Situation overview
This situation arises when a business is growing, but the systems and leadership rhythms that supported earlier success are starting to strain.
Revenue may be increasing and demand strong, yet margin is under pressure, delivery is inconsistent, or leadership time is being pulled into operational detail. What worked at one scale no longer works at the next, and the organisation has not yet caught up with itself.
This is not a growth problem.
It is an execution-at-scale problem.
Growth Without Losing Control provides experienced, practical support to help leadership teams scale in a controlled way, protecting margin, delivery, and team effectiveness while introducing the operational discipline required for the next phase of growth.
What this situation often looks like in practice
While each business is different, common characteristics include:
- Growth outpacing structure, capability, or operational clarity
- Increasing pressure on margin, cash, or customer experience
- Leadership teams becoming a bottleneck for cross-functional decisions
- Roles and accountabilities that made sense historically but no longer fit
- A sense that momentum is strong, but control is starting to fray
The risk is not growth slowing.
It is growth becoming inefficient, fragile, or value destructive.
Selected Case Studies
Establishing control and board confidence in a fast-scaling, technically complex business
Context
A fast-growing, rights-led commercial business had scaled revenue quickly, but operational discipline and forecasting confidence had not kept pace. The commercial model was technically complex, with interdependencies across rights structures, activation timing, sales productivity, renewals, and cash conversion.
The portfolio team was increasingly uneasy about its relationship with the CEO, who was highly capable but demanding and difficult to challenge. Board confidence was fragile, not because the opportunity was flawed, but because complexity was running ahead of control.
I was engaged to provide an independent operational perspective and help the board understand whether growth was sustainable, and what would be required to maintain control without slowing momentum.
What mattered in this situation
The immediate priority was credibility, not diagnosis for its own sake.
The board needed confidence that someone could quickly understand the commercial mechanics, challenge assumptions constructively, and engage the CEO without triggering defensiveness or friction.
By getting to grips with the technical sales engine and operational sequencing early, trust was established quickly with both board and management. This allowed conversations to move from anxiety to practical discussion around timing, structure, and control.
Outcome
The board gained rapid clarity on where growth was structurally sound and where sequencing and discipline needed tightening.
The business retained its growth trajectory, but with improved governance, clearer commercial rhythms, and a more grounded operating plan that aligned ambition with delivery capability.
This work became the foundation for wider stabilisation and value protection activity, but its defining impact was restoring confidence and control without slowing the business down.
Strengthening control and execution as a high-growth business scaled
Context
A fast-growing energy solutions business had set out an ambitious expansion strategy. Demand was strong, the opportunity clear, and the CEO had a well-defined vision for growth.
Execution now depended on a senior leadership team spanning finance, sales, operations, legal, programme delivery, and technology working in much closer coordination than before. Complexity was increasing rapidly, decisions were more interdependent, and the cost of misalignment was rising.
The risk was not loss of momentum, but loss of control.
I was engaged to help the leadership team mature its operating discipline so the business could continue to scale without fragmenting decision-making or overloading the CEO.
What mattered in this situation
The challenge was not strategy. It was execution at scale.
Each functional leader understood their own objectives, but there was no shared commercial lens across the group. Decisions were often taken in isolation, with downstream consequences only becoming visible later.
As growth accelerated, the CEO was increasingly pulled into cross-functional judgement calls that should have been resolved within the team. This was not sustainable.
The priority was to introduce stronger alignment, shared language, and operating rhythm without slowing the organisation down or adding unnecessary layers.
My role
I worked directly with the CEO and senior leadership team to diagnose where execution was breaking down and to strengthen how the group operated collectively.
The focus was on:
Establishing a shared understanding of commercial drivers and constraints
Clarifying cross-functional interdependencies and decision rights
Translating strategic intent into clear, executable priorities
Introducing a disciplined operating rhythm that improved pace and consistency
The work was deliberately practical, centred on live decisions, real projects, and immediate delivery pressure.
Outcome
The leadership team moved from parallel effort to coordinated execution.
Decision-making became faster and more consistent. Cross-functional friction reduced. Priorities were better sequenced and accountability clearer.
Most importantly, leadership load eased at the centre, allowing the CEO to step back from day-to-day arbitration and focus on steering the business through its next phase of growth.
The business continued to scale, but with stronger control, improved execution discipline, and a leadership system capable of carrying complexity.
Additional relevant work
Additional growth and scale-up work includes:
- Independent operational review for a rapidly scaling rights-led business where revenue growth outpaced operating discipline. Identified structural timing mismatches, productivity dilution, and renewal underperformance, with recommendations focused on restoring control without sacrificing momentum.
- Co-chairing a senior leadership planning session for MB&G Insurance to strengthen management information discipline while preserving a collaborative culture, supported by structured preparation and follow-on execution.
- Early-stage leadership and succession risk review for a fast-growing portfolio company, addressing emerging strain before performance was impacted and strengthening leadership capacity and contingency planning.
- Leadership alignment and execution discipline support for a scaling business where growth ambition outpaced cross-functional coordination, improving sequencing, reducing friction, and strengthening leadership rhythm.
- Operational assessment and succession planning for a potential acquisition, focused on reducing founder dependency and ensuring leadership continuity post-completion.
Experience and judgement
This work is often undertaken alongside boards and investors who support growth but are clear-eyed about the risks of losing operational and financial control as scale increases.
His expertise and dedication were invaluable to us during this critical period.
“In the world of family investment, not everything goes to plan. We faced a challenging situation with one of our investments, and I turned to Trev to help stabilise the business. From the outset, Trev displayed exceptional leadership and a clear understanding of our needs. He delivered on every objective and went above and beyond by recruiting a new Managing Director. Trev ensured a smooth transition, handing over the business in a stronger, more stable position. His expertise and dedication were invaluable to us during this critical period.”
John Davies – Managing Partner – Pitalia Capital