Bonnie and Clyde delve into my first book 'The Platform Owner's Guidebook' uncovering key themes and practical tips on mastering platform ownership. This episode covers navigating enterprise software like CRMs and ERPs, and highlights the critical role of a platform owner akin to a ship's captain. Learn about zero-based capacity planning, building compelling business cases, and leveraging networks, as well as the importance of understanding company culture during system implementation.
They discuss my four levels of platform maturity - and explore the career journey of a platform owner.
00:00 Introduction to the Platform Owner's Guidebook
00:34 Meet Bonnie and Clyde: Your Reviewers
00:53 Navigating Enterprise Software: The Ship Captain Analogy
01:50 Building Your A-Team: The Key to Success
02:17 The Importance of Company Culture
04:20 Irreversible Decisions: Getting It Right from the Start
05:48 Purpose-Driven Implementation
07:03 Zero-Based Capacity Planning
09:37 The Power of Your Network
09:55 Learning from Others' Mistakes
10:48 Building Internal Relationships
11:54 The Concept of Dogfooding
13:31 Rewards of Platform Ownership
13:55 Shane's Platform Maturity Model
14:08 Level One: Rationalize
14:56 Level Two: Realize
16:26 Level Three: Amplify
18:09 Level Four: Becoming Missionaries
19:18 Conclusion and Call to Action
Bonnie and Clyde are AI generated characters. Their voices and their review were created using Google NotebookLM. I've made no edits; and it's not entirely correct but I think an interesting listen.
Get the Platform Owner's Guidebook - https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
In this special "lost episode" of Platform Diaries, host Shane Williams sits down with Nathanael Small, Leadership Adviser and Founder of Work2Live, to explore the art of sustainable business growth. Recorded in August 2022 this episode is packed with timeless insights on how founders can scale their companies without losing sight of their core values.
Nato shares his expertise on achieving fast yet sustainable growth, the key transition from small founding teams to "teams of teams," and how exceptional customer experience can drive word-of-mouth success. If you're looking to scale organically and avoid the pitfalls of unsustainable growth, this episode is for you.
You’ve scaled your business and its time to sell; how do you find the right buyers and get the best price? Lowell Ricklefs has decades of experience in selling B2B SaaS businesses; both as an entrepreneur and as an M&A advisor. Lowell shares some of the common mistakes to avoid as well as his secrets to success.
Lowell Ricklefs
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lowellricklefs/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
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Few founders or investors like the prospect of devaluing a business; but with market sentiment cooling how do you raise enough to continue to run and grow the business while avoiding a down round? Melissa Widner, CEO at Lighter Capital, is an experienced entrepreneur and investor who has lived life on both sides of the equation. We discuss the concept of revenue-based financing and how it’s being leveraged by businesses to enable continued growth between valuations.
Lighter Capital
https://www.lightercapital.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You’re a founder who’s hired a bunch of sellers to help you drive revenue, but the business is still overly reliant on your ability to sell. How do you successfully scale your sales capability? Mark McInnes, sales capability consultant and founder of Sales Development As A Service, shares the common mistakes founders make in scaling their sales capability and the simple 3-step method to success.
Sales Development As A Service
https://sales-dev.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
If you’re going to scale, no matter what kind of business you are in, you need to know how much money it is costing you to deliver each $1 of revenue. Michelle Kvello, Founder and MD of Lantern Partners, discusses why keeping an eye on margin is critical to scalability, what numbers investors care about, and her tips for where to focus for both service and product businesses.
Michelle Kvello
https://michellekvello.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Motivating employees to join and stay with your business is a challenge. Employee Share Options Plans are increasingly being adopted in Australia but do founders and employees really understand them? Steve Grace, founder and CEO of The Nudge Group, joins us again to try and demystify ESOPs and share’s his lessons from implementing them in his businesses.
The Nudge Group – https://thenudgegroup.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
It’s not uncommon for founders to assume their founding team will be with them for the entire journey; but the reality is that some people move on, and others hang around that shouldn’t. Steve Grace, founder and CEO of The Nudge Group, shares the lessons from his three businesses about how to successfully navigate the team transformation from startup to scaleup.
The Nudge Group – https://thenudgegroup.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Australia is experiencing record employment rates. The competition to secure the best software engineering folks is pushing salaries out of reach for many scaling businesses. Aidan Scott, co-founder of Resync Digital, shares his perspective on how to successfully and cost effectively leverage offshore resources to enable scale.
