Brendan McGurgan

SimpleScaling Ltd. 

At Simple Scaling, it is our vision to build a thriving community of ambitious leaders of SMEs around the world, centred on our unified, globally recognised scaling framework, ScaleX™. 

The specific and different requirements of scaleups require their leaders to have a clear understanding of the mechanisms that drive sustainable scaling. It is this that drives us to inspire, connect and educate ambitious leaders of SMEs to scale with purpose.

We work ambitiously for our clients bringing innovative thinking, challenge, authenticity and spirit.
Our scaling blueprint has been built for ambitious leaders by ambitious leaders who have scaled businesses to £100m Revenue globally.

Director and Founder

CDE GLOBAL LIMITED

Group Managing Director

Finance Director

Amacis Limited

Group Financial Controller

PricewaterhouseCoopers

Senior Accountant

▶︎ WHAT DO I DO?
I Inspire, Connect and Enable ambitious leaders of SMEs to scale with purpose.

▶︎ MY CLIENTS ISSUES
My clients have ambition to scale but are stuck, fallen out of love with their business, lack the belief in themselves and the know-how to scale.

▶︎ WHO ARE MY CLIENTS?
Founders, CEO’s & leaders of companies (£1m - £100m in revenue with teams of 10 – 500 people). I also coach & mentor CEO's of larger companies (max 4 per year). 

▶︎ HOW I BRING VALUE TO CLIENTS
I co-host a 12 month scaling programme (ScaleX Accelerator). Aligned to our proven 10 Principle ScaleX Framework, we deliver a transformational programme to support personal and business scaling. https://simplescaling.com/scalex-framework.

Co-author of the Amazon best seller, Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles To 10x Your Business, a step guide to scaling with purpose, regular keynote speaker and host of the acclaimed ScaleX Insider Podcast.

▶︎ WHAT OTHERS SAY
Gareth Morrison, CEO, Lava Group
It's life-changing. It's going to challenge you in every way and push you to really grow yourself and your team. I have no doubt that the ScaleX™ Accelerator Programme will help any business.

Patrick Woods, Managing Director, Linwoods Health Foods
I would definitely recommend this programme to 2nd generation leaders who are working alongside the founders, first generation or parents. It has been invaluable in helping me to navigate that. 

▶︎ MY BACKGROUND
For my entire career I have had lead roles within scaling businesses. Most recently, during 17 years with CDE Group, 12 as CEO, I helped the company achieve 25x revenue growth and become an industry leader. During my time as CEO the company delivered almost £500m ($750m) cum revenue and £50m ($75m) cum profit, scaled from 15 to almost 700 employees spanning 6 continents and exported to more than 100 countries.
 
In 2020 I co-founded Simple Scaling and co-authored the Amazon Best-Seller, Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles to 10x your business cited by Kirkus as comprehensive concrete counsel for business leaders. 

I am a qualified Chartered Accountant and Chartered Director. In 2016, I was awarded the Institute of Directors, UK Young Director and overall, UK Director of the Year. 

Outside of work I enjoy all sports. I hold a 3rd degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and have previously competed in triathlon (completing Mallorca 70.3 IM in 2019). In 2021 I graduated as a Wim Hof Method Instructor a method I have come to love and practice daily.
  
▶︎ CONTACT: 
bmcgurgan@simplescaling.com.

What do you do?

In business, it’s a question you’ll be asked over and over again.

For us, it’s Simple.

We free leaders to flourish.

Free them from being choked in the operational weeds - to finally work on the business, not just in it.
Free them to delegate more - to see the true potential of those around them.
Free them from ambiguity and lack of direction - to lead with clarity and purpose.
Free them from the burden of responsibility - to rediscover energy and enthusiasm.
Free them from self-limiting beliefs - to tap into new-found confidence.
Free them from the wrong customers - to focus on those who truly value what they do.
Free them to lead from their unique ability - with vision, passion, and purpose.

We’re privileged to see this transformation every year.

This room alone.
- Multi-million-pound exits
- Re-energised founders
- Newly published authors
- International award winners
- Scale-ups through acquisition
- Seamless generational transitions
- Nationally recognised entrepreneurs

So what room will you be in by 2026?

When someone asks “What do you do?”.….will your answer leave them curious to know more?

