Karmic Capitalist Conversations - businesses with purpose

The rise in demand for local working spaces is very visible. It's unfortunate that the category was tarnished by WeWork founder Adam Neumann, whose fortune is dwarfed only by the lack of ethics displayed in building it. But it doesn't need to be so.An alternative would be to start to consciously build workspaces not only based on a pound per square foot and the distance to the nearest Waitrose, but rather on the basis of the communities in which they're located, and how they can best serve and integrate with those communities.That's very much the ethos behind Patch, a company building working spaces founded by my guest today, Freddie Fforde.Patch locations are designed and built on a foundation of community contribution, local and ethical sourcing, a local scholarship programme (early days), in-kind charity donations, 100 year thinking, equality of opportunity, sustainable design, and values which have been very clearly thought through and implemented.Three simple values:- Near, reflecting the desire to allow people to work in their local community;- Balanced, reflecting the flexibility to allow everyone to balance their lives appropriately without having work location be the key driver;- Build to last, reflecting Freddie's intent that the decisions the company and its team makes should be ones for a company that will last over 100 years.It's a wonderful set of values. We discuss how Freddie came to them, how they come alive in the company, and his vision for bringing Patch not only to the obvious affluent locations, but to all high streets in the UK's towns.As one of his investors with a background in the area says, " I'm only investing if you agree with me. We're not done until we're in Wigan."(I discuss with Freddie after the recording that they shouldn't be done even when they're in Wigan. I'd like to see one open up in Gaza!)This is a rich episode where we also discuss topics of privilege and the fact that although you can't change your background if it is privileged (which in the UK the vast majority of us have), you can become aware of that privilege and use it to help.Freddie's a thoughtful founder. Enjoy this episode._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

A company that makes lawyers wealthier? On the Karmic Capitalist podcast?Have I sold out?Stay with me. This law company,  Aria Grace, intentionally does the following:It offers a legal service on a par with the large law partnerships for less cost to its clientsIt pays the lawyers nearly treble the portion of the fees than in traditional firmsIt donates ALL of its profit to charityIt tackles the lack of diversity in the legal professionLindsay Healy has created a truly disruptive model for law firms with Aria Grace. He does away with the traditional model's payment of 1/3 of fees to partners, 1/3 to the company and 1/3 to the lawyers, and instead gives 90% of the fees to the lawyers, with the remaining 10% paying for the running of the company, and all profit going to charity.As a result of its work, Aria Grace won The Lawyer Awards' "Law Firm of the Year 2023" award.This is the legal equivalent of Best Movie at the Oscars. Which I guess makes Lindsay law's Leonardo di Caprio. Without the sleaze.(Allegedly, Lindsay, allegedly!)Lindsay has a real issue with the existing model for law firms.--- Feudal and the worst of capitalism. Inflated fees paying for the "Porsches and divorces" of the partners.--- Hugely unequal distribution of wealth. He talks a lot about Aria Grace's core concept of "wealthshare".--- Elitist and exclusionary. "What we don't want is a law firm that looks like me full of people like me because that's what your typical city law firms look like. We want a law firm that looks like the UK, reflective of all the cultures and the creeds and the denominations... We have pretty much every type of culture you can wave a stick at, and that's pretty cool."What he's building with Aria Grace is challenging all of these precepts and creating a new, and rapidly growing model.He talks me through this in this fascinating episode, punctuated with many a pot-shot at billionaires and partners, which makes it as fun as it is stimulating._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

"Move Fast and Break Things" is a terrible way to be anti-racist.This Karmic Capitalist podcast episode is FULL of gold.I talk to Javaughn and Jamey, VP of culture and CEO respectively of Agilian.com, a technology consulting firm that has absolutely nailed anti-racism and diversity to its mast.When, to his enormous shame, Jamey was shown data that the black female execs on his team were paid significantly less than the white male ones, and it was not attributable to performance, he raised the pay of all those underpaid execs in one fell swoop............ and hit the commercial reality that follows those kinds of easy but hard decisions (my words, not his).That profitability took a dive.Which in turn shone the light on the fact that Agilian's rates were also too low. Efficiency and rate alignments took care of the short-term hit to profits. While employee retention rose as the team saw how the leadership was prepared quite literally to put its money where its mouth is with its commitment to equality.Javaughn's perspectives are ones that everyone who cares about diversity, and especially white male CEOs, should make the time to listen to. It reminds me of this wonderful story:There are these two young fish swimming along, and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and says, “Morning, boys. How's the water?” And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other and goes, “What the hell is water?”The water in many workplaces is a systemic bias that's so built in that its beneficiaries don't even notice its existence. It's fascinating that even Jamey, who is as present and sensitive to racism as you could ask for, is continually learning.As was I.Javaughn's truth-bombs alone make this episode worth listening to. Add to that their combined perspective of the very real and practical journey that Agilian is on, how that shows up in sales, in recruitment, in ops and in delivery.Because it's not in the PR where anti-racism is made - it's in the work itself, how it's carried out, who does it, and the opportunities that are created.This is an amazingly insightful episode. Do give it a listen. Wherever you get your podcasts._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

Helping big companies be good, and good companies get bigger.Not quite EdenLab's motto, but not far off it.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast, I talk to Leo Rayman, founder and CEO, about his journey from agencyland to EdenLab - accelerating positive and sustainable ideas and the people who come up with them.Leo's premise, and the underlying one of EdenLab, is that with over 3 billion people working for companies worldwide, we should be harnessing the power of companies to help solve the climate crisis rather than throwing stones at them.Which leads us neatly to...Ecocapitalism...An oxymoron? Doesn't capitalism - predicated as it is on ever-increasing consumerism - have a fundamental design flaw at its very core which means we are destined to overuse and degenerate the planet?After agonising a bit over whether there can be a better model, we arrive to a conclusion that it's a hard question to answer.AND, that regardless of the answer, we need action.For Leo and EdenLab, that action includes engaging with big companies, because they're best positioned to quickly fix things at scale.It also means engaging with disruptive small companies that have the potential to scale rapidly. Which is where EdenLab plays a role in amplifying their voicesThis is an interesting conversation that goes system-wide, as well as looking at the actionable response that EdenLab has taken to deal with those system-wide issues.We settle on the fact that we need a positive vision of what business could look like if we're to build better.Enjoy._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

A founder who doesn't see himself as a salesman, targeting purpose-led companies that don't identify that way, to tackle a problem that people don't think exist.Recipe for success...And exactly what Tom Greenwood did with Wholegrain Digital, the company he founded and which, in sustainability stakes, was a way ahead of the curve.Tom's concern for the environment started when it was still very much a minority sport. Certainly long before it became mainstream to talk about it, let alone make it the default business model.When he turned that concern to the business he founded, he did so with three goals in mind.First, to push making digital sustainable. The received wisdom at the time was that the internet and digital were benign actors in terms of environmental impact. Very early on, from his own research, Tom was aware that its environmental impact was anything but minimal.Second, to work with purpose-led companies to create a positive impact - to do good things with good companies.And finally, to do it all in a way that creates a sustainable business.What could go wrong!16 years on, he's only gone and done it!Wholegrain is thriving. Tom's authored and published a widely read book about the decisions technologists and designers can make to minimise the environmental impact of their web sites. And awareness of sustainability is rising.Tom is one of humanity's genuinely lovely people. He's making a difference in his own unassuming, determined and impactful way.And it was a real pleasure to hear his story on this episode of the Karmic Capitalist.Listen in._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

Very few businesses have the level or resonance and commitment from founders more than those whose origins came from personal tragedy.MyBabble was born after founder Faisal Shaikh's father sadly left home and didn't return. It transpired later that unknown to anyone, his dad had been dealing with loneliness.Faisal is a trained and practising psychiatrist, and was aware that this is a huge problem that needs a variety of different and complimentary approaches.Hi approach through the company he founded, MyBabble, is to build a community of those suffering loneliness, and those willing to support them by engaging in anonymous, structured 17 minute calls through the MyBabble app.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist,Faisal details the issues surrounding loneliness, and the many ways it is being addressed and not. We then also go into the detail of being a highly motivated, values minded person setting up a company without prior experience, and Faisal is refreshingly open about the journey he's on.After a couple of development hiccups, the app itself has completed its MVP. While Faisal is recruiting into the community, it is now being developed for release.MyBabble is also hosting a conference in a week bringing together mental health practitioners, psychiatrists, supporters and those suffering loneliness. Attendance is open for those interested.This is a story rooted in tragedy, but which is turning that tragedy into a force for good.Listen in._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

