Penelope and the undersung scale-up COO
Bruegel on exit chasing and unbridled ambition.
Like all the great myths and stories, the Tower of Babel is a deeply layered one.
At first, I planned to write about the difficulties that come with scaling a business from a tight founding team to a sizeable enterprise. New hires join, departments form, and one day you look around and realise that progress is slowing. Miscommunication creeps in. Sales is fighting with Product and Strategy becomes hazy. The glue that once held everything together has quietly dissolved. Nobody intended it. It just happened.
Goya and the founder who cannot let go.
A giant, devouring his own child. Eyes wide open. Terrified.
This isn't malice, if you ask me. No deliberate pain, or desire to destroy—but fear dressed up as control. Goya painted this on his bedroom wall: Saturn’s gaze is fixated on his son, but he doesn't appear cruel. He looks afraid of what he created, and completely unable to release it.
The real incentive: leading by example
To truly drive change, it's crucial to remove discrepancies between words and actions. By aligning leadership behaviour with organisational goals you can foster the desired behaviours and achieve lasting results.
The struggle of Team Management
If you’re managing a team and are struggling, you’re not alone. Although often underestimated, team management is a skill — one that takes time and effort to learn to do well.