ScaleX Accelerator 2026. Enrolling now.

Simple Scaling

Scaling Shouldn’t Come at the Expense of Our Health.

Yes, there are definitely times we make more withdrawals from our health account than feels comfortable and that’s going to happen when you’re leading a business to scale. But when we finally summit, what we like to call Scale Everest, we should feel more accomplished, more resilient and more energized, ready to take on our next mountain.

Not burnt out. Not running on fumes.

This is a core belief we hold at Simple Scaling. Taking time out when you’re leading a business, to 'sharpen the saw', as Stephen Covey refers, is so essential.

Last week, as I do each year at this time, I stepped away to do just that. Time with family, sunshine, movement, laughter. I’ve come back feeling recharged and excited for the remainder of the year ahead as we begin enrolling again for our 2026 programme.

Scaling with purpose starts with leading yourself in a sustainable way. Here’s to the rest of your year. 💪

The Loneliest Seat in Business

I know this seat well.

It’s the one you worked years to earn and the one nobody really prepares you for - we didn’t go to CEO Scaling school after all!

As the year closes, many founders I speak with push harder, often on fumes, holding it all together, and wondering why it feels so heavy.

The truth? The higher you climb, the fewer people you can really talk to….who can truly relate.

- Your team looks to you for certainty.
- Investors want confidence.
- Clients expect answers.
- And slowly, isolation sets in not with a crash, but quietly.

I’ve been there. And I’ve seen what happens when leaders finally step into a room with others who get it.

The relief is instant. Energy returns. Perspective widens.

Scaling alone isn’t strength.

It’s survival.

Scaling together that’s where real growth and true joy begin.

ScaleX Accelerator 2026. Enrolling now.

#Leadership #SME #BusinessGrowth #ScaleXAccelerator #EntrepreneurMindset #LeadershipDevelopment #ScalingBusiness

Ryan Tierney - The power of a bold Vision and there's no better person to make this happen....Ireland becoming the next Japan!

“I knew Lean Made Simple was growing faster than I ever expected and I realised why. It wasn’t another business plan; it was the clarity of a vision that grabbed me.”

Ryan Tierney, co‑founder of Seating Matters, discovered the power of vision during our Simple Scaling programme. After five learning trips to Japan, the birthplace of lean manufacturing, he filled 13 pages of notes on the flight home. The last line became his purpose: “Make Ireland the next Japan.” 

Ryan describes feeling an emotional shock when he wrote those words,the moment he aligned his passion with a bigger mission. Since defining that purpose, his spin‑off, Lean Made Simple, has exploded. Customers, suppliers and collaborators have been drawn to his vision, and the resources he needed seemed to appear exactly when he needed them. 

He credits the Simple Scaling framework for teaching him to put his vision out there and trust that the right people would rally around it. Our Purpose & Vision principle teaches that a meaningful purpose, “joyfully formed and articulately expressed,” is the first and most critical step in scaling.

When people are emotionally invested in your vision they bring their hearts to work. Ryan’s journey proves it.

Reflection: What bold vision could unlock your next level? 

If your strategy feels stuck, perhaps it’s not broken, just missing one piece. Share your vision in the comments or DM us if you’re ready to put it into action.

#Proof #Scaling #LeanManufacturing #SimpleScaling #Purpose #Vision #Leadership #LeanMadeSimple

No decisions in the first hour.

Show me your first hour and I’ll predict your revenue. 

Most SME leaders start their day on the back foot. They wake up, check the phone, answer a few messages, clear a few emails, make a few small calls before the day has even started. By the time they reach their desk, they’ve already made a dozen decisions — but none that move the business forward.

This week on ScaleX Insider, Jim Murphy, creator of Inner Excellence, spoke about something I often discuss with leaders on the ScaleX Accelerator Programme: No decisions in the first hour. That’s the goal. That first hour is the clearest time you’ll get all day. It’s when your thinking is sharpest and your energy is highest. Yet most leaders spend it reacting to other people’s priorities rather than setting their own. 

Protect that hour. Keep it clear. 