"How can we collectively increase the quantity and quality of giving to nonprofits, to charities, so that they can raise more awareness, raise more funds, deliver more impact in their communities?"If there's a question that defines Lightful's work, I think Vinay shares it in this.My guest on the Karmic Capitalist podcast this week is Vinay Nair, co-founder and CEO of Lightful. Lightful uses technology to accelerate impact in the social impact sector.He'd just returned from an uplifting conference with the Gates Foundation (took some prodding to get this out - no easy namedrop from Nair!), and he shares with us how that works, and the amplification of good that comes from it.Having a for-profit organisation whose clients are mostly nonprofit can be quite a tightrope to walk, and Vinay shares how Lightful "positively correlate ours income and impact" and the importance of that positive correlation being structural to avoid conflict of interest.Vinay is also Resident Expert at the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at the Saïd Business School (that's some mouthful!), and I probe into what he's seeing in the generation that is coming through Saïd.His shares an uplifting observation. When he's doing a session with students on impact investing or tech for good, they'll pretty much retort "of course, what else - Tech for bad? Non impactful investing?".For them, the default language is "as if it were ever thus or certainly how it must be from today going forward. And I find that powerful inspirational.Vinay is a thoughtful advocate. We run the gamut of business doing good and being profitable, of being a for-profit serving the nonprofit sector, the role of values, and much more.He's an engaging conversationalist. Listen in to this episode of the Karmic Capitalist._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

From the high-stakes financial environment of the now defunct Lehman Brothers ("buy-and-sell in its most aggressive manner") to putting on an exhibition of some of the most ethical and long-term thinking brands.That's the varied journey which my guest, Hussein Allawi, has been on. He took plenty of lessons from those early days, days which he found very lacking in purpose, but which have informed how he's now actively pushing a sustainability agenda.Hussein is the co-founder and CEO of Frontier Events, the company behind the Sustainability Show where lifestyle, food, travel and finance brands with a perspective on sustainability come together to promote an alternative and more ethical way of living. And one that is accessible to people at all income levels.It's not how the company started. Like many in their early stages, the company's gone through a couple of pivots before finding its sweet spot as an events-driven hub for the many stakeholders involved in building a more sustainable future.This is a really broad conversation. We talk about those pivots...about the Middle East's not straightforward ESG story...about the ethical roots of Islamic finance and investing...about the regional drives for sustainability in the North of England...about how and if consumption can ever be sustainable...about running an events business during lockdown....... and obviously about the show itself which is Frontier's main offering today, with a roster of speakers including previous Karmic Capitalist guest Jarvis Smith.Hussein is a very eloquent and grounded advocate for sustainability. This was a really enjoyable conversation._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

"If going to a TGO gym can help unlock your potential not only for your life, but for your community, for your planet, that's the end game."Georgie Delaney MBE isn't short on a big vision. But critically - she's also not short on taking action.It was wonderful to talk to her about setting up and growing The Great Outdoor Gym Company (TGO). From a seed of inspiration seeing outdoor gyms in China after the Beijing Olympics, to high level backing in the London 2012 Olympics, to now having more than 2000 outdoor gyms globally. It's been a heck of a journey so far.Oh, and on the way, invites to exhibit at COP21 and COP22.And then there was the MBE...To be fair, a TGO gym is no ordinary gym. It generates power. It charges phones. It supports tree planting. It fosters community.And all while staying true to its mission and promoting inclusivity, unity and charity.This is quite a different episode. Of course, we talk about the specifics of the business journey Georgie's been on - the challenges and victories of going from startup to success and international scale.We talk about the role of luck, and how luck often has 2 bookends which are under your control. The first is continually taking action, which invariably creates more opportunities for luck to find you. And the second is what you do with the luck that's made its way to you.But we also talk about religion. Georgie is very much a Christian, and guided by Christian values which manifest in how she runs her business.Most visibly in love, and in community.Love sits at the heart of how she started and grew the Great Outdoor Gym Company. She founded it with people she loved, to serve a humanity she loves while serving a planet we all should love more.And that translates to community. The gyms often give opportunities for communities to form. She talks movingly about the interfaith community that's sprung up around one of her gyms in East London.Georgie's is a business with purpose and values very much at its heart. And it's a business that wears that heart on its sleeve.A deeper dive. And I think for both of us, a bit of therapy!Enjoy._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

So you're running an ethical agency. A criminal organisation posing as a listed company - let's call them Belgian Australian Tobacco - approaches you."We fund an 'anti-smoking education programme' along with some of our other friends. But the challenge is that it's not as easy to find us on the web as it is lung cancer charities. We need your help to rank better."The programme, as it says on the tin, is to educate people against smoking.Do you take the business? Critically, *how* do you decide?I paint it cynically, but there are many companies who are net detractors from society and environment, but who nonetheless undertake some positive initiatives.Would you work with them on their greenwashing / socialwashing projects which do deliver some good? Surely those anti-smoking charities are doing some good? Like the betting-control charities funded by the bookies?I thought it would be interesting to dive into the nuance in this detailed conversation of the Karmic Capitalist podcast with the founder of "Positive Digital Marketing Agency" Climbing Trees.Climbing Trees do NOT work with tobacco companies. In fact, they list the sectors they won't engage with.This was a really down to earth nuts-and-bolts chat with founder and CEO Alex Holliman. In his words, which I love, Climbing Trees is focussing on working with "companies that the world of tomorrow needs".And that's a virtuous cycle by definition if you do it well. You work in industries and with companies who you believe have a positive role to play in creating a better tomorrow. And if you're right, not only will they grow, but you'll play a part in that growth, and create more successful businesses that you can work with tomorrow.He's been on a journey of building purpose and values into the core of his agency, and that's surfaced a number of areas which they've explicitly tackled to continually make a better company. For their team, for their customers and for society and environment.It's a really interesting journey and discussion. We dive into intent and mechanics - how he's been addressing diversity, client selection, strategy. And the impact it's been having on culture as well as business model.And the ultimate question for client work..."Does it feel good?"Listen in - it's a great story, and Alex shares some very tangible learnings they've had along the way._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

This episode of the Karmic Capitalist tells the story of a company that stayed true to its mission while undergoing a substantial pivot, and a founder who left his own comfortable path in pursuit of his passion.For sanitation!Thomas Fudge was so incensed by our misuse and abuse of water that left his job in product design and marketing and went back to uni to complete a masters and doctorate in sustainability.He then combined his newfound expertise with his passion for engaging with the water crisis and founded Wase.Wase started life as a company tackling sanitisation challenges in the global South. They provided micro-sanitation facilities that could be distributed rather than depending on some massive centralised infrastructure.But along the way, they discovered that a better fit for the capabilities they'd built up would be to address waste issues for companies in the food and drink industry. These companies were tankering their waste to send off-site at huge financial and environmental cost.Wase now provides the capability to treat that waste on site, not only reducing the environmental impact of its transport, extracting valuable nutrients and allowing them to sell on the water, but also improving each company's energy resilience at the same time by turning the waste to fuel.In this episode, Thomas talks us through the journey so far, including the details of the investments they've secured; the importance of focus especially when you have a very multi-faceted solution; the pivot and the importance of maintaining alignment with purpose while doing it; and the future he sees for the company.Brilliant insight into a company tackling one of the world's most pressing issues.Enjoy._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

