Episode #555 - What if your business could scale globally with just 25 people — and no external funding? - with Lilia Stoyanov
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Lilia Stoyanov, the CEO and cofounder of TFY (Transformify Ltd), a bootstrapped, AI-powered global workforce management platform. TFY enables businesses to hire, onboard and pay contractors in 184+ countries – all from one platform. And it’s not just another HR tool — it’s a human-centred, AI-powered engine that automates compliance and payments, so finance and HR teams can focus on strategic growth. In this episode, we cover: How TFY achieved 90% profit growth in 2024 with zero external investment The three-phase scaling strategy that...
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Episode #554 - From Neurosurgeon to $200M Founder
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio Shorts, Kevin Brent and Granger Forson unpack the remarkable ScaleUp journey of Dr. Mark Kotter, a neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and founder of Bit Bio, a deep-tech biotech company that’s raised over $200 million and scaled to 200+ people. It’s a story that starts with clinical frustration and leads to a cutting-edge company using AI to literally reprogram cells. But beyond the science lies a business story that any entrepreneur can learn from, full of lessons on leadership, values, team alignment, and the bumpy road of scale. 💡 Episode...
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Episode #553 - Flipping The Traditional Agency Model On It’s Head - with Virtyt Pula
ScaleUp Radio
In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Virtyt Pula, the founder of TOML, a talent-first creative agency that’s reimagining how creative work gets done. Instead of a traditional in-house model, TOML operates as a global creative collective, blending a tight-knit core team with a flexible international network of creative specialists. Founded in 2015, TOML was built to challenge agency norms, and when the pandemic hit, its remote-first model went from being questioned by clients to becoming its biggest asset. We cover three key areas in this conversation: The Business, how TOML...
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Episode #552 - ScaleUp Club Special: Scaling Deep Tech - with Mark Kotter
ScaleUp Radio
In this exclusive ScaleUp Club session, Kevin Brent sits down with Dr Mark Kotter, the visionary neurosurgeon and founder of Bit Bio, a revolutionary deep tech company transforming how we produce human cells at scale. Bit Bio has raised over £250 million, and what started as academic frustration with the limits of regenerative medicine has become a game-changing platform for industrial-scale cell production. But it hasn’t been an easy ride. From a near-collapse caused by co-founder misalignment to pioneering an intensive, values-driven hiring process, Mark shares a raw and honest look at...
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Episode #551 - ScaleUp Radio Shorts: The Engineer and The Artist – Balancing Structure with Spirit in Scale-Ups
ScaleUp Radio
This week on ScaleUp Radio Shorts, Kevin and Granger reflect on two standout interviews that bring together the worlds of engineering precision and artistic expression in leadership. On one side, we have Jono Taylor, a grounded product design engineer scaling his service-based business with a flexible freelance model. On the other, Nigel Hughes, a ballet-trained serial entrepreneur helping leaders inspire from within. Despite their wildly different backgrounds, both guests shared strikingly similar insights around resilience, team dynamics, and the importance of values in scaling. 💡 In this...
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Episode #550 - From Performer to Purpose-Driven Leader: Vision, Inspiration & Personal Discovery - with Nigel Hughes
ScaleUp Radio
Hi there and welcome back to another edition of ScaleUp Radio, the podcast brought to you by Smart90, inspired by the Entrepreneurial ScaleUp System and designed to make navigating our ScaleUp journeys that little bit easier by learning from others' experiences. I’m Kevin Brent, and in today’s episode I’m joined by Nigel Hughes, a former professional performer turned leadership advisor and founder of Outstanding Global. Nigel’s journey is anything but ordinary. At just 13 years old, he chose ballet over the Marines — a decision that marked the beginning of a 20-year career on stage...
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Episode #549 - Designing Products That Change Lives, Innovation, Resilience and Radical Teamwork - with Jono Taylor
ScaleUp Radio
Hi, I’m Granger Forson find me at or connect on and in this episode of ScaleUp Radio we dive deep into the world of product design engineering with Jono Taylor, founder of Relay Industries. Jono has spent ten years building a business that brings breakthrough physical products to life, helping solve real-world problems in medical, industrial, scientific and connected technology sectors. From life-saving blood pumps and IoT telematics hardware to quantum physics instrumentation, Relay Industries stands out by combining creativity with deep manufacturing...