Decide where your focus should be before the world decides for you. If your business can’t function without you for an hour, it’s not ready to scale. Win the Morning, Win the Day is the guide I’ve written to help leaders protect that energy and focus. It’s the exact routine I follow, laid out step by step. If you’d like a copy, just drop me a message below with 'Win the Morning'. 

#ScaleXInsider #Leadership #ScalingBusiness #FounderLife #SME

70% of leaders will be unqualified to lead in a few years.

That's not my statistic, but it's why this week's ScaleX Insider episode with Rasmus Hougaard matters.

Rasmus is the founder of Potential Project and author of multiple bestsellers on mindful leadership. In our conversation, we explored why AI doesn't replace human leadership: it amplifies it. And why the leaders who survive won't be the ones with the best prompts, but the ones developing awareness, wisdom, and compassion.

We covered:
→ Why 95% of corporate AI investments are failing
→ How to use AI as a mirror, not just a tool
→ The mindset shift that separates leaders who thrive from those who don't

It's a conversation that came at exactly the right time. Last month, Gareth Workman, Chief AI Officer at Kainos, joined the ScaleX™ Accelerator Programme to share insights on how Kainos, as a +$1bn company are leveraging AI and how we can do the same as SME leaders. This month, Evan Ryan showed our leaders how to use AI as a teammate to support ‘backstage’ systems and processes.

The timing of Rasmus's insights couldn't be better. This is how we continuously adapt our own programme to reflect new trends and tools that genuinely make a difference to those with aspirations to scale with purpose.

Listen to the full episode: Link in the comments.

#ScaleXInsider #Leadership #AI #BusinessGrowth #ScaleWithPurpose

In the past for me, it’s the quarter when everything tightens.

Budgets, targets, deadlines all converging with Christmas parties, family commitments, and the mental load of “finishing strong.”

For most SME leaders, Q4 isn’t calm. It’s chaos.

And yet, this is exactly when the best leaders step back, just long enough, to think ahead. For these leaders, while everyone else is firefighting, they’re mapping out 2026.

They’re asking:
1. Where are we wasting energy?
2. What will we stop, start, and scale?
3. What must change if we’re to summit our next mountain?

The truth is, you can’t summit next year’s peak if you crawl into January exhausted and unclear.

It’s why our ScaleX™ Accelerator exists - a 12-month journey that gives you the structure, community, and momentum to scale with purpose (and without burning out).

So before you collapse into Christmas, take an hour to consider the future you actually want to create and who could help you get there.

ScaleX™ Accelerator 2026. Enrolling now.

#ScaleWithPurpose #BusinessGrowth #SMELeadership #StrategicPlanning #Leadership2026 #BusinessStrategy #ScaleUp #GrowthMindset

When Is Being “Scrappy” the Wrong Move?

I’ve been thinking a lot about dignity in leadership not the philosophical kind, but the everyday, practical kind.

Here’s the pattern I see in SMEs:
When things get tight, leaders call it “being scrappy”… but what they’re actually doing is cutting dignity.

Recycling battered old laptops.
Hiring the cheapest person instead of the right person.
Cutting corners on the things that make people feel valued.

That’s not scrappy. That’s cheap.
Scrappy is creative.
Cheap is corrosive.

Anne Mahlum, founder of [solidcore] said something to me recently that stopped me in my tracks. When she founded a running club for homeless men, she bought them brand-new shoes not donated ones.

Why?
“I didn’t want to reinforce that they deserved less.”
That’s the whole game.
When you show people they’re worthy of excellence, they rise.
When you show them they deserve less, they give you less.
Teams feel it. Clients feel it. Partners feel it.

So ask yourself:
Where are you calling it “scrappy” when it’s actually undermining dignity?
Because the cost of cheap leadership is always higher than you think.

More soon.

#Leadership #Culture

I've waited a couple of years to see where AI lands.

In that time, I've been experimenting with it: in part for inspiration, in part for support, and in part for research. Watching. Testing. Seeing what actually works for leaders who have aspirations to scale.

This week's ScaleX Insider episode with Rasmus Hougaard is the conversation I've been waiting to have.

Rasmus is the founder of Potential Project and author of multiple bestsellers on mindful leadership. What makes this episode different is that Rasmus is genuinely circumspect about AI. He understands its risks. He sees how easily it can be misused.

But instead of running away from it, he ran towards it.

