being a partner who pushes back, not a yes man - Fitness, discipline and the standard leaders set for their teams - Tracking daily activity instead of staring at the end goal Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    46 mins
  • Jamie Randall: Contacts Are the Currency in Football Finance

    Jamie Randall: Contacts Are the Currency in Football Finance
    Nov 13 2026
    Jamie Randall is the co-founder of Brookline Sports Advisory, a London-based firm that arranges receivables financing and structured credit for football clubs. He left a corporate real estate career at CBRE to build a business around his passion for sport. We cover: - Taking a leap of faith out of real estate in his mid-20s - Why contacts, not revenue, were his currency in the first eight to twelve months - Meeting his business partner on LinkedIn and combining two networks - Why cold outreach to football club executives about financing is so hard - Growth through collaboration with local partners in LATAM, Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Turkey and Scandinavia - Living on success fees, and why they are holding off on full-time hires - Phase two: an exclusive funding partner or raising their own capital - Resilience, not getting too high or too low, and knowing who to trust in sport Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    21 mins
  • Chris Marrs: AI Projects Don't Fail, Undefined Goals Do

    Chris Marrs: AI Projects Don't Fail, Undefined Goals Do
    Nov 13 2026
    Chris Marrs helps companies take the next step after their first wave of modernization and AI work, when the early proof-of-concept projects have stalled and leaders are asking what to do next. We cover: - Why so many companies are now regrouping after the first wave of AI and modernization - Matching the skill sets of technical teams with what the business actually needs - Walking into a company that had been stalled for six months while it searched for a new CIO - What happens when the answer is yes to everything and no one can make a decision - The top, middle and bottom tiers of a technical team, and when to upskill versus bring in new people - Working around an old database full of business logic, and getting a first release out in twelve months - Why the real problem is usually a goal that was never defined, not people or technology - Finding quick wins in ninety days, and why AI has to be driven by the business, not IT Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    13 mins
  • Massimo Montone: Design Restaurants to Work When They're Full

    Massimo Montone: Design Restaurants to Work When They're Full
    Nov 13 2026
    Massimo Montone founded Restaurant Keys about ten years ago, after a career in restaurants that started in 1992. His consultancy takes restaurants from concept to opening day, delivering around ten to twelve openings a year, with companies in London and Dubai. We cover: - The summer job where he got paid by the job, not the hour, and brought his friends to move the bricks - Being headhunted for openings until he was running three on the side, and deciding to go out on his own - Why running the business with his wife is seen as a positive by clients - His advice to anyone moving into consulting: be ready to have no salary, and adapt to what the market wants - Charging per project instead of a retainer, and why that suits restaurant projects that get delayed - Replacing free discovery calls with paid coaching calls - How property brokers became a steady source of clients - Designing restaurants to feel good when they are full, not to look good when they are empty Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    25 mins
  • Jeremy Holt: Specialize, Productize, and Grow Without Growing Apart

    Jeremy Holt: Specialize, Productize, and Grow Without Growing Apart
    Nov 13 2026
    Jeremy Holt is a chartered psychologist based in Brighton, UK, and the founder of Centre for Team Excellence, which he set up in 1999 to help leadership teams, scale-ups and elite sports teams build high performance team environments. We cover: - Moving from advertising in London to occupational psychology and then starting his own consultancy - The three phases of his firm's growth, from generic relationship work to a focus on leadership and high performance teams - The client call that led to an 80 person leadership program and changed the direction of the business - Funding research with Sussex University to create a credible point of difference - Building reputation through a decade of work with the British military and sports teams, including a Paralympic gold medal with GB wheelchair rugby - Productizing with Team Mark, Tribe 48 and Tribe 100 so delivery does not depend on the founder - How COVID changed relationship selling and why they now use LinkedIn, webinars and podcasts - Low risk entry offers, nine to twelve month sales cycles, and why every client has bought a second project Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    21 mins
  • Rob Goddard: Make Yourself Redundant From Your Own Business

    Rob Goddard: Make Yourself Redundant From Your Own Business
    Nov 13 2026
    Rob Goddard is the founder and executive chairman of S Cubed Advisory, which helps business owners scale through acquisition, growth strategy and mentoring. After 18 years in banking and seven years running an M&A business, he went out on his own in 2008, two weeks before Lehman Brothers went bust, and exited that firm in 2021. We cover: - Starting a one man band right as a five year double dip recession hit - Why sellers overvalue their businesses, and why preparation is what gets deals over the line - Maxing out a credit card on a website and business cards, then networking like hell for the first clients - The two hires that changed everything: a 58 year old admin hire and his former NatWest boss as his first salesperson - The Beer Mat Entrepreneur, and why your job as owner is to make yourself redundant from your own company - Buying an insolvent business, turning it around in 18 months and making four times the money back - Judging marketing agencies on leads, not on "colouring in" - Why he wishes he had taken more risk, earlier Beyond Referrals is a podcast by Elite Growth Partners.
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    24 mins