Anna Samios Leaders' Program:
How Scaling Up helped one founder launch during lockdown

“The thing that interested me most about working with Anna was building a good business from a cultural perspective,” explains Brendan. “As a start-up, I’m looking at how we get the foundations right and find the right people that align with our culture.”

Aider is a mobile digital assistant for smarter businesses. It uses artificial intelligence to connect to the applications small business owners use every day and delivers easy access to answers critical for daily, data-led decision making.

While Brendan had worked with other business methodologies, he had not come across the Scaling Up framework before working with Anna. But he soon realised that his new product aimed at advisers was the perfect opportunity to apply the framework under Anna’s guidance.

“We used a greenfield perspective to launching our new product and started off with Anna’s approach. That helped us cut through, without having to spin our wheels working out the right way to do it. The Scaling Up framework really helped us structure our thinking around business value.”

Working with Anna to implement the Scaling Up tools helped Brendan maintain momentum to launch his new product through the uncertainty of lockdown as well as giving him time to reflect on how he could use the tools across the rest of his business.

For Anna, the promise to the core customer is about having really great conversations with your customer so you can identify what they need and want you to do. Then it’s up to you to provide products and services or even a customer experience or journey map that nobody else has delivered before.

That promise continues to be top of mind for Brendan as he works to support Aider’s clients, some of whom are in the hospitality sector. New Zealand’s lockdown had a heavy impact on the hospitality industry, with the sector reporting a 49% drop* in the June 2020 quarter, compared to the previous year.

Anna’s approach encouraged Brendan to utilise Aider’s values to build his team of A-players, and so far, it’s working. “Our values are resonating with people more… so we are finding the right fit for our company.” The end result is an authentic set of values that Brendan can use to lead his business and build his team.

In each session, the group starts with a check-in before moving to the structured program. And there is always the opportunity to share stories and learnings. “It’s good to compare notes with other founders and businesses going through the same process that we’re going through,” says Brendan. “There’s a lot of lessons across the board.”

Brendan feels Anna’s unique perspective and experience bring a lot to the table. He gained insight from the stories she shared about how other companies had succeeded but also where they had taken a wrong turn. “It’s helpful to hear where people have tried to do something and it just didn’t work. Anna shares the stories in a way that is really useful.”