Built To Lead

The year they went full time … they tripled. 

In this episode, I sit down with Nakie co-founder Dean Leibbrandt to unpack the team and hiring decisions behind their growth. They went three and a half years without paying themselves, used Airtasker to survive Black Friday, and built a lean remote team around life rather than growth at any cost.

Dean also shares the mistakes that cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars, including one discount code error that wiped out $205,000 in profit.

If you’re building a business around a full-time job, struggling to know when to hire, or wondering how to scale without creating a business that owns you, this episode is for you.

Key moments:

00:00: How to Turn a Problem You Care About Into a Product That Sells

03:47: How to Get a Manufacturer to Say Yes When Everyone Else Says No

06:55: Why Your Next Product Could Grow Revenue Faster Than More Ads

08:07: The First Hire That Gives E-commerce Founders Their Time Back

09:16: How to Know When It’s Finally Time to Quit Your Day Job

16:31: The Scrappy Hiring Hack That Can Save Your Biggest Sales Period

19:19: How Running Out of Stock Can Unlock Better Supplier Terms

21:22: How to Build an Eight-Figure Business Without a Bloated Team

23:06: The Offshore Hiring Mistake That Costs You Great Employees

23:42: Why Weekly Check-ins Keep Good Employees From Leaving

24:52: The Leadership Habit That Earns Your Team’s Respect

26:27: The Hiring Advantage Remote Businesses Have Over Everyone Else

31:41: The Fastest Way to Learn What Bigger Businesses Already Know

38:34: The Tiny Discount Error That Cost $205K in Profit

To see more from Dean you can follow him on instagram @dean.leibbrandt or on LinkedIn. To find out more about Nakie you can follow them @nakie or nakie.com

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Most founders think the answer to "I need to grow" is to work harder. But Matt Srama learned the opposite.

Matt Srama went from wrestling 100 kilo men on an NRL field to running Srama Property, the 2026 Buyers Agency of the Year and when his growth really started? The moment he realised he was the bottleneck. 

In this episode, I sit down with Matt to unpack the discipline he carried over from professional sport, the framework that changed how he hires ("who, not how"), and the exact process he used to find his first team members, right down to filming his own house cleaning routine to hire a house manager.

If you're a founder stuck doing everything yourself and wondering when it's actually time to let go, this episode is the playbook.

Key moments:

00:00: The 60/40 split every founder eventually has to make 

01:50: Why building people comes before building the business

8:06: The one skill that separates founders who make it from those that don’t

11:53: Why the first six month of any business has to be just you

13:19: The first hire you make is rarely the right one, and that’s OK 

14:51: The Finder, Minder, Grinder framework every service business needs

16:04: Why chasing the “Unicorn” hires early is a trap

17:17: The real test of hiring people form your own network

22:09: The book that will rewire how you think about scaling

24:38: Why paying more for experience beats training from scratch

34:54: The time and energy audit that will expose where you're leaking focus

37:10: Upgrading from a personal assistant to an executive assistant and why is changed everything

41:20: The unconventional way to hire a house manager

You can follow Matt on instagram @matt_srama and Linkedin. Or to Matt’s property podcast Buying Gold Coast.

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

If you want to get access to our time audit tool, head over to https://agentsync.com.au/founder-freedom-formula

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Three multimillion-dollar businesses. One very expensive lesson in letting go.

Lisa Jones is a best-selling author, keynote speaker and founder of SHE-com, a powerhouse community of 40,000 women backing female founders of product-based businesses. She's built, scaled and exited multiple companies, and she is currently in hypergrowth mode with one goal: a major exit. 

In this episode Lisa spills everything. What really happened when she stepped back and watched her business quietly erode for nearly 12 months. How she rebuilt it from the inside out with AI doing the heavy lifting. And how she's built a team she would walk through fire for.

Lisa is also one of the most disarmingly honest founders you will ever hear speak.

