How do you grow 37% in a tough market without letting culture, trust or performance slip?

Chris Pearce is Managing Director of Greenpark, the global digital content agency. He’s been running the business for the past 18 months, leading a team of 250 people across six countries during a period of rapid growth.

In this episode, Chris shares how he:

• Defines high performance using the trust equation - credibility, reliability and intimacy
• Recognises that leaders cast a shadow - and that people copy what you do, not what you say
• Knows that impact intended and impact felt are rarely the same
• Uses multi-channel repetition to keep values front of mind across a remote, global team
• Resists panic hiring during rapid growth, even when teams are stretched and momentum is high
• Invests heavily in operational rigour, recognising that growth can easily mask deeper problems

Chris offers a grounded perspective on scaling at pace - and on why humility and trust matter most when momentum is high.

How do you take over from agency founders and scale the business without losing trust, culture or momentum?

James Leavesley is CEO of Torchbox, the digital agency for innovative nonprofits. He leads a 110-person team, having taken over as the agency transitioned to employee ownership.

In this episode, James shares how he:

• Scaled Torchbox from 50 to 110 people by changing how decisions are made, owned and communicated
• Replaced intuitive founder-style leadership with clear processes, without slowing the business down
• Took over from long-standing founders without trying to replace them or their personalities
• Shifted from protecting people in internal comms to being transparent with context, preventing speculation and unhelpful stories filling the gaps
• Keeps teams aligned using practical frameworks like the SCARF model and the Vital Few, even in a fully remote business
• Protects innovation from BAU through a dedicated innovation lab, close links to delivery teams and a client co-funding model

James offers a candid look at what really changes once an agency moves beyond founder-led scale, and what it takes to keep the business healthy as it grows.

How do you build an agency group that’s more than the sum of its parts?

Tina Judic is Co-Founder and Chairman of the independent agency network Tomorrow Group. She founded the search agency, Found, 17 years ago and has since built this into a group of five agencies.

In this episode, Tina shares how she:

• Stepped aside from running her own agency to lead at group level, overseeing and empowering MDs across the businesses
• Protects the distinct culture of each agency while aligning them to deliver greater group-wide impact
• Spun out the data team into a standalone business with its own brand - and learnt some hard lessons along the way
• Acquired agencies and learned why protecting rhythm and culture matters, deliberately keeping each one independent
• Created group-wide roles across AI, delivery and growth to connect the businesses and drive consistency
• Anchors impact around four core traits across the group - curiosity, drive, honesty and empathy

Tina candidly explains what it really takes to move from running one agency to leading a group of businesses that thrive together.