February 10, 2025

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How leaders can take on the challenges of growth and evolution

How leaders can take on the challenges of growth and evolution

At the end of last year, Matilda Djerf, TikTok influencer and founder of Swedish brand Djerf Avenue, came under fire following criticism over her leadership style and the impact this had on the company’s workplace culture. Djerf, who is just 27 years old, leads a rapidly growing organisation, and claimed it was her inexperience as a business leader that was to blame. 

Other high-profile entrepreneurs and business leaders have faced similar criticism at times, ranging from widely reported coverage of James Watt at BrewDog through to Elon Musk at X. There are some clear contextual factors at play in these examples. Organisations that serve customers directly, and that are heavily engaged with customers through social media, will always be more sensitive to public criticism. 

Leaders of start-ups moving through growth phases and scaling will also always face significant challenges in adapting their styles to what the organisation and culture need next. Younger leaders will clearly have more to learn and grow through than seasoned leaders. What is clear, however, is that the CEO’s role is much more than just leading on strategy and decision making. It also encompasses leading organisational company culture that creates a lasting positive impact. 

Balancing empathy and drive

Jordan Schwarzenberger, the 27-year-old co-founder of Arcade Media who manages the careers of The Sidemen, recently shared how he had to adapt his style to lead effectively. One of the points he makes is about being of service to others and leading from the back. There is plenty of discourse in the business world about empathetic or servant leadership, whereby you focus on the growth and wellbeing of your employees via meaningful human connection. 

It is important to be able to do this, of course, but being a leader is a balance between being empathetic and being firm. Having empathy is crucial as it helps you better understand your people and where their strengths lie. Yet the balance comes when this is married with your role in driving business goals. It is crucial to develop an ability to ‘lean in’ with human connection and ‘lean out’ with direction, feedback and performance management. Judging when and how comes with experience, and what an individual, team or business phase needs.  

There is no doubt that many employees, and customers, view traits such as empathy perhaps as importantly as pay and benefits (or a customer buying decision). Particularly when culture doesn’t align with exposed values, challenges lie ahead. 

Navigating organisational growth 

As organisations grow they need to evolve, and their leaders with them. This often takes the form of ‘professionalising’ in terms of bringing in specialists who have experienced the ‘next’ stage and can help you evolve. Changes to processes will be needed, such as resourcing a workforce at scale, EDI considerations to encompass a broader range of talent or fundraising to fuel growth. The balance then comes in pacing these hires. Too late and growth can be constrained, and processes creak. Too soon and it’s too costly or an organisation simply isn’t ready. External advisers and fractional support may help here, to share advice and build to your next ‘scaled’ size and permanent team. 

Preserving values and engaging well 

I’ve heard many times the narrative that an organisation can ‘lose’ its cherished culture as it grows. My experience is that while ways of working will clearly need to evolve, values can be preserved, albeit then evident in evolved ways. Transparency and consistency become more important so colleagues have demonstrably been treated fairly, and the organisation can demonstrate its alignment with its own values to customers. Sharing real stories about ‘what great looks like’ can be very powerful in nurturing values-aligned changes to ways of working. 

Through all this, effective channels of engagement are important. These can range from all-hands events to internal comms platforms, temperature check surveys to listening exercises, skip-level meetings (chat to levels below line management) to a buddy system. Specific communications around change are a skill in itself, and worth the effort. Take a quick sense check of what you have and your levels of engagement, and keep it fresh. 

It’s also beneficial to seek 360-degree feedback as a leader. You might think you’re open, and you might be, but you’re in a position of power and you’ll need to go out of your way to create a psychologically safe space and seek out that feedback. Questions could include: ‘Do you feel comfortable sharing your thoughts and ideas in our team – why or why not? What ways of working here should I revisit to help you do your job really well? What’s one thing you wish I asked you more often?’ A good leader, who will create a flourishing culture around them, is someone who is not afraid of improvement, especially during a business growth stage or period of change. 

Jason Byrne is CEO of Sullivan & Stanley 

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