From Chris Froome to wellness in your office.That's the journey that Phill Bell and Paul Smith undertook to co-founding ART Health, a company that helps employees and employers to improve workplace wellbeing using evidence-based techniques.It was fascinating to have Phill join me on this edition of the Karmic Capitalist podcast to share the story.Phill is a sports scientist. He earned his PhD in Exercise Physiology, and landed what would be a bit of a dream job working with international athletes the likes of Chris Froome, Jenson Button, and members of the national rugby team in the GSK Human Performance lab. (They also worked with extreme sportspeople - like the nutters who would do the marathon de sables. But that's another class of human entirely!)The lab conducted exploratory research on how to improve their performance (ethically - exercise and physiology, not drugs!), with probably all the kit that a sports-scientist could dream of.GSK eventually dropped that business, and Phill and Paul went on to co-found ART Health. Passionate about improving performance alongside health and happiness, they felt that workplace wellbeing  had become a bit of a tick-box exercise, and one that was more informed by fashionable trends rather than by fact and evidence.By capturing and injecting data from 4 areas - physical health such as activity and sleep; cognitive performance and brain health; mood information through surveys; and environmental data such as lighting, acoustics and air quality - the co-founders knew that they could make evidence and research-based recommendations and interventions scientifically proven to improve wellbeing.The company is evolving on a fairly well-worn path of going from primarily being consulting-based to one that is more heavily product-based. Phill talks candidly through what that's looked like, with investment along the way to allow them to develop product, rather than the bootstrapping involved in a consulting-based model.He also discusses his own route to CEO, which wasn't their original plan. Sadly, Phill's co-founder and close friend Paul was recently diagnosed with motor neurone disease, and Phill has transitioned into the CEO role. The way Paul has continued his dedication and stoicism has been an inspiration to Phill and the team - but it remains a tough succession when you're also coping with the emotions of having your friend and co-founder dealing with the challenges of the disease.ART Health is very values and mission based.  Their vision is of a happier, healthier, higher performing workforce. And they set about it in a scientific manner.This is a real warts-and-all story, and Phill's story is fascinating._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

There's a moral case for your company to give equal opportunities for your team regardless of gender (or background, or sexual orientation, or ethnicity, etc). And there's a business-performance one in terms of the improved decision-making that results from cognitive diversity.But although we are without a doubt making progress, it can feel slow.Recruiting women into senior roles is welcome. But we need to go much deeper if we're to systematically right the balance.For me, one of the key actions is to grow paths for women right from when they are young through into junior, mid and senior roles in business. So rather than recruiting at a senior level, companies create more opportunities for women to rise through the ranks, grow their own talent, and promote from within rather than having to look outside.My guest as we launch Series 3 of the Karmic Capitalist podcast is The Girls'​ Network founder, Charly Young MBE.Charly set up the Girls' Network because she saw how many talented girls were not seeing or given opportunities because of what she terms the "double disadvantage" of being girls and coming from less privileged backgrounds. The Girls' Network matches those girls with women mentors and organisations to give them support, guidance and critically, role models to grow their self-belief and open up their opportunities.Charly's an engaging and passionate speaker and advocate, and it is insightful to see the entrepreneurial way she started the organisation (think MVP), the trajectory it's been on, the impact it's making and the opportunities to work with them.(Disclosure - I loved this so much, I've been asking many of the super-talented and successful women I know if they'd get involved. The first one, a CEO of a consultancy I work with, has just completed training, and her mentee will be in for a real treat!)Enjoy._______________I host a weekly online workshop with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing it in line with their values. Max 6 per session so we can have a real conversation.If you'd like to join me, find a date that works for you here. They aren't charged for - you and I will both get value from the conversation.Only CEOs / MDs apply - strictly peer-level conversation.

Giving to charity is one of the easiest ways to do good. But have you ever wondered what impact your donation actually has?Enter my guest on the Karmic Capitalist podcast, Rachael Murray, founder of a company appropriately called Making Impact Matter (MiM).Making Impact Matter helps charities figure out how to measure impact. But doing the work has more outcomes than just measurement.Figuring out how to measure impact is essential to secure funding. So MiM's work helps charities get more funding.The process of working through how to measure impact itself can focus how the work is delivered. So MiM's work helps charities focus their efforts even harder - i.e. deliver more bang for the buck.There have been occasions when the measurement process itself has increased impact, such as when Rachel talks through the beautiful projects they've supported for kids who loved the engagement in the measurement cycle.And obviously, the measurement also allows charities to learn and continually improve their delivery.MiM also intentionally serves as a mechanism for analysts with a passion to engage with causes they care about. She and her network of associates engage with causes ranging from domestic violence to diversity to youth engagement to local communities.We talk through some of the work that MiM has done, and you can see Rachael's passion for making a difference through the company and with her life.Rachael's actively evaluating next steps for the company, and we talk through some of the thinking for what that might look like. This is a fascinating insight into a very heart-driven business and its founder. And as a key enabler for charities to secure funding, Making Impact Matter is about as Karmic a business as you can get.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

I remember in the early 90s being told to staple my photograph to any CVs I sent out applying for work. I'm no George Clooney, so I wondered why. I later found out it was so that people who only had my name to go on would see that I wasn't Pakistani!So offensive at so many levels. If I were Pakistani, why would that be a problem? What if I were a white Pakistani? How about that I'm not Pakistani, but my name is still a Muslim name?We've come a LONG way since. But we're still in the foothills.And companies like Unleashed, founded by Martin Mason, are taking firm aim at equalising the playing field.Martin is my guest on this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast, and he tells his own story of how he came to set the company up. His shock at finding the change in attitudes around him within the workplace to his coming out as gay, and his questioning as to why that should matter.His trajectory on helping companies genuinely grow their talent, regardless of background, led to his being prompted to set up his own company focussed explicitly on this issue.This is a fascinating episode, as we discuss what was happening in parallel in society at large which has increased realisation and response to the various bit of explicit and implicit discrimination that sit in companies.We touch on the moral case and the business case for diversity, and the importance of where the motivation comes from.And on how if you have the courage to embrace diversity, it adds beauty to the workplace.We talk about the actual steps to look at in order to create a more diverse workplace, and critically a more diverse talent pipeline. And obviously, about how Unleashed helps by making it easier to do the right thing and support companies to become fairer and more accessible.This is a fantastic episode, touching on the personal, the corporate and the societal in the evolution of a company that's aiming to "change the talent profile in organisations across the globe”.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

When it comes to sustainability and human rights, Fashion has earned a terrible reputation. And mostly for very good reason.But there are some shining examples who are showing what good can look like in the industry.One of these is pre-owned luxury fashion retailer Sign of the times.The original Chelsea shop was founded to media buzz in the 1970s. Antonia Johnstone trained there before founding her own shop in Berkshire.And in a wonderfully circular story, some years later she went on to buy the Chelsea business and integrate the two together, keeping the feeling of high street chic while updating the business with a strong online presence.It's wonderful to talk in this episode of the Karmic Capitalist to Antonia. There's a strong values basis to her business, which originated Antonia's own beliefs on how people should be treated, then extended to her intent to democratise high-end fashion, and as she dived deeper, also became increasingly about minimising environmental impact not just through the reuse of fashion, but also in Sign of The Times's own supply and demand chain.We discuss how her business has adopted a circular economy and human-centric approach to doing things. We also discuss where the values that drive the business come from, and how they surface in how Sign of the Times works.And, for the geeks amongst us, there's also an insight into how machine learning is used to prove a fashion item's authenticity! I didn't know that!Enjoy the episode. It's a wonderful journey that Antonia and Sign of the Times are on.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

You've just moved from one end of the planet to the other. You're pregnant. And you want to be working. What do you do?It's a sad indictment on how the workplace still treats pregnancy that for my guest on this #KarmicCapitalist podcast episode, starting a company seemed a more plausible route than finding employment.But start a company while pregnant is what Steph did. She started marketing agency, Hello Earth, and early on set about specialising on companies with a focus on purpose and sustainability. Hello Earth works with them to identify how digital marketing can impact their ESG goals, then sets about helping them make that happen.I found it wonderful that for such a relatively small company, they'd had the confidence to build this into their client qualification process. They've developed their own 7 pillar model that all prospects must pass before Hello Earth will work with them. It's a structured approach, which also allows for direction of travel - meaning demonstrated serious intent to improve in ESG areas, as well as where the prospective client is at today.Lovely episode, and with a lot to take away in terms of what you can do even if you're not yet (and never intend to be) the size of a WPP.I love the trajectory that Steph and Hello Earth are on. I suspect we'll hear a lot more from them in the coming few years.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