Key moments:

00:00 Why stepping back from your business might be your biggest mistake

5:10: What the agitator role actually looks like in a scaling business

7:49: How to spot a taker before they destroy your culture

10:05: The one world that tells you everything you need to know about a new hire

19:37: Why phantom shareholder agreements might be the retention tool you’ve never heard of

29:04: Building without fatigue. Why every decision needs to answer to this one question

32:11: How to build AI in the back end without losing your human touch

47:23: Why Stepping Back From Your Business Might Be Your Biggest Mistake

52:54: What a decade of being told you’re not good enough does to a leader and how to come back

You can find Lisa on instagram @lisajones_co or via Shecom.co

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Most brands don’t survive one trend cycle, let alone 20+ years.

But Nikita Sernack has built Nookie through the pre-social media days, the rise of founder-led brands, international stockists, COVID, AND the launch of a second label (Rumer).

In this episode, I’m sitting down with Nikita to chat about what actually keeps a brand relevant for that long. From building a cult customer base, to knowing when growth isn’t profitable, to hiring people who can take the business further than you can alone.

Key moments:

0:00 - How Nikita built Nookie before social media, e-commerce and founder-led brands became the norm

6:21 - Building a guilt following before social media really took off

9:22 - The hiring mistake that makes founders busier than ever

13:48 - What happens when your core product is built for events people suddenly can’t attend

15:03 - Why launching a second brand can expose weaknesses your first brand was strong enough to hide

17:45 - How to lead a team without becoming the person every decision has to come back to

20:13 - What a founder should focus on once the business has grown past the early stage

24:14 - The cost of saying yes to the kind of growth most brands dream of

27:54 - The decision to go global

28:52 - How a major retailer partnership can become more than just a sales channel

29:58 - What it looks like to evolve a brand without losing the reason people loved it in the first place

30:24 - The three hires that can protect the parts of your business customers actually experience

Find Nookie on IG @lovenookie and watch Rumer’s relaunch at @rumerthelabel

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Some business owners seem to always know the right person.

The person with the answer, the intro, the opportunity, the client, or the advice you didn’t even know you needed.

That’s what happens when you stop treating networking like awkward small talk and start building a real network.

In this episode, I’m sitting down with Daniel Hakim, CEO of CUB and co-founder of BOA, and Kirsten Scott, co-founder and CEO of BOA, to talk about how the right business relationships can open doors you’d never find on your own.

We’re chatting about what makes their style of networking work, why trust compounds over time, how Kirsten went from CUB to co-founder of BOA, and what founders need to know about hiring salespeople, building offshore teams, growing through referrals, and making the right first hires.

Key moments:

0:00 - How to bring someone into a bigger leadership role without forcing it, and what happened when Daniel invited Kirsten into BOA

10:39 - Why “networking” and having a real network are completely different things

13:19 - How to walk into a networking event when you’re scared, awkward, or worried you won’t know what to say

22:16 - What to look for when hiring in a growing business, and Daniel’s advice for finding salespeople who can actually sell

30:45 - The biggest lessons Kirsten has learnt from building BOA

33:51 - How CUB started, and what Daniel realised people were really joining for

41:29 - What needs to be in place before an offshore team can genuinely take work off your plate

43:58 - Why Daniel believes your first hire should usually be sales, and how CUB grew without relying on a huge marketing budget

50:27 - What does the next 12 months look like for BOA and CUB?

54:09 -The first three hires Daniel and Kirsten would make if they were starting again today

If you’re interested in joining CUB or BOA you can find the links here.

www.cub.club

www.bornofambition.com

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Betts have just had a rebrand and chances are, you’ve seen it pop up on your social media.

Behind that rebrand is Michael Breckler, the fifth-generation CEO of the 133-year-old Australian footwear brand, who has spent the last few years making some huge calls about where the business needed to go next.

In this episode, Michael is sharing with me what really happened behind the scenes - from cutting half the store network and removing entire product categories, to tripling online revenue and rebuilding Betts into a brand the next generation actually wants to buy from.