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Episode #548 - You Can't Scale Chaos
ScaleUp Radio
In this punchy ScaleUp Radio Shorts episode, Kevin Brent and Granger Forson take a deep dive into two recent ScaleUp Radio conversations, one with Hamish Yates, founder of Neptune Infrastructure Associates, and the other with Steve Johnson, MD of Scaling Sales. At first glance, managing offshore wind farms and building a sales team might seem worlds apart. But when it comes to scaling, the core principles of focus, systems, and people are universal. 🎯 Key Themes Explored: Niche Down, Scale Up Both Hamish and Steve highlight the importance of narrowing your focus to accelerate growth....
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Episode #547 - Scaling Sales: The Right Way, At The Right Time - with Steve Johnson
ScaleUp Radio
Hi there and welcome back to another edition of ScaleUp Radio, the podcast brought to you by Smart90, inspired by the Entrepreneurial ScaleUp System and designed to make navigating our ScaleUp journeys that little bit easier by learning from others' experiences. I’m Kevin Brent and in today's episode I’m joined by Steve Johnson. Steve’s a founder who’s been in the trenches, he grew his SaaS business from £750k to over £5 million ARR in just three years. In this conversation, we break down his proven 3-stage framework for scaling sales the right way, starting with the founder doing...
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Episode #546 - From Wind Farms to Wisdom: How Neptune Infrastructure Powers Renewable Success - with Hamish Yates
ScaleUp Radio
Hi, I’m Granger Forson, and you can find me at or on . In this episode of ScaleUp Radio, I’m joined by Hamish Yates, founder and CEO of Neptune Infrastructure Associates, a fast-growing advisory firm dedicated to helping asset managers optimise the performance of renewable energy projects across Europe. With experience advising on over £2 billion of projects powering more than two million homes, Hamish brings a rare blend of engineering rigour and entrepreneurial purpose to the clean energy space. We explore how Neptune was built on a...
info_outlineIn this episode of ScaleUp Radio Shorts, Kevin Brent and Granger Forson unpack the remarkable ScaleUp journey of Dr. Mark Kotter, a neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and founder of Bit Bio, a deep-tech biotech company that’s raised over $200 million and scaled to 200+ people.
It’s a story that starts with clinical frustration and leads to a cutting-edge company using AI to literally reprogram cells.
But beyond the science lies a business story that any entrepreneur can learn from, full of lessons on leadership, values, team alignment, and the bumpy road of scale.
💡 Episode Highlights
- From Surgeon to ScaleUp CEO: Mark didn’t set out to start a company, he was driven by necessity. After realising he couldn’t cure spinal damage with surgery alone, he went searching for answers in research, ultimately spinning out Bit Bio after university support fell short.
- A Painful Co-Founder Conflict: Mark’s first attempt at scaling ended in near disaster. Misalignment in values and vision led to a business breakup that forced him to remortgage his house to buy back control.
- Hiring with Intention: After that, Mark built a recruitment process focused on alignment and values, Purposeful, Ambitious, Trustworthy, Empirical, with a “Secret Vote” used to prevent bias and protect culture.
- Recognising the Breaking Points: Mark shares how communication changes at 20, 50, and 100 people, and how he had the humility to step aside and hire experienced operators to build structure when it was time.
- Living Drugs & AI: Bit Bio is on the frontier of medicine, moving from traditional "dead molecules" to "living drugs". They use AI and machine learning to crack complex genetic programming challenges that could change the future of healthcare.
🚀 The One Key Thing
“Don’t assume alignment, be explicit about your values from day one.”
💬 Standout Quote
“I thought curing disease would be enough to align people, but it wasn’t. You have to say the hard stuff upfront.” – Mark Kotter
💡 Smart90 Lite – Try It Free
Quick heads-up , we’re looking for a handful of founders to test our new AI-powered Smart90 Lite app. It’s built to help you stay accountable and actually deliver on your goals , in just a few minutes a day. It’s free while we’re in testing, and your feedback will directly shape the final version.
👉 Email kevin@biz-smart.co.uk to get access.
🎧 Listen & Subscribe
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And if you know a founder with an inspiring story, check the show notes to nominate them!