"Create wealth like a Capitalist, distribute it like a Marxist." Here's what that looks like...Simon Biltcliffe believes that Capitalism is a great way to create wealth, but is terrible at distributing it. And Marxism can't create wealth for toffee, but has great principles for distributing it.Adjust for externalities, and there you have the principles on which Webmart was founded and operates. Webmart delivers marketing solutions. It competes not only on quality, but by identifying ways to be as efficient as it can be in creating customer value. Automation where possible, education for the team, methodologies, and so on.But...It also calculates the carbon footprint of its work and solutions. It adopts a circular economy approach to its offices. It has an innovative profit distribution model, clear and transparent to all. It ensures it doesn't engage in ruses to reduce tax - because to pay tax is to pay into the community that supports us all. It pays interest it earns to charity; it pays suppliers within 7 days.And it is very profitable.But probably the least expected part for me was that this marketing company owns a farm.A farm.Obviously! What marketing agency doesn't own a farm?!?!Well, the farm is a haven of peace that all employees are entitled to use. And in case you thought this would be a way to guilt-trip them into working on holiday, the farm has no internet access.(Which, by the way, is the ultimate digital-native challenge. Webmart will put you in the most beautiful spot, but make it hard for you to get your shots onto Instagram.)Add the farm into Webmart's sustainability strategy, and it makes the company carbon-negative.Simon isn't just an entrepreneur - he is an evangelist. That comes through loud and clear in this interview, and he generously offers to share any of their learnings with anyone interested enough to ask.This episode was packed full of little and big gems in what it can look like to run a Good company. The various initiatives, all aligned, and all of which build up to a company, a B Corp, which is hell bent on doing good with the way it does business.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

We have a bit of an employment paradox in the UK. As Matt Powell, the founder and CEO of Breaking Barriers, puts it "We have a government that is anti-immigration, and an economy that needs immigration to function at its capacity."That's the gap, the gap between refugees that have made it to the UK and the unfilled jobs in the UK, that Breaking Barriers helps to fill.Matt was always an entrepreneurial spirit. It was when that entrepreneurialism met his passion to help those at the receiving end of forced migration that he birthed the idea of Breaking Barriers.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast, Matt talks through the journey from idea to creation to fruition and to future plans.We talk through areas common to businesses, charities and frankly most organisations trying to get things done, and how Breaking Barriers addressed them. For instance:The differences between being entrepreneurially-minded and the reality of running an organisation.Shifting positioning to prospective clients (the prospective employees in this case) from "how can you help" to "this is how what we're doing helps your business". And identifying those wins (did you know for example that refugees tend to have a measurably higher retention rate when they find employment? How important is that especially in high churn industries?).Creating a genuine win-win for those involved (I hate that phrase it's so overused - but so accurate here).How creating a community of your customers helps them and you.Trialling before diving full in.The difference between companies (and leaders) who want to "do the right thing" because it helps profitability, and those for whom doing the right thing is a non-negotiable, and then making the business work accordingly.I love what Breaking Barriers is doing. This podcast episode with its founder and CEO Matt sheds light not just on their entrepreneurial journey to scale, but on a practical approach to address an issue of social injustice.And if you are looking to both help those who've come from challenging backgrounds, improve your diversity *and* fill vacancies in your company, get in touch with Breaking Barriers.Enjoy the episode!I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

What do you do if the prevailing business model is very clearly saying one thing, yet your values and what the world needs are in diametric opposition to this?That's the dilemma that faced my Karmic Capitalist guest on this week's podcast, Seán Woods CEO of Positive News."Bad news sells".We hear this mantra because it's commercially true.But as Seán says, we've reached peak negativity. And negativity can be disempowering. It leaves people feeling impotent, that it's too late, there's nothing you can do.Which is not only a shame, but patently untrue. There's a lot going on in the world addressing the issues that we face which doesn't get a look in.Enter Positive News. Founded by a 70 year old whirlwind of a lady from her kitchen table, who thought people should know about the good in the world, Positive News is now a high quality magazine with a significant online presence and a reach of over 2 1/2 million. It 's led by my guest, CEO Seán Wood and is a case study of what you can do in a world where the prevailing business advice says you shouldn't be doing what you're doing, but the reality of what the world needs says the opposite.There's a vast amount of goodness in this episode. Aside from the key topic above, we discuss a wide variety of issues relating to growing and pivoting a business. Such as...Having your 1000 raving fans, but needing to pivot from how they've loved doing things in the past. And doing it while trying to keep as many of them engaged in your bigger purpose as you transition.And in that vein, the importance of consistency of purpose as the business evolves.Why the "and finally" segment that always used to grace the news with feelgood at the end was actually part of the problem.What if succeeding in your mission means you'd be out of business?The state of journalism, and the need for more solutions journalism. The shift away from a commercial model based on "hook them with a bad news headline, then sell them advertising".And obviously, the importance of reporting what works to inspire or prompt others to do the same. Music to my ears as that is what we're doing with Karmic Capitalist.This is one of my favourite episodes to date. Enjoy.I host a weekly workshopping conversation with CEOs of SMEs (10 to 100 employees approx) about scaling up, allowing them to step back and do more strategic work, and doing this all in line with their values. Maximum 4 per session so we can have a real conversation. If you'd like to join me for a conversation, find a date that works for you here.Only CEOs / MDs as above. Peer-level conversation!

Like probably most people who start a business, Derek Moore founded Coffee and TV because he believed that there might be a better way to do things than how it was being done in the industry.  Key for him was that there had to be a better model than pushing people to work harder for longer and for less.So Coffee and TV took an approach of doing business in a more human way. And as the reputation spread, they attracted more people into the team and grew. We discuss some key issues such as:- Maintaining culture as you grow;- Working on the friction between doing great work profitably while remaining human;- Managing the tensions between being highly creative, yet doing the routine needed to grow a business (and how this is similar to my disastrous attempts at kite surfing!)- How being highly creative is actually also similar to what's needed to run a business;- The role of continual improvement for employees and founders alike;- Involving the team in creating opportunities in the industry for people from relatively disadvantaged backgrounds.Coffee & TV also took on B Corp certification... prompted initially by their Chief Financial Officer - not where you'd normally expect it to come from. We discuss how this has helped them become more intentional about their impact on people and planet, and drive towards becoming carbon neutral.We also discuss the early days of remote working and digital file interchange. AKA aligning train times so you could arrive with the digital drive on one side of the platform at the same time as your colleague on the other side and handover the drive to hop back onto each other's trains and home again!The is a fascinating insight into the reality on the ground of growing an ethical and human-centred business.

Karl Farrow was awarded a medal by the Mexican authorities for his role as a volunteer overseeing the safe destruction of buildings in the immediate aftermath of the Mexico City earthquake of 2017.What's that got to do with the company he founded and runs?Plenty, I think.I dive into this episode in his life, one that gave him more fulfilment than almost anything else, not just because it was a wonderful thing to do, but because it provides real insight and parallels on what drives him as he leads CeraPhi, a company that is focussed on accelerating the transition to renewable energy.Starting with the word "mission". Which is peppered through the conversation in many different contexts, but which I think speak both to the direction and the source of Karl's drive. Whether in immediately responding to the earthquake, or moving the world to renewable energy.For instance, he quickly realised that his history in construction would be of real use - which drove him to volunteer, buying a hard hat and high viz clothing on his drive to the site. Similarly, he looked to his knowledge and experience in oil and gas and found the things that are of real use in creating a company to work on the transition to renewable energy - and doing it through making use of the existing infrastructure and know-how garnered through our decades with fossil fuels.He also recognised that if he was to be most useful in the earthquake, he needed to focus on skills and resources available, even as many people were volunteering who in reality could actually make the situation worse and not better.Likewise, his focus with CeraPhi is on the ultimate goal - transitioning to renewable energy - without the myriad distractions that often feel good, but aren't very effective at driving to the actual goal.We talk about the earthquake as a small, but I believe key, part of Karl's journey to co-founding and leading his rapidly growing geothermal company, and I learn a lot on the way about the potential of geothermal and how it can play a key role in a transition to renewable energy from oil and gas.Fantastic story from a very grounded individual. No flourishes, no airs and graces. Simply a down to earth "let's get it done" approach.Enjoy.

This episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast is a real testament to the role of innovation in cutting our environmental footprint while creating a more profitable and attractive solution.The film production industry has a shocking track record in terms of its environmental impact. In order to create a top end 30 second advert, vast sets are produced and used once only, huge production teams are flown to exotic locations, and the local environment is hacked to produce the artificial beauty demanded by the advertisers.Tom Henderson's career led him to be a part of that cycle.Until one particular production, which he recalls vividly, when he saw the insanity of it all.And he turned from poacher to game keeper.The company he founded, VECTAR Project, creates production sets with 93% less carbon emission than equivalent traditionally-built sets. The innovation that they created also addressed a very real need to produce sets more quickly and cost-effectively.I found this a fascinating insight into the film industry, and a wonderful story of how doing the right thing, and doing it with a better product will revolutionise that industry.Find this episode of the Karmic Capitalist wherever you get your podcasts.

For business to be better, we (i.e. humans) need to be better.The way most companies have been doing business in the last few decades has been having a glaringly detrimental impact on society and the environment. If we're to pull it back, we need to do it quickly.Tom Rippin is a systems thinker. In his view, the most effective place to start is with people, i.e. us. And where that impact can be greatest is with executives.Tom founded On Purpose on the premise that the changemakers need to be fluent both in business, and in its social and environmental impact. And so On Purpose works with execs intent on using their careers for change, and helps them grow their fluency and ability to make a difference.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, we talk both about the change that needs to happen, and On Purpose's business model and how it is seeking to accelerate that change.Along the way, we learn a top tip that I loved for aspiring entrepreneurs from Tom's experience. If you talk about your idea to enough people, eventually it'll be too embarrassing not to start

A fundamental principle if you want to do purpose well in your company is to look after your profit.Note that "look after" is not the same as "maximise".Ruth Hartnoll, co-founder and CEO of Matchstick Creative, has seen what that looks like up close! In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast, she tells the (nearly) 5 year story of Matchstick Creative's journey from a business which was started because the founders believed  it would be a better way to do the kind of work they wanted to do, to where it is today as a highly focussed purpose and values-led agency.We talk about how that transition came about and the injection of belief that an agency could very much lead with its values and succeed (hello Greg Macoy!).We dive into leadership, and the importance of experience and exposure at an early age to smooth the trajectory to leading when you're working, and how Ruth is explicitly passing on the privilege she had through that exposure to girls that she's supporting define their own paths.We also discuss the sales/profit versus purpose conundrum, and how effective positioning and messaging helps to pre-qualify prospects for Matchstick.We get some very practical experience on how Matchstick have implemented purpose. I love how when looking at HR policy, Ruth asks her HR advisor 2 questions: "What's the compliant version? OK, so now what's the Matchstick version?". How in replying to tenders, Matchstick will often ask their prospective client up front to articulate the social impact that they believe the project is going to have.Ruth is remarkably open about the things she's learned along the way getting Matchstick moving - warts and all. Founder issues. Sales issues. Team issues. If you're growing a company and feeling somewhat out of your depth or as if you're having to find things out as you're doing them, Ruth's openness is both refreshing and reassuring.This is a wonderful episode from a company that, although 5 years old and going, looks to have a really positive future under her leadership.

I have two firsts in this Karmic Capitalist episode.First, Harriet is the first CBE to deign to accept my humble invitation to be a guest on our podcast!Second, she is also the first guest who leads a charity to guest on this show.Why a charity on he Karmic Capitalist? What has that got to do with businesses?Simple. The challenges we're facing go cross all sectors of society. And the only way for us to address those challenges is for organisations of ALL types - companies, charities, government - to align and collaborate.Harriet's charity, Ashden, focuses on two areas to enable that to happen. First, they amplify the good work of organisations tackling the environmental crisis - regardless of which sector - to help promote best practice and innovation.Second, they act as a hub to facilitate collaboration across sectors to magnify impact.If you run an SME and are serious about playing a positive role in tackling climate change, Harriet charts a critical path to partnerships you should be looking at to magnify your impact.Harriet's personal journey, taking in leading Fairtrade International and a plethora of other roles at the coalface, means that she's seen first hand the tight coupling between issues of social justice and climate change. She generously shares what she's seen and heard - conversations with farmers in Tanzania to hairdressers, high tech startups and film production in the West. Her stories bring home the very direct impact we can choose to have if we engage.Listen in for an inspiring perspective.

How challenging has it been to get your company going?I think getting a new product to market has to be one of the more challenging businesses to get going. But what if...Your product is a new formulation and needs independent scientific validation for your customers to buy it?Or you need to experiment to find out how to manufacture it at all as it's not been made before?Or you need to be able to take that manufacturing process and scale it massively while retaining complete predictability and standardisation when your source material is entirely organic?Or if no supply chain exists for you to obtain your source material?What if, in short, you had to create a new type of supply chain, a new type of demand chain, a new manufacturing process all at once to get going?Well, ask George May. That's what bio-bean have been through to get to the stage where their coffee grind products are sourced from independent and chain cafes, manufactured in a process designed from the ground-up (pun intended!), and stocked by some of the supermarket majors.And while creating a circular economy company, bio-bean has twice won a "The Best For The World B Corps in Environment" award.This week's episode of the Karmic Capitalist is a great story of the challenges of getting a brand new sustainable product to market, and how this has been addressed successfully, if not easily, by bio-bean.#BCorp

Marketing has been responsible for sooo many of the ills we're suffering in today's world.Overconsumption is the biggie. Encapsulated in the perceptive statement that "we buy things we don't need with money we don't have to impress people we don't like".Personally, I think in many ways, marketing just amplifies what already exists in the human condition. And so it's amplified our innate need of "enough" to a ruinous "as much as possible".And that's why I loved this conversation with Johnny Pawlik. Because Johnny decided that what he wants to amplify (my words, not his) is the goodness that businesses are capable of doing and that they actually do.Johnny's path to founding and running Mantra Media wasn't linear. A challenging childhood and youth could so easily have ended up in a destructive way.But having seen where it led, he made the harder choice to go the other way and make a positive impact with his work.A parallel to the decision that any CEO or founder can make with regards to what impact their company has.And so Mantra Media was born from his decision to do good with his life, his skills in picking up social media skills when that meant being active in an online forum / creating MySpace pages, and his formal education in communication and in political philosophy.In this episode, we discuss the role that marketing has played and should play. We talk about growing an ethics first marketing agency. About how much money is to be made by being naughty. About never working with Nestle!Johnny's passion shines through strongly on building businesses a better way. And on the optimism of where we'll head as we witness a changing of the guard.Enjoy this episode of the Karmic Capitalist from a doer, a thinker and a grower of a successful ethical business.

Trust - much aspired to within companies - starts at the top. The more you trust your team, the more of a trusting culture you will build.Henry Stewart, CEO of Happy Ltd, took that to a place very few would be willing to go.At pay review time for the company, he asked his team to decide what he should get.It's a logical conclusion if the whole ethos of your company is about building trust-based organisations. Which is what Happy is about.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, a natural pair with Richard Clarke's episode on building a company around happiness, we learn some complementary considerations.While Richard talked a lot about building psychological safety, Henry makes much of building trust. Neighbours. Or perhaps co-habitants!We talk a lot about devolving decisions (we're both fans of much in General Stanley McChrystal's "Team of Teams"), of stepping out of your team's way (also eloquently illustrated in David Marquet's "Turn the ship around") and of self-organising companies (as lived in Ricardo Semler's wonderful "Maverick").But this isn't a conversation about books or talk. It's a conversation about what Henry and Happy actually did, what their clients have actually done, and the practicality of creating a human and happy workplace.It's also a conversation about how that fuels company performance - in Happy's case, going from having lost 95% of their income when the pandemic kicked off, to recording the most profitable month in their 30+ year history.Finally, it's a conversation about passing up the opportunity to have bought happy.com as a domain when the internet was scarcely a thing! Ouch.Join us.

