There is a gap in the Australian eco-system for start-ups and SME businesses to access expert advice and support on how to “scale up” to accelerate growth.
The Growth Execs are a team of four results-proven, seasoned executives supported by an Associate team of high performance professionals. The Growth Execs have all worked together as members of the Executive team during the high growth phase of Australian-success story, Atlassian, and three of four assisted the Australian e-commerce software provider Bigcommerce.
Together we have over 100 years of professional experience in a range of roles in technology startups in Australia, Europe and the US. We love nothing more than sharing that experience to build solid business foundations, manage business risk, identify business opportunities and drive sustainable growth.
When startups achieve product market fit and begin to scale for growth, founders and early employees encounter an inflection point in how they hire, manage teams and build product. Often they take on investment and need to report on financial results, accurately forecast revenue and manage expenses. Yet the startup has neither the cash nor time to find a top-tier team of experienced execs to design customized solutions for their business.
The Growth Execs act a virtual executive team who have 'seen the movie' before. We help you understand what structures, processes, technology and people you need to put in (and when). We help you avoid common mistakes and accelerate quickly.
We present an extremely competitive, alternative consulting offering, designed to meet the needs of small and medium businesses, with the view of a long-term partnership: we get to know your business and support your business challenges and business growth via the provision of tailored advice and services, as and when you need it. After our initial engagement to set you on the right track, we stay working with you in an Advisory Board capacity for on-going support and advice.
Establish investor friendly frameworks for financial reporting, forecasting, acquisitions, structuring the business, compliance and facilities.
Build high-performance teams, nurture an engaging culture, recruit the top talent, align people with the strategy and ensure regulatory requirements are met.
Improve the speed and frequency of delivery, harden the architecture for scale, make product decisions based on data and create a great engineering brand.
As Director & Principal Finance Consultant for The Growth Execs™, John steers companies through capital raising & restructures, international tax strategy, domestic & international acquisitions, ESOPs, treasury & FX management, IP protection and government incentives. He is also well experienced in accounting, tax & reporting issues for SaaS companies. A former CFO of Atlassian and several startups, John is uniquely positioned to keep an organisation lean while avoiding the pitfalls and converging on predictable growth.
As Director and Principal People Consultant of The Growth Execs™, Jodette works with businesses to develop a business-aligned People Strategy, Infrastructure and Programs that ensures these businesses attract top talent, have engaged and productive employees and effectively manage employment legislative risk and compliance. Formerly with Atlassian, Bigcommerce and Red Balloon, Jodette excels at putting a professional foundation in place while enhancing the lean and dynamic culture that attracts creative and entrepreneurial talent.
As Director & Principal Product and Technology Consultant for The Growth Execs™, Soren puts technology behind the biggest levers in the business. A former VP of Engineering for Atlassian and Bigcommerce, Soren Harner is a visionary technology executive with proven success in building market leading technology solutions and high performing teams. A former artificial intelligence researcher at Stanford with a deep interest in data and statistics, Soren is able to critically evaluate new directions in technology and harness these developments to achieve revolutionary business outcomes.
As Director & Principal Engineering and Operations Consultant for The Growth Execs™, Glenn excels at creating high-performing and customer-centric technical team cultures. He keeps the team focused and productive under the uncertain and ever-changing conditions of intense competition and rapid growth that typically accompany startups. A former VP of Engineering at Brandscreen and Director of SaaS Engineering at Atlassian, Glenn has a deep understanding of software engineering, cloud infrastructure, security, performance and running SaaS operations teams.
Stuart Giglia, Founder, Newmarket Capital
John joined Pinion at a time when the business was undergoing significant change following the company’s successful Series B capital raising and some exciting strategic developments in the US. With two thirds of the executive leadership team relocating to the US, John not only filled the management void created by their absence, but brought with him a pragmatic approach to decision making that had been missing to that point.
Within a very short space of time, John managed to clarify and quantify the key business metrics that would ultimately define Pinion’s future. He was instrumental in providing strategic guidance and council to the board when Pinion needed to make the strategic decision to pivot and reposition its business model to ensure the company was able to prosper in a rapidly evolving commercial and competitive landscape. Although Pinion’s founder’s found this change of direction difficult to accept from both an operational and cultural perspective, to a man they now agree that it was this course of action that ensured Pinion survived this tumultuous period.
I have absolutely no hesitation of recommending John for any future engagement and hope to be able to work with him again on future endeavours.
Scott Farqhuar, Founder & Owner, Atlassian
We hired Jodette at Atlassian to take our HR practices from that of a small start-up, and professionalise them in preparation for our rapid growth. Jodette brought her wealth of experience to bear at Atlassian and quickly put in place policies and procedures that helped us grow, but maintain our corporate culture. I would recommend Jodette to any small/medium business that has identified HR as an area that they want to professionalise.