The value of AI doesn't come from what it knows, but from how well it understands you.

Train it to understand your thinking. Challenge it to surface alternative perspectives. Use it to lead with greater awareness, wisdom, and compassion.
Applied this way, AI doesn't diminish our humanity, it amplifies what already exists: our capacity to serve others well.

This is where leadership is evolving. Not toward more data, but toward deeper understanding.

For those interested in my AI leadership framework, comment "AI LEADERSHIP" below and I'll send you a copy.

#ScaleXInsider #Leadership #AI #SelfLeadership #SimpleScaling

"If not you, then who?"

That's what came to mind as Anne Mahlum shared her story on the ScaleX Insider podcast.

In 2007: She saw nine homeless men outside a Philadelphia shelter. No business plan. No funding. Just a decision.

She started a running club. Showed up at 6am three times a week. Bought them new shoes—not used ones. Went back for Joe when he fell behind. That one decision became ‘Back On My Feet’, a national movement that's helped thousands rebuild their lives.

But here's what most people miss: Anne left when it was thriving. Not struggling. Thriving.

Why? "If something doesn't work without you, you've failed as a founder." The more valuable you are to your business, the less valuable the business becomes.

So she started [solidcore] with $175,000. Year one: $1M revenue, $700K profit, 5 studios. Ten years later: 150 locations, $100M exit.

In our conversation, she breaks down: → Why dignity matters more than efficiency (new shoes, not used) → How to build unit economics that scale (10 machines, 9 classes, one coach) → What transparency looks like when everything's falling apart (COVID layoffs) → Why money follows purpose, not the other way around.

Three takeaways that I took from the conversation:
- Do things on your own timeline (Anne is 45 and is expecting her first child)
- Who you tell yourself you are is who you'll become
- You need less money than you think

Scaling with purpose is one courageous action that multiplies.
One person who says, "This matters."
One ripple that turns into many.

#ScaleXInsider #SMELeadership

Jim Murphy on the ScaleX Insider Podcast (Out Today) 

When most SME leaders hear phrases like “Inner Excellence” or “selfless is fearless,” it’s easy to tune out. It sounds abstract. Detached from the day-to-day reality of running a business. The thing is, it isn’t. 

It’s the difference between scaling and stalling. 

This week on the ScaleX Insider Podcast, I sit down with Jim Murphy, creator of Inner Excellence and coach to PGA Tour players, Olympians, and business leaders worldwide. Jim’s message cuts right to the heart of what stops founders and CEOs from growing: we hit the edge of our potential, feel the discomfort and pull back. Not because we lack strategy or skill, but because we fear failure, judgment, and losing control. 

Jim explains how the best performers in sport and business do the opposite: they lean into discomfort, detach from the outcome, and focus on mastering themselves first. If you’ve ever felt that you’re holding the business together by sheer force of will, this conversation will change how you think about leadership, pressure, and growth. 

Listen now: Available on all major podcasting platforms 

#Leadership #InnerExcellence #PerformanceUnderPressure #ScalingBusiness #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #SimpleScaling #SME #Podcast #ScaleWithPurpose

Most SME leaders I meet with are drowning in complexity.

More tools. More tactics. More strategies that promise breakthrough results but deliver overwhelm.

The businesses that scale sustainably do one thing differently: They simplify.
In my latest conversation with Bas Wouters CMCT, CPT, CEC (co-founder of the Cialdini Institute), he said something that speaks to the heart of it:

"When you make things easier, it's easier forever. Motivation fluctuates. Ability compounds."

Every point of friction is a point of failure. In marketing. In operations. In scaling.

Here's what most leaders don't realise: you're overcomplicating parts of your business right now.

You think you need another system. Another hire. Another platform.
But what if the problem isn't what you're missing? What if it's what you haven't removed yet?

Better mindset, better vision, better planning, better systems and ruthless simplification. These are the foundations of successful scaling.

Scaling isn't about adding more. It's about removing what doesn't serve.
That's why we created the ScaleX™ Framework and the 10 Principles of Scaling. To help ambitious SME leaders break through all the noise around scaling.

Complex fails. Simple Scales.