Would you sack your biggest client if they were making your team unhappy? Create a BIG hole in your revenue and profit? Actually put some of your team at risk due to the financial hit?"We want our team to be happy".Pretty much every company says this at some level.And in the inimitable words of Greta Thurnberg, "blah blah blah". It usually is as real as the staged photos of smiling employees (or occasionally, as we don't have any real smiling employees, a stock photo of smiling white people).But not for Secret Source.Richard Clarke always wanted a happy company. But the reality is that at the outset, when the "not entirely happy" sh!t hit the "grow and make more profit" fan...Well, let's just say that the normal expectation of what a business should be, i.e. revenue growth and profitability above all else, just kind of ran its course.Until they hit *that* project. *That* client And had *that* project manager. Who backed him up against the wall."Either our happiness counts and this client goes... or we keep the client, but we stop talking about happiness as THE thing."Ballsy? Yes. Direct? Yes. The right thing to ask?Absolutely.Richard chose happiness.And ironically (or not) the company has grown by 50% a year since.This has to be one of my favourite #KarmicCapitalist episodes. If there were a case study in putting team happiness front and centre, Secret Source have got to be it.In this episode, Richard talks openly about the transformation from wanting a happy company to making one. About how they made it happen - psychological safety was a foundational principle.He talks about how when you place happiness at the heart of what you do, it leads you in certain directions for your commercial, your sales and your people strategies. It drives not only client selection, but the model for engagement.We talk about hard customer decisions and the actual customer conversations to deal with them.We talk about the hard conversations with your team (which don't go away) and how to deal with them. We talk about succession while maintaining your values (unsurprisingly, hello again Rachel!).About what worries Richard most.And a whole lot more.I genuinely loved this episode. Richard is so humble with what he's built and how, and paints a blueprint which many companies could learn from.Enjoy. I did.

Rubbish data gets such a bad rap. The reality is that it can be an essential part of how we get better at recycling.That's the thrust behind Tekn Trash, founded by Al Costa who is my guest on this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast (find it on most podcast players).Tekn Trash tracks "point of disposal" data - yes, rubbish data - which starts to give a fuller picture of the full lifecycle of packaging, as well as items that people dispose of.And in doing it, it also provides some income opportunities for the hardest up. Adding a social dimension to the environmental one. Al talks about some of the extreme poverty, and the cycle between poverty and environmental damage that he witnessed first hand living in Haiti.Tekn Trash is in its early days. What I love about the concept is quite how many places it could evolve to - I suspect strongly it will look quite different within a couple of years as more and more value is discovered in how to best use the proposition.Al is also a hoot to talk to. We had a lot of fun in this episode.Tune in. Be nice to see you :)

Every so often, your company may donate to charity. And that's fantastic. But what if you committed to give 3% of your sales revenue come what may?Including if you were making a loss?Brave? Foolhardy? Or simply committed to do good?It might even make you think about your business differently.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, I speak to Laura Hannan, co-founder with Fergus Parker of Pitch121, a profile-based marketing agency. They committed from the outset to donate 3% of their sales to charity through the Work for Good platform.Aside from this simply being a continuation of Laura's giving to charity, which started systematically while she was in her teens, it turns out that it spreads the Karma wider.Customers love it, as they get to choose who the donations go to. And Pitch121's employees love it, as it gives a dimension to their work which contributes directly to making lives better.Our wider-ranging conversation takes this in, the role of values in Pitch121's work, embedding learning and growth within the working day, and more.You can't help but feel that Laura is just one of life's good people. It was a real pleasure to meet and have this conversation about Pitch121, its growth, its people and its contribution.Listen in to this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

Pleasure, people and planet. Tagline for a new line of eco-friendly 18-30 holidays?Not exactly.Pleasure, people and planet make up the driving mission behind Superfoodio, the wife-and-husband founded ethical plant-based treats company.And in this fun episode of the Karmic Capitalist, I talk to Jag and Nirali about their journey from South America - where they saw how close the Quechua get to the land and to the food they eat - to now setting up a company to produce peanut-butter buttons and chocolate bars without the nasties.We talk about how pretty much every major food company today actually tries to keep you as far away from the source of the food as possible - nutritionally by injecting every additive known to man, and geographically by sourcing from the other side of Neptune."You're not eating chocolate. You're eating sugar".And we talk about how it's possible to make delicious food another way.I loved how their initial lack of knowledge and experience about the industry when they had their vision ended up being a real strength. It allowed them to ask really basic questions that needed asking, rather than taking for granted the layer upon layer of complexity that the industry has created to all of our detriment.We talk about the importance of the pleasure of eating. How "just" being ethical may make you feel warm and fuzzy, but unless you've got a chocolate bar that tastes good, it'll never take off.I really enjoyed this episode with Nirali and Jag - they've got a lovely backstory and a really human approach to the company they're building.And the chocolate IS delicious. I managed to get my paid order in before their offer to send me one for free - which, full disclosure, hasn't happened!

You know you need to contribute to a more sustainable planet. But your business is no giant, and you don't have Unilever's budget to play with. Is your climate contribution going to stop at eliminating plastic straws from your kitchen?Your answer may be in Sustainability As A Service.What's an SME to do on helping the environment? Well, if Bernard Lebelle has anything to do with it, and he does, then you could do far worse than look at Sustainability As  Service.His company, The Green Link, provides an online service for SMEs to help them figure out what to actually do to reduce their carbon footprint.In this episode we talk about the challenges faced by SMEs wanting to actively participate in sustainability initiatives, about the need to get doing rather than being paralysed by climate anxiety, and about growing a for profit business tackling environmental issues and the nuances on financing an impact-based company.Bernard is an engaging, passionate and knowledgeable exponent for SME engagement on the climate challenge.Join our conversation.

"We've become addicted to convenience, and it's killing us".So how do you respond? Well if you're Katie Hill and Jarvis Smith, you launch a lifestyle site selling things.Eh?EXCEPT - you make sure what you're selling is ethically produced and sustainable, and that your suppliers work with and not against nature.Because the reality is that we *do* need to buy things. But, as Jarvis points out, why not buy them from companies that help rainforests rather than ones named after them?The first Karmic Capitalist podcast episode of Season 2 (Game of Thrones watch out!) is a real corker. I talk to Jarvis about how My Green Pod, the business he co-founded with Katie, is bringing sustainability to the products that we buy.My Green Pod started as a lifestyle magazine, available online and distributed quarterly with the Guardian, which seeks to educate on living and buying ethically.Not simply buying something with an organic label on it. But looking at the entire supply chain - from origin to your doorstep.For instance, in our decision to make same day delivery so important in our buying calculus (thank you shop named after rainforest), we're paying for more journeys by more diesel-pumping vans on the roads delivering our micro-orders rather than if we made a more considered, consolidated and dare I say conscious, shop.So the suppliers on My Green Pod won't be pushing out a half-empty van carrying your single tube of shampoo within 20 minutes of your buy-now click.I really enjoyed this episode. It was a wide ranging conversation about our choices (don't call us consumers, or we're on a hiding to nothing), our companies, economic systems. And Shamanism.And as an added bonus, we get a snippet of Jarvis's other passion - music through his band, Phoenix Rose, and their beautiful and uplifting song "Is this luv".Which in itself is worth listening to this episode for. Enjoy.(Marked explicit simply because 2 swear words come out)

In a world where we (rightly) look for companies whose business it is to help us solve the climate and social crises we face, do you have a role if your company purpose isn't about these things?In this latest episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast, I speak to David Ellis, Managing Director at Station 10, about the role of purpose and values in his company, a consultancy / agency which helps companies make the most of their data.If what you do is to analyse customer, ecommerce, or business data as a whole, what business do you have in helping tackle the climate crisis, or social inequality, or whatever?Plenty it turns out.In Station 10's world, those would include things like:Dealing with the ethical areas with regards to the very use of data (anyone come across those???)Encouraging the use of data to proactively address the ESG agendaAddressing the diversity issues in the whole data industry so that it doesn't end up reinforcing itself (Station 10 runs workshops at schools to children of very diverse backgrounds showing them how interesting and accessible work with analytics can be)Using your own code of ethics in rejecting clients and projects who would undermine social or environmental issuesDavid is (sorry to make him blush here) a very bright guy who's built a very values-centred (and remarkably gender-balanced for this industry) company.Listen in to this episode to see how values can become a real force for good whatever your business is.