Key moments:

0:00 - How Michael became the fifth-generation leader of a 133-year-old family business

5:46 - When simplifying the business becomes the smartest move for growth

9:44 - The reality of closing stores, downsizing teams and making decisions that affect real people

12:42 - What it takes to reposition a legacy brand without losing the trust you worked so hard to build

17:14 - The hard conversations you have when family and business are so closely connected

21:15 - What Michael looks for when hiring A-players beyond skills and experience

25:14 - The tech, content and marketing changes that helped Betts triple online revenue

27:43 - Inside the rebrand process, from website and social content to packaging and product

30:57 - The key to staying culturally relevant

36:10 - Why being great at your job doesn’t automatically make you ready to lead people

38:25 - How to get your team on board with big business decisions (because people hate change!)

42:56 - Keeping your team accountable without holding constant meetings

50:53 - How to stay close to your customer when trends keep changing

56:13 - Modernising a family business without alienating the customers who got you there (it’s not easy)

If you want to connect with Michael, visit Linkedin here or his IG @mikebreckler

Check out Betts and the teams rebrand over at www.betts.com.au

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

What does it actually take to build a brand people trust, talk about and buy from before you have a huge team behind you?

Steve Chapman is the founder of Hyro, the Australian electrolyte brand growing fast with high-profile investors including Sarah’s Day, Quade Cooper and Daly Cherry-Evans. 

Before Hyro, he scaled Shine to more than $60 million in retail sales across 7,000 stores, so he’s not guessing when it comes to brand, retail, marketing or growth…

We're covering everything from how Steve is building Hyro to a $100M brand, his ambassador-investor partnerships, AI agents and the brand strategy that's designed to stand out in one of the most crowded categories in the market right now. 

Key moments:

0:00 - How Hyro is building a fast-growing brand with a tiny team and five AI agents 

4:33 - What Steve learned after his first business was shut down by Facebook 

7:53 - How Steve spotted the gap in the electrolyte market before Hyro existed 

9:18 - The high-profile ambassadors into investors that gave Hyro instant credibility 

14:31 - How Steve balances building a global brand while raising a young family 

16”62 - Why Steve invested in brand and website experience from day one 

19:00 - A look into Hyro’s content strategy

22:26 - Tips on finding a product opportunity in Australia

24:35 - The unhinged strategy Steve used to get Shine stocked in major retailers 

28:23 - The journey into selling a product in America

30”33 - What Steve knows he’ll need to change as Hyro expands into America 

32:49 - How Hyro is using AI agents across customer service, finance, logistics and operations 

36:09 - Getting your team bought into AI when it’s replacing their roles

38:31  Which parts of the business Steve believes still need to stay human 

39:31 - How building in public helps Hyro attract high-performing talent 

40:48 - The responsibility split between Steve and his wife Taylor

43:15 - The leadership mindset that helps Steve move quickly

44:38 - The first three hires Steve would make if he was starting again today 

45:13 - What’s next for Hyro as the brand expands beyond core electrolytes 

If you want to learn more about Hyro visit www.drinkhyro.com or connect with Steve on IG @stevechapman

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Build the product. Find the team. Then go to market. That's the playbook everyone follows. Frank Greef did it completely differently when building Kinso AI.

After founding Real Hub, merging with his biggest competitor Campaign Track and exiting Real Base with a team of over 400 across multiple countries, Frank came back with one unconventional bet. Forget the product launch. Build the audience first. Attract the talent through content. And by the time you go to market the right people are already watching, already applying and already bought in.

In this episode Frank and Kinso Marketing lead Tahlia Kennedy sit down to break down exactly how they did it. How to build a team that actually wants to stay. Why your employees building their own personal brand is an advantage not a risk. And how to stay human in a world where AI is making everything sound the same.

This is the new playbook. And it starts before you think you're ready.