#ScaleXInsider #ScalingStrategy #SimpleScaling #LeadershipDevelopment #ScaleXFramework

"If the business can't run without you it's not a business, it's a hostage situation." Anne Mahlum said this to me on the ScaleX Insider podcast, and I've been thinking about it ever since.

Most SME leaders I work with are trapped in this paradox. They've built something that (they think) can't function without them. They're the bottleneck. The single point of failure. And they wear it like a badge of honour.

"No one can do it like I can." "If I don't do it, it won't get done right." "My clients expect me personally."

Anne understood something most founders don't: If your business doesn't work without you, you haven't built a business. You've built a job. She proved this twice.

First with Back on My Feet. She walked away when it was thriving—not struggling—because she knew if it couldn't work without her, she'd failed as a founder.

Then with [solidcore]. She built systems from day one. One coach per class who had to learn every person's name. No front desk to hide behind. Simple, lean, repeatable.

Within a year: $1M revenue, $700K profit, 5 studios. Ten years later: 150 locations, $100M exit.

The difference? She made herself replaceable from the start.

Here's what that actually looks like: → Build processes, not dependencies → Create a playbook anyone can run → Hire people better than you at specific things → Document everything → Let go of control to gain scale

The holy grail of scaling is predictable, repeatable, sustainable revenue.

You can't have that if you're the only one who knows how to make it work. So ask yourself:
If you disappeared tomorrow, would your business survive? If the answer is no, you're not building a business. You're building a prison.

If this resonates and you want to gain freedom to work on your business not in it we’re currently enrolling for both ScaleX Elevate (our online scaling platform) and ScaleX Accelerator. Apply now.

#Leadership #SMEGrowth

https://lnkd.in/e-Kdj6ex

Open video: Systems aren't sexy...but their impact is. | Principle 5: Process on youtube.com

Systems aren't sexy...but their impact is. | Principle 5: Process

Calling all not-for-profit and social enterprise leaders….a fantastic opportunity to scale your impact 🌎

Over the last few years, we’ve witnessed something pretty powerful. 

When a leader of an organisation with a strong purpose to serve others is given the right tools, guidance and environment to scale up, extraordinary things begin to happen.

Communities change.
Opportunities grow.
Purpose multiplies.

Each year, on our 12- month ScaleX Accelerator Programme, we reserve ONE place for an ambitious leader of a purpose-driven, non-profit organisation.  

From today, we’re inviting expressions of interest for that one place on our 2026 Programme.   

If you’re leading a non-profit or a social enterprise with a bold purpose and you’re ready to scale up your organisation and your impact, we’d LOVE to hear from you! 

A few important details:

🔹 Expressions of interest are open now – please help us by sharing with your networks if you can – and will close on Monday 8th December. 
🔹 There is no cost for this one place — all we ask is for your ambition and your full commitment. 
🔹 In person Workshops will take place in Northern Ireland.
🔹 The successful applicant will be notified before Christmas.

If you believe your organisation can really make a difference, we could be the difference!

To apply, simply click on the link below today:. 

https://lnkd.in/epYrYXqU

You're not losing potential customers because your product isn't good enough.

You're losing them because your marketing speaks to the wrong part of their brain.

My latest ScaleX Insider guest, Bas Wouters CMCT, CPT, CEC, scaled a kitchen business to €25 million by understanding one truth: 95% of buying decisions happen in the subconscious, yet most businesses only speak to the rational 5%.

Bas is co-founder of the Cialdini Institute and one of only 12 people worldwide certified to teach Dr. Robert Cialdini's influence principles.
In this conversation, we break down:

- The three-part formula that increased conversions 300% by changing one word.
- Why asking for an email address kills reciprocity (and what to do instead).
- How removing options increased leads 2000% for SEAT Automobiles.
- The "Jenga Principle"—every word you remove saves 15 seconds and compounds results.
- Why B2B buyers use the same subconscious shortcuts as B2C consumers.

Here's what matters for SME leaders:
- You don't need a bigger budget. You need to speak to System 1 thinking.
- You don't need more calls to action. You need one clear prompt per page.

The attached clip shows why making things easier beats motivation every time.

Watch the full episode. Available on all major podcasting platforms.

#ScaleXInsider #BehaviouralPsychology #SMELeadership  #MarketingPsychology #SimpleScaling

taplio

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