"If there was a moment that said something was wrong in this world to me..."With that opening, my ears perked up. Villagers forced off an island ("there may have been guns involved" !?!!?) to make way for a power station designed to last only for 7 years.I guess if you hear that violence and environmental damage are involved in a project you've been asked to design, you'd probably pull back and think again.Which is what Greg Lavery did. Seeing the wanton human and environmental damage being caused in the name of business made him think hard about what he needed to do to make a positive difference.He went back to a postgraduate study in sustainability and the circular economy, and after a systematic review of areas where he could make the most environmental impact, he set up Rype Office to make office furniture.Office furniture???  Really?Actually, yes, really. Did you know that over the lifetime of a building, 30% of its greenhouse gas emissions are related to furniture? I didn't.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, Greg talks about the need for purpose-led companies to make sure that they're viable, and that positive impact alone does not a sustainable business make. It is essential to produce something that the market actually wants. Rype's proposition fits squarely into that description, with office furniture designed and manufactured to be affordable, beautiful and sustainable.Rype also demonstrates one of the things I love most about companies with purpose-led cultures. That when they see a difference that they can make along the way to their core purpose, they just dive in and fix it.Which is how Rype also comes to employ disabled long-term unemployed staff as a part of its strategy.Great to talk to Greg not only about Rype's story, but its strategy, fundraising, and future trajectory.

What human impact does your business have?Isabel Kelly watched first hand how business influence was used to secure the release of political prisoners. That left her with a lasting impression of the power of business to positively impact human rights which she's taken with her in her business engagements with Profit with Purpose since.And what a trajectory it's been. It's gone from setting up and leading the international arm of Salesforce.org to the work she does today helping companies make their purpose real.Amongst the stories of impact made by the businesses she's worked with, there are a number of recurring themes and lessons which she surfaces in this episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast.From how having clarity on your direction at a young age opens up opportunities most people simply dream of, through frameworks and practicalities of engaging with ESG topics, to the nuances of ESG as a facilitator for employee engagement - there is a mountain of practical gold, alongside some amazing stories from the world where business and social justice meet (and not always elegantly!).Enjoy this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, and do please rate and leave a review to help get the word out.

Bo Burlingham's excellent book, "Small Giants", charts the stories of companies for whom being great is more important than being big.In each case, the founders or CEOs faced very real choices between following tried and tested growth paths or doing something different and keeping their mojo.Sometimes, that meant rejecting mouth-watering exits.But they consistently chose greatness. For them, having a company with a soul was more important than entry stakes to the billionaire space-race.Key patterns he's observed include:(1) The leaders or founders had clarity on who they were, what they wanted and why;(2) The companies created intimate relationship with communities in which they worked, including customers;(3) Employees always came first;(4) They figured out their commercial model, including cash flow, flexibility and balance sheet; (5) They invariably had leaders and owners who love what they do.{Unsurprisingly, exactly aligned with our own Build on Purpose framework for leading companies}This was a delightful conversation. Bo's experience and analysis encompases not just lessons, but more inspiring business stories than could ever fit in one book.Which I guess is why he's written several!Enjoy this conversation with Bo on the Karmic Capitalist podcast.

Much of the #ESG drive, especially in reporting, is to standardise what is good, what is ethical. Get to an index as definitive as sales or EBITDA for your environmental, social and governance impact.But does that make sense? Whose standards are the standard? Are anyone's standards entirely objective?This is a nuanced truth which Charles Radclyffe, founder and CEO of EthicsGrade | AI & ESG, talks to in this latest thought-provoking podcast episode of the #KarmicCapitalist.It is a very real nuance. Your values aren't the same as mine, and that's probably a good thing. If we all shared exactly the same values and priorities, we'd quickly get to a place where mob rule takes over, and populism becomes the order of the day.¸„.-•~¹°”ˆ˜¨ ˙˙˙˙ʇıɐʍ ɥO ¨˜ˆ”°¹~•-.„¸So the approach of EthicsGrade is to allow you to apply your own values, your own perspectives, your own priorities to an ESG rating of companies you're interested in investing in.Personalised ESG ratings.And he perceives an active market need with early adopters, and the mainstream to follow after legislation which will be coming our way over the next few years.In this episode, we dip into the world of ethics, ethics in AI, and ethics in ESG. But not just in a philosophical way, but in how this informs the strategy and implementation of EthicsGrade.We also dive into what values look like in a values company. If your business model is about values, and about personal values, how do you translate that into your company?Thought-provoking episode from Charles on the Karmic Capitalist. Find it on your favourite podcast player.

To succeed in addressing today's large challenges, we need collaboration between business, government, the third sector and society.But we also need it translated from big words into a difference in communities and for individuals on the ground.In this latest episode of the Karmic Capitalist, Repc Ltd's managing director, Bevil Williams, shows how to do both.Arriving in the UK from Jamaica at an early age, Bevil was struck by what and how much we throw away. Things we routinely threw to landfill would have given him varied play for months as a kid.But he was also moved by how ill-prepared our systems are to deal with children that pose it a challenge.So first, he set up a school for excluded kids. Excluded for being disruptive. For being unmotivated. Sometimes for being too smart (yes, listen in!). For coming from multiple generations that didn't value work.Aside from giving them an education, the school also gave them work opportunities through a variety of social enterprises that Bevil also set up.Repc was one of those. Having spotted early EU directives on waste, Bevil set up Repc to deal with electronic waste by embracing the options of repair, reuse, repurpose, recycle.To make Repc most effective, he collaborates with local schools, police, local authorities, large corporations and more. While the organisation gives work and training opportunities for disadvantaged kids, secured and refurbished laptops close the widening digital divide both in the UK and the developing world.Allowing Repc to address twin challenges of environmental waste and lack of social mobility.And he does it with disarming humility.This has to be one of the most heartwarming episodes of the podcast I've recorded. Bevil provides a wonderful model of how enterprise can serve people and planet at once.And we don't even touch on the footballs and schools in sub-Saharan Africa...

Stepping up to the global challenges we face today is going to need concerted action from us in all the various roles we play - as consumers, employees & bosses, voters & citizens, parents & role models.And, critically, as investors and business owners.To move big business in a more sustainable and equitable way, we will need to vote with our investment funds. And most of us here on LinkedIn are investors - at the very least through the pensions that we own.Cue Tumelo. Founded by our youngest podcast guest to date, Georgia Stewart, Tumelo is on a mission to let you know who your pension is invested in, what that company's policies are on key global issues, and give you what you need in order to vote and impact that company's ESG policies.In this episode, Georgia talks us through the purpose of Tumelo, and how she and her co-founders created a business to serve that purpose, working with some of the biggest pension providers such as Aviva and Legal & General.There's some great insight into working a model out for something that you are passionate about, figuring out the various stakeholders in a complex environment, and the expectations that come with being a purpose-led company.Listen to this episode for at least two reasons. First, for how to build a successful purpose-driven business based on new and early demand. And second, because if you run any kind of pension scheme and are yourself values-driven, you should be looking at Tumelo for the pensions your employees are invested in.

"We have everything we need to fix things and make it better for everyone in the world. Perhaps not the billionaires."Can business leaders make a serious dent in climate change? Mark Maslin, UCL professor of Sustainability, company founder of Rezatec and author of "How to Save Our Planet - the Facts", believes that we can, that we should, and starts to arm us with the facts to do it.This was a more broad-ranging episode than most so far in this podcast. I speak to Mark about us as humans, the society we live in, whether growth as a goal is bad, the approaches we've taken to building businesses, and as a result, the challenge and mission that lays ahead of us all.There's a lot more nuance to this than your average pub chat!We also talk about different industries and how they can or can't evolve. How the fossil fuel industry's own spokespeople are admitting that they need to switch off today, how concrete poses a paradox (damaging and really bloody useful!), and the similar challenges for the airline industry.We dip into how services companies, who mostly have a relatively small direct carbon footprint, don't and shouldn't get off scott-free, but need to look at their entire value chain and see how they can get involved to help there.For all companies, we dip into the practicality of how to start the journey.And the advantage that startups have.So if you're looking for how business fits into society, evolution, History (with a capital H), anthropology, the anthropocene, and several other big degree words, listen in to this fascinating episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast. Find it on your podcast platform, or in the link below.And most importantly - just buy the book. You can find it here https://www.worldofbooks.com/en-gb/books/mark-a-maslin/how-to-save-our-planet/9780241472521.