Key moments:

00:00: What nobody tells you about leading at scale

03:05: Why surrounding yourself with yes people is the most dangerous thing in your business

7:24: How to know you’re actually hiring the best candidate and not least worst 

10:17: How to build a team, before you have a single customer

11:18: What actually the best people to come work for you and it’s not your culture page

17:39: Gen Z isn’t lazy. They have have 10, 000 hours of native skills most founders don’t

23:56: How trusting your team to own the content frees you up to build the business

30:09: Why the approval process is killing your content before it even gets seen

33:01: The Selfish Hour. How investing in your teams personal goals is the reason your best people never leave

36:28: The Netflix character strategy. How KinsoAI built multiple audiences through one team

39:10: Why letting your team build their personal brand is your biggest unfair advantage

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

AI Delegation - https://agentsync.com.au/ai-delegation

What if using AI in your business gets to be easier than it looks online?

Luke Heka has built over 4,000 automations across 250+ businesses through his agency Sellr, and in this episode, he’s breaking down what actually works when it comes to implementing AI inside a real company. 

And the best part is that Luke is a huge advocate for keeping it simple so that you can get AI off the ground and running in just a couple of weeks. 

There is so much AI content online that it’s getting harder each day to figure out what works, what’s achievable and what is just marketing for the algorithm.

So today, we’re getting into where most founders go wrong when they start with AI, how to identify the part of your business that will being in more money when you learn to automate it, and what an AI specialist role would look like day to day if you’re looking at hiring one.

Key moments:

0:00 - The step most founders skip before touching AI (and why everything breaks without it)

5:15 - The fastest way to figure out what’s worth automating in your business

7:56 -  One AI feature that every founder can use that will save them time and money today

10:33 - Most founders are making AI harder than it needs to be

13:42- The build that’s outperforming complex AI systems and is way more simple

14:25 - Luke’s current tech stack

20:00 - How to get AI to do the work for you instead of answering questions

29:40 - Why Luke’s cut his team in half (and what replaced them)

31:54 - When you should hire someone specialising in AI for your business

36:51 - Should you move to Claude?

41:16 - The one role inside every business that AI should be built around

48:42 - The security measures you should have in place when playing with AI

54:03 - What the ‘AI person’ in your team actually does day to day

1:00:00 - How to find the one automation that will move your business forward

1:04:02 - The first three hires Luke would make if he had to start again today

1:08:06 - The mindset shift leaders need before bringing AI into their team

If you want to work with Luke or join his next workshop, follow him on IG @mr_heka or Sellr on @selr__ai

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync

Making decisions on gut feel and hoping something sticks? There's a word for that…. It's called guessing. And it could be costing you more than you think.

Grace Miller is the Head of Experimentation and Failure at Diary of a CEO and Flight Story, the team behind one of the fastest growing podcasts in the world, scaling from 100,000 to over 16 million subscribers. And none of that happened by accident.

In this episode Grace breaks down why experimentation is the most underrated growth strategy in any scaling business, how to hire for culture before skill, and what to do when someone on your team isn't performing.

If you're building a team, scaling a business and tired of making decisions in the dark, this one's for you.

Key moments:

2:50: You need to start experimenting in your business today

5:02: Stop hiring for just skills. The culture test DOAC uses to find A-Players

8:30: Why employee generated content is outperforming founder content

21:58: How to build psychological safety so problems surface before they become expensive

24:29: How to build a testing culture across different countries and cultural norms

26:48: They tested for a year with zero results…then one experiment changed everything overnight

33:22: How to use AI to help your team work faster without losing what actually matters

41:25: Tall Poppy Syndrome, is costing Aussie founders and what to do about it

49:29: The one thing founders need to hear before they post their first piece of content

If you want to learn more from Grace, you can follow her on 

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-miller-linked-in/ 

Instagram: @graceexperiments 

If you want help building your offshore team, send me a message over at @jesswhatman_agentsync - ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jesswhatman_agentsync/⁠

Not sure what you could delegate or the next role you need? Ask Andy - https://agentsync.com.au/meet-andy

Find out more about off-shore employees over at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/agentsync_/⁠ and ⁠https://agentsync.com.au/⁠

And see behind the scenes content over at https://www.instagram.com/built.to.lead.podcast/

AgentSync