Aidan Scott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aidanscott/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In Australia there’s a lot of investment terminology that’s perhaps misused or open to interpretation. Cam Walshe Co-founder and MD of Pitch VC sheds some light on what the investment round terminology really means, how he helped Mr Yum with their US$65m Series A, what investors look for in a startup, and his tips to securing your next round.
Cam Walshe: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cwalshe/
Pitch VC: https://www.pitchvc.co/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
They say the behaviour you walk past is the behaviour you accept. But performance and behaviour conversations are difficult, especially in growing teams. Damien Gooden, CEO of HR Central, shares his perspectives on how to approach difficult conversations (and what might happen if you don’t).
Damien: https://www.linkedin.com/in/damiengooden-hr-hris-franchise-small-business/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You have a fiduciary obligation to keep your investors updated; but it doesn’t need to be a chore. Nathan Beckord has spent his 20-year career raising capital for startups. He shares his tips on how to use your investor updates as marketing that makes subsequent rounds seamless, and the secrets to a killer update.
Nathan Beckord: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanbeckord/
Foundersuite: https://foundersuite.com/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Description: Not since the dotcom boom and the GFC have we seen such significant headwinds for startup growth; but in every disruption, there exists opportunity. Alastair Blenkin, Founder and CEO of ProcurePro, discusses how macroeconomic factors are impacting both tech startups and the construction industry, and some of his lessons learned from building two vertical SaaS platforms that will enable founders to navigate these headwinds.
Alastair Blenkin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alastairblenkin/
ProcurePro: https://procurepro.co/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Cyber-attacks, ransomware, phishing – any of these could be targeted at your business or at your customers via your business. How do you respond? Grant Chisnall is a crisis advisor who guides leaders through events like cyber-attacks, major outages, product recalls, pandemics and natural disasters. Grant shares his perspective on why scaleups are a soft-target for cyber criminals and how founders & CEOs can be prepared.
Grant Chisnall: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grant-chisnall/
Book: https://leftofboom.com.au/boom-or-bust/
SHANE’S FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You’ve taken your business to a position where it’s ready for major investment from outside. But, are you ready? Shane Williams has seen common mistakes of start-ups looking to scale-up, the least of which is not having the right technology systems and foundations in place to get there. Shane’s spent 20+ years in the tech industry, including in News Corp and REA Group. He’s done the hard yards himself from the inside, and now he’s on the outside helping businesses looking to scale rapidly. Normally, Shane’s the host, but in this episode the spotlight is on him. Shane’s producer, Chris Ashmore, quizzes him about the industry and how founders can simplify their adoption of tech platforms.
FREE E-BOOK
The Platform Owner’s Guidebook
http://www.platformdiaries.com/founders
Chris Ashmore Media
https://chrisashmore.media/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Is there more than one path to getting investment for your startup? How do you, as an investor in your own business, ensure a solid return? Jordan Green, serial entrepreneur, and a founder of Melbourne Angels discusses the options and consequences for startup funding and tips for founders to successfully start, grow and exit a business.
Melbourne Angels: https://melbourneangels.com/
Platform Owner’s Guidebook: https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In the early stages of a start-up, the founder and early team wear many hats, but as the business scales we often need to call in the experts. Seb Poole, co-founder and CEO of Frankie Health, shares his perspective on how to identify when you need help and how to make sure you find the right consultant.
Seb’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seb-poole/
Platform Owner’s Guidebook: https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When the vision that drives a founder to create their start-up isn’t serving the market, how should they respond? Craig Crowther CEO at Cahoot Learning shares his insights into how to strike a balance between achieving your vision and adapting to the market when scaling up.
Craig’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craig-crowther-cahoot/
Platform Owner’s Guidebook: https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Getting your pitch right can be the difference between changing the world and getting lost in the cracks. Ferdi Reynolds is an entrepreneur, founder and investor with SuperSeed ventures who shares the inside word on what investors look for in a pitch, the common mistakes founders make, and the secrets to success.
Ferdi Reynolds: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ferdinand-reynolds/
Platform Owner’s Guidebook: https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
What differentiates a legendary founder? Mary Butler is a people strategy expert who specialises in enabling founders and scaleups to build legendary leadership capability. We discuss the importance of people strategy, how to identify if you’re a legend or a liability, and the 4 Rs that enable successful people leadership in scaleups.
Mary Butler : https://www.marybutler.net
Platform Owner’s Guidebook: https://www.shanewilliams.com.au/book
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
