What does it actually take to build a high-performing team - that stands up for years to come?

In this episode ,I’m joined by Mick Rigby, founder and CEO of Yodel Mobile, to talk about what it really takes to build and keep a team together over the long term.

Mick has grown people from interns into leaders, retained a senior team for close to a decade, and adapted his leadership style through start-up life, scaling, and acquisition - without losing the culture that made it work in the first place.

We talk about:

• why loyalty is built slowly, not incentivised
• how leaders need to change as organisations grow
• the role empathy plays in high-performing teams
• how neurodivergent thinking shapes better leadership
• what skills will still matter as AI reshapes marketing

Lizi started out cold-calling journalists from a pitch pod and faxing press releases for London agencies. Today she’s co-founder of Songue PR, helping deep-tech clients stay visible in a world where AI tools surface trusted sources - not ads.

This episode covers:

• how she landed her first PR role on her 64th application

• the reality of learning pitchcraft from the ground up

• why pitching isn’t a prompt you throw at ChatGPT

• and how earned media is becoming essential again in the AI age

Subscribe to get the Extended Cut, where we go deeper on how she built her agency, what UK brands get wrong in the US, and how AI visibility audits are changing comms strategy.

Ever landed a role you didn’t quite feel ready for - and had to get good, fast?

Brandt Bodamer knows the feeling.

He took on a digital marketing role overseas with little more than curiosity, hustle, and a copy of Digital Marketing for Dummies in his bag. That leap became the foundation of a career that’s since taken him into agency leadership and founding Adduro.io - a growing adtech firm helping brands show up across streaming and audio platforms.

But this isn’t just a startup story.

We get into:

• How to earn credibility without faking it
• What it really takes to grow fast when you feel out of your depth
• Making the shift from capable doer to credible leader
• What building a business without investor cash actually looks like

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Getting the title is one thing. Getting taken seriously as a leader is another.

Louise Thompson knows that gap well. She spent years as a comms director before moving into coaching, and she’s worked with plenty of smart marketers who’ve found the step up tougher than expected.

We get into:

• why outputs don’t cut it at senior level - it’s all about outcomes
• the behind-the-scenes groundwork that makes meetings easier
• how to stop micromanaging without losing standards
• finding a leadership style that feels like you, not a copy-and-paste

If you’ve just stepped up to head-of or director, or want to position yourself as ready for the next big leap, there's plenty here for you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever felt like you didn’t have the right background to make it in marketing?

Brooke didn’t go to uni. She didn’t have a head start or a polished CV. What she did have was persistence, a lot of self-awareness, and someone willing to throw down a challenge - in the form of a sales book and a second chance.

Today she’s Managing Director at Broadley Speaking - a sales and marketing consultancy that helps businesses find and convert high-value opportunities.

In this episode, we talk about:

• how she broke into the industry with zero formal experience
• the moment a single interview nearly derailed everything
• what rejection taught her about leadership and listening
• why she hires for attitude, not academics
• and what resilience actually looks like when you’re living it - not just posting about it

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if the biggest threat to good marketing isn’t budgets, tech, or AI - but overcomplication?

In this episode, I sit down with Brandon Keenen - ex-CMO, ex-BuzzFeed, now founder of ViVV Labs - to dig into why marketing so often loses its way. We cover the cost of vanity metrics, the illusion of attribution, and how confidence without clarity is everywhere.

We also talk about what it really takes to move from tactical work to strategic leadership - and why simplifying your thinking might be the most powerful thing you do.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We talk a lot about optimisation in marketing - but too often, it means nudging a button colour or tweaking a landing page.

Slobodan ' Sani' Manić wants to change that. A former developer turned conversion strategist, Sani shares how one offhand comment flipped his view of marketers, and how it led him to a mindset built around asking better questions, not just running better tests.

We dig into:

• why most marketers inherit a narrow view of their role
• how SEO and CRO became siloed (and why that’s a problem)
• what real optimisation looks like - and what stops teams doing it
• the mental trap of always spotting what’s broken
• how to stay curious (and sane) in an AI-saturated world

A great listen for anyone who wants to think sharper, work smarter, and stop pouring water into leaky buckets.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We often use the term 'customer centricity' – but what does that really look like in practice?

Monzo Bank is well known for clarity - not just in its product, but in how it speaks. And Harry helped make writing it a core business function.

We explore how words can influence culture, shape products, and power customer experience far beyond the marketing team. We get into:

• Why Monzo unified brand and UX writing under one team
• How writing became part of onboarding for every employee, and how they built guidance people actually use
• What most businesses get wrong about tone of voice and guidelines

If you’ve ever argued that “words matter” inside a business, Harry shows you how to prove it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Think a rebrand is just a new logo and some shiny new colours? Think again.

In this episode, I’m joined by Amy Walters, founder of Bloomify, to lift the lid on what a rebrand really involves — and why most businesses get it wrong. We get into how she’s approaching her own live rebrand, the difference between a refresh and a full rethink, and how to know if a rebrand is actually needed or just a shiny distraction.

You’ll hear:

• how Amy built her freelance business one step at a time
• the messy reality of rebranding your own business
• how real brand building starts by understanding the “why” behind the work
• A grounded, real-world look at what a rebrand really takes — and why it’s harder (and more personal) than it looks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After reading HubSpot’s 2025 trends report, I found myself wondering: is AI really reshaping marketing careers, or are we just getting swept along by another hype cycle?

In this episode, I’m joined by Em Brown, a junior exec navigating AI expectations before she’s had time to build her craft, and Sam Birkett, a seasoned strategist who’s lived through more than one marketing hype cycle.

Together, we get into:

• what AI means for skill-building, judgement, and career progression
• whether prompt-writing is replacing creative thinking
• how trend reports are shaping perception (and not always helpfully)
• and why knowing what good looks like still matters more than ever

One for anyone trying to progress in their career without losing their instinct to algorithms.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.