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The Growth Workshop Podcast
The Growth Workshop Podcast
Author: Southwestern Family of Podcasts
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© Copyright 2025 Southwestern Family of Podcasts
Description
Jonny Adams & Matt Best will share their 30+ years experience on what growth & revenue acceleration looks like in modern business. With episodes featuring industry leaders, you can hear aspects of leadership, sales, account development and customer success, alongside other critical elements required to build an effective growth engine for your business.
Southwestern/Great American, Inc., dba Southwestern Family of Companies, for itself and its related entities and their assigns, reserves and retains all rights to their copyrighted materials and trademarks contained in this podcast.
Southwestern/Great American, Inc., dba Southwestern Family of Companies, for itself and its related entities and their assigns, reserves and retains all rights to their copyrighted materials and trademarks contained in this podcast.
45 Episodes
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For leaders navigating growth in tech-driven environments, Stepan reveals how early AI research, entrepreneurial grit, and a client-first mindset have shaped his leadership style. He discusses building high-performing teams, balancing technology and human creativity, and scaling sales in a consultancy.
In this episode, Rachael Smith reflects on purpose-driven leadership and her vision for a more inclusive wealth management industry. She unpacks the inequalities women face in building and managing wealth, the frameworks that guide her personal and professional purpose, and the leadership playbook needed to navigate crises and change. With energy and clarity, Rachael shows how aligning purpose with growth creates lasting impact for both organisations and society.
Rachael Smith, Head of Growth at Evelyn Partners and former EasyJet leader, shares how behavioural science, branding, and sales–marketing alignment can drive transformation in both aviation and wealth management. She explores lessons learned from nudge theory on flights, the power of client insight, and why a vertical approach is reshaping the industry. Rachael also discusses the urgent need to build a wealth management model that truly serves women as they become the fastest-growing segment of wealth holders.
Discover how to create growth frameworks that drive both immediate impact and long-term success, from commercial and marketing executive leader Rachael Smith. Leaders will find practical guidance on stakeholder mapping, onboarding, and navigating change with agility. For organizations, it explores how to align teams around client-focused strategies, establish growth enablers, and scale sustainably. Rachael shares innovative blueprints for change.
Stuart Dale, Founder of OrbitalX, leads a conversation focused on how the buyer journey has changed, with most decisions happening before prospects ever engage with sales. It stresses the importance of brand consistency, long-term narratives, and aligning marketing with sales to cut through the noise. Practical takeaways include improving audience quality, rebalancing content toward thought leadership, and using signals—large and small—to guide outreach and accelerate growth.
Stuart Dale, Founder of OrbitalX, explores the decline of the traditional “Predictable Revenue” model and the rise of AI-enabled, signal-led growth strategies. It highlights the balance between automation and human creativity, emphasising storytelling, proprietary insights, and thought leadership as the foundations of demand generation. Listeners gain practical ideas on how to build programmes around narrative, masterclasses, and unique data to stand out in a crowded market
This episode explores how organizations can move beyond traditional methods of measuring their impact to a data-driven growth initiative. SBR Consulting Data Insights Lead, Martin Zeman, emphasizes the importance of defining clear objectives, utilizing granular company data to identify genuine opportunities, and continuously monitoring key metrics throughout every project phase. By treating revenue operations as a strategic function and focusing on actionable insights rather than averages or brand reputation, leaders can drive accountability, improve decision-making, and ensure lasting business growth.
In the final part of our interview with Reachdesk founder and CRO Alex Olley, we explore the role of AI in sales, emphasising its capacity to automate repetitive tasks while maintaining the human element in buyer interactions. Alex warns us against over-automation and AI champions, who aim to enhance, not replace, sales conversations. The episode closes with reflections on leadership, personal growth, and the long-term vision of giving back to the next generation of founders.
In part 2 of our talk with Reachdesk founder Alex Olley, we discuss Reachdesk’s bold go-to-market strategy, which aligns every function, marketing, sales, and customer success, around one shared goal: revenue. It details how compensation, planning, and cross-functional collaboration eliminate any friction and drive focus. The episode also reveals how a London startup broke into the US market by going all-in with a differentiated value proposition and a 5x return on investment (ROI) guarantee.
We explore the founding journey behind a high-growth SaaS business (Reachdesk), with its founder, Alex Olley, highlighting the importance of grit, cultural alignment, and hiring for mindset over pedigree. We discuss how their values, “be bold, learn fast, get things done”, shape a resilient team and how a structured, scorecard-driven hiring process ensures long-term success. The conversation also touches on the power of team-based wins and embedding customer-centricity into every role.