Purpose can be a real facilitator for growth and profitability. And in turn, growth increases  your ability to make impact, while profitability allows the business to serve at a higher level.It's a wonderfully virtuous cycle when you get it right.A beautiful case study of this is Hyphen8, a Salesforce consultancy with a focus on  thecharity and non-profit sector. As CEO Elaine Forth doubled down on the company's purpose and focussed in on its ops at the same time, they were able to both give more, and turn profitable.How much more? 16% pro-bono time for charities in 2020.This episode of the KarmicCapitalist podcast with Elaine is packed with founder and scale-up nuggets. Some of the key takeaways include:the importance of alignment between the founders on purpose and valueshow aligning business, marketing and ops with purpose both strengthens the business and allows it to contribute morehow embedding purpose in your sales and qualification processes is essential in times of peak demandthe importance as a leader of recognising areas where others may do better than you, and allowing them to do ithow focussing on just making things happen, rather than on gender, drove success for her in a world dominated by men (a lot of resonance here with the earlier episode with Jan Rippingale).Way too much to summarise. Listen in to this episode of the Karmic Capitalist on your preferred podcast platform.

This episode of #TheKarmicCapitalist podcast is so back-to-back full of real life, practical lessons that it was nigh-on impossible to fit it into our standard time limit.But that's no surprise. Neal Gandhi and his team have taken The Panoply from a standing start to a publicly listed, £1/4 of a billion company in less than 5 years.And done it by wearing purpose and values very visibly on their sleeves.There's tons here for anyone who wants to build around purpose and values. If you're doing it through M&A, this will be the best 40 minutes you spend today.Some of the key takeaways in this episode include:How rather than trying something he's not good it, he asked the question of how to turn what he *is* good at into doing good.How clarity of purpose and values helped get better M&A prospects, and moved the conversation to a more profound place than "buy at 3x, integrate at 5x".The careful thought into having values that balanced each other - the entrepreneurial and the conscious.How values helped The Panoply have clarity going in to the pandemic.It's tough to overstate how much sheer experience of a purpose-led company comes through in this episode.Bring a notepad.

"We'd like to fully electrify Africa by 2040, with renewable energy at its core".That's the vision that Tony Tiyou had when he set up Renewables in Africa (RiA), his engineering, consulting and media organisation. The trigger was seeing a satellite image showing the distribution of power across the planet, and seeing that Africa, was mostly veiled in darkness.There's a lot in this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, but 2 big lessons stood out for me for purpose-driven companies.First, the need to ensure economic viability for the company and fill a real demand. For RiA, revenue from engineering and consulting work helps fund the media platform, which serves the larger mission of sustainable electrification across the continent. Achieving that important social purpose in turn opens up a bigger market within which RiA can be a player.Second, if you're a startup or scaleup looking at a large transformation, then you need to identify and collaborate with the parties that can make it happen - in this instance, companies with a focus on technology, finance, engineering and resources.As well as, in RiA's case, enabling other solar entrepreneurs to take up the baton across the vast continent.Enjoy the episode - and apologies for my bad microphone!

Ben Brabyn's had a fascinating career across multiple touchpoints with entrepreneurship. He's ...set up and sold his own company;represented entrepreneurs for global investment at the DTI;headed Level39, London's biggest fintech entrepreneurship hub;created a company to connect entrepreneurs to people who wouldn't typically inhabit that world.This gives him unique insights that most founders don't get. And the beauty of it is that he openly and humbly shares these in a very thoughtful way.In this episode of the Karmic Capitalist, Ben shares his stories and some of the things he's learned along the way.Such as the dangers of trying to revolutionise your sector without a deep balance sheet.Or the effectiveness and positive impact that can be made while building rationally, but selling to the heart.But I found the discussion around GenieShares especially interesting. How a simple (but not easy) task of giving away 1% of your share capital can be transformational for you, the recipient, and your company.And we never got to talk about the abseiling world record he broke with the Royal marines. Next time.Listen in to this thoughtful episode, and please rate the podcast once done.

Jan Rippingale's ambitions were never small. At an early age, Jan was looking first to be an astronaut, and then president. Ironically, working with John Glenn turned her ambitions away from this, and more towards using technology to create impact.Her chosen area of impact was our escalating carbon footprint. And her solution was to develop software that reduces the cost and complexity of rolling out solar. Specifically, software that if deployed at scale has the proven potential to eliminate half a billion tons of carbon emissions per annum.Some great lessons along the way. Some of my favourites:Her very practical way to assess the skills to focus her personal development on.The power of knowing your impact numbers in detail if you're to drive change.How giving away time and skill to large initiatives maximises impact and creates valuable contacts at a much higher level than you may otherwise access.That becoming the centre of gravity for the work she engaged in meant that success followed.Have fun, make money, create impact. In that order.An amazing origin story also of how it was a vision with her daughter that triggered and empowered her to change course and tackle one of the world's biggest problems.Fantastic episode. Enjoy.

Red Badger is one of the UK's most successful digital transformation agencies. Founded by 3 friends coming out of Conchango, a successful previous generation agency, they decided they wanted to do things better.At the heart of that ambition was to do two simple things. First, deliver significant change and impact to clients, and second to be a nourishing environment where the best people could go to elevate their careers.In this Karmic Capitalist podcast episode, I interview founder and CEO Cain Ullah. He shares the pivotal role that values had in the Red Badger success story. Including how not spending a huge amount of time articulating them early on it was the right thing to do!We talk about Red Badgers' values-based evolution towards a bigger mission and purpose, but the need to build it on the foundation of a financially sustainable platform. For Red Badger, that has involved the creation of the Mission Beyond initiative, which will bring the dynamism which the Badgers are famous for into the mission world. Specifically, the action-based laser focus of going from thought to action to impact that the Badgers which they regularly deliver to their clients.I really enjoyed going into the detail of what the Badgers actually do to embed values within their work.And Cain is just one of life's genuinely nice blokes!

As far as BHAGs go, Eliminating Global Healthcare Inequalities has got to be out there with the best.Though Alphalake being a British company, it's a little more modest."To work towards global health equality."This is just the fourth part of a strong mission, which aside from being a key part of founder Olly Cogan's aspiration, has had the unintended benefit of being a strong attractor for talented employees.This episode of the Karmic Capitalist podcast ranges from the macro of where Capitalism may need some fixing, to the micro of how Alphalake prioritises between immediate and longer-term needs.Along the way, we take in some great comments ("Bill Gates didn't set up Microsoft with the Bill and Melinda foundation in minds. He probably set it up to make money and stuff it to IBM" is a personal favourite!), and dives a little into the tech of the opportunities for RPA and Microsoft Teams in healthcare.Olly closes with a great question as to why the NHS isn't viewed as this cool organisation to work in, given the level of dynamic thinking, innovation and problem solving that goes on underneath the glacial-moving reputation.Listen to this episode of a startup on its journey to achieving a great purpose.

Many CEOs call their companies "people companies". Occasionally they mean it!Far more occasionally still, it translates into every sinew of a company's being.Answer Digital comes about as close as you can get within the tech consulting sector. I don't know what perks they offer, or if they've latched on to the latest must-shout-about people-pleasing fad. But I do sense they've embedded values through the whole organisation.And that's right from graduates who join their academy. Their coding skills will grow for sure. But they're also going to be asked to present what the company's values mean to them in front of their colleagues.A tough ask, but it starts the process of connecting the team's day-to-day work to the company's values and the outcomes they create for their clients.... and it seems to work, as 40% of the company's employees are academy graduates!But way bigger than that is how founders Gary and Katie Parlett shunned high offers from trade and private equity and chose instead to put the company into an Employee Owned Trust.EOTs aren't always the best answer. But they were to retain Answer's culture.So my latest episode of the Karmic Capitalist talks to co-founder Gary Parlett about growing a successful, truly people-first digital transformation and IT consultancy.