In part 2 of our talk with Guy Rubin, founder and CEO of Ebsta, we look at how sales organisations can drive growth by improving consistency across their entire go-to-market function. Guy highlights the widening performance gaps between top sellers and the rest, the shift toward full-cycle selling, and the crucial role of clean data, clear benchmarks, and effective leadership in replicating success at scale.
In part 1 of this talk with Guy Rubin, founder and CEO of Ebsta, we examine how data-driven strategies are impacting leadership and sales performance, emphasising the significance of accurate CRM data, actionable relationship insights, and aligning teams around a precise ideal customer profile (ICP). We look at how replicating the behaviours of top performers and prioritising engagement trends can help organisations drive scalable, predictable growth.
In part 2 of our talk with speaker, trainer, and coach George Anderson, George delves into the significance of inner dialogue in controlling motivation, mindset, and resilience. He discusses how self-awareness and alternative responses can help individuals stay within their circle of control. George also highlights the importance of well-being for high performers, explaining that taking small breaks and looking after one's physical, emotional, and mental energy can enhance performance and creativity. He shares practical frameworks like the DASH (diet, activity, sleep, hydration) for improving well-being and performance.
In part 1 of this episode, we discuss the importance of reframing goals to be present-focused, which helps individuals value healthy habits in the moment, with speaker, trainer, and coach George Anderson. George introduces the DASH framework (diet, activity, sleep, hydration) as a quick-win strategy to build routines and boost energy, sharing specific examples of positive results from his clients. Additionally, George explains how his Mindset Boost app's self-diagnostic assessment can identify areas for cultivating different mindsets to improve performance and growth.
In part 2 with Matt Milligan, co-founder of Uhubs, the discussion delves into the differences between software sales and consulting sales, and the need for a consultative approach in both fields. Matt talks about AI in sales processes and the profile of high-performing salespeople. He explains that AI tools can automate significant portions of sales workflows, leading to increased efficiency and performance. The conversation also touches on the evolving role of Chief Revenue Officers (CROs), who need to be data-literate and have strong revenue operations (RevOps) support. Milligan introduces the RISE framework (Revenue Skills, Impactful Behaviours, Strategic Process Execution, Expert Knowledge) as a structured approach to assessing and improving sales capabilities, ultimately driving revenue growth.
In part 1, Matt Milligan, co-founder of Uhubs, discusses the importance of assessing and benchmarking sales team capabilities to drive performance. He shares insights on the significance of combining technology and consulting services for meaningful business transformation. Matt also highlights the value of having mentors and coaches in both professional and personal development, drawing parallels between business and sports. The conversation touches on the challenges of scaling sales teams and the need for a data-driven approach to performance management.
Damien Davis of ServiceNow continues to share how his personal challenges have shaped his leadership approach and drive for impact. He recounts his journey of overcoming loss, advocating for mental health, and using his experiences to fuel resilience and growth. Damien discusses the power of authenticity in business, the importance of listening to customers, and how organisations can shift from a product-driven to an outcome-driven mindset. He also shares practical tips for building a strong personal brand on LinkedIn and highlights how ServiceNow fosters transparency, employee engagement, and AI-driven business transformation.
In this episode, Damien Davis, a customer success leader at ServiceNow, shares his insights on balancing career growth with personal wellness. He discusses his journey of maintaining healthy habits while managing a demanding executive role, emphasising the importance of sustainable routines and mindset shifts. Damien also highlights how building strong relationships, focusing on personal branding, and leveraging AI-driven solutions to drive impact for both businesses and customers. With a people-first approach, he explains how ServiceNow measures success through NPS, CSAT, and customer value realisation, reinforcing the link between employee engagement and client impact.
In part 2 of this discussion, Magnus Consulting's Managing Partner Teresa Allan presents a structured framework for aligning your teams against "The 7 P's Framework: Priorities, Planning, Positioning, People, Processes, Platforms, and Performance.” She emphasises the need for unified goals, cross-functional collaboration, and shared ownership of outcomes to overcome common misalignments. By integrating these elements, businesses can achieve measurable improvements in efficiency, customer retention, and revenue growth, fostering a more cohesive and productive working environment.
In this part 1 of 2 with Teresa Allan, we explore the necessity of integrating marketing, sales and customer success functions to enhance your customer’s experiences and drive growth. Teresa is the Managing Partner at Magnus Consulting and she highlights the shared objectives across these potential siloes and discusses the barriers caused by misaligned goals and misunderstood roles. Teresa shares the importance of collaborative strategies, leadership alignment, and a holistic approach to business metrics to build a unified growth engine.




