We speak with Founders and Funders around the world, the people who are building businesses and the people that are backing them. Bringing you insights on how to build, adapt and win in a world that never stops changing.

]]>www.thefutureseries.coRiverside.fm (https://riverside.com)Mon, 02 Nov 2026 14:31:09 GMTFri, 10 Apr 2026 02:33:01 GMT60Anthony Dann<p>We speak with Founders and Funders around the world, the people who are building businesses and the people that are backing them. Bringing you insights on how to build, adapt and win in a world that never stops changing.</p>episodicAnthony Dannanthony@breladegroup.comnoToday we talk with Diogo about his journey from teenage surf instructor to co-founding and leading Hands On, Portugal's pioneer marketplace connecting people with local experts for in-person learning experiences, from surfing and ceramics to cooking. We cover how a path through surf camps in Norway and Sri Lanka and yacht work in Mallorca led him into a vacation rental company, where he helped merge four companies across Portugal, Scotland, Italy and England onto one system, and how he built a no-code marketplace prototype with a spreadsheet to convince his co-founder. We also dig into the year he built Hands On on the side before agreeing a one-year exit from his job, launching at a Christmas market in Lisbon, going from 60 euros in sales in January to around 10,000 euros in December once gift cards launched, and the brutal lessons of building a team. Diogo also shares what it was like to raise his first funding round as a first-time founder, why distribution is the focus for the year ahead, including gift cards, expansion into Spain and partnerships with travel companies, and why he believes that if you have purpose, the skills will come later.

]]>3e714d9d-f5f5-4d40-a06a-d8deaa5abcfbMon, 02 Nov 2026 04:12:15 GMT<p>Today we talk with Diogo about his journey from teenage surf instructor to co-founding and leading Hands On, Portugal's pioneer marketplace connecting people with local experts for in-person learning experiences, from surfing and ceramics to cooking. We cover how a path through surf camps in Norway and Sri Lanka and yacht work in Mallorca led him into a vacation rental company, where he helped merge four companies across Portugal, Scotland, Italy and England onto one system, and how he built a no-code marketplace prototype with a spreadsheet to convince his co-founder. We also dig into the year he built Hands On on the side before agreeing a one-year exit from his job, launching at a Christmas market in Lisbon, going from 60 euros in sales in January to around 10,000 euros in December once gift cards launched, and the brutal lessons of building a team. Diogo also shares what it was like to raise his first funding round as a first-time founder, why distribution is the focus for the year ahead, including gift cards, expansion into Spain and partnerships with travel companies, and why he believes that if you have purpose, the skills will come later.</p>no00:41:1131Building Portugal's Real-World Learning Community – Diogo Infante, Hands OnfullToday we talk with Diego about his journey from AI engineer and data scientist to co-founding Anyformat, a horizontal document processing platform helping enterprises like L’Oreal and Iberia reliably extract data from complex PDFs to feed their AI agents. We cover how seven years as the first employee at a $600M Spanish scaleup gave him the entrepreneurial foundations to go out on his own, how he built the initial prototype over weekends in his spare bedroom before raising a pre-seed in just two weeks, and the wild story of spending four months working inside a Singapore prison to deploy their air-gapped solution for the government. We also dig into why selling to enterprises is really about selling trust, how his background in MMA has given him the discipline and resilience to keep going through the toughest moments of the founder journey, and why he believes the next big opportunity is building products that agents love rather than just people.

]]>83346948-eb5d-4c0b-9ccb-f6f9cf842505Mon, 26 Oct 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Diego about his journey from AI engineer and data scientist to co-founding Anyformat, a horizontal document processing platform helping enterprises like L’Oreal and Iberia reliably extract data from complex PDFs to feed their AI agents. We cover how seven years as the first employee at a $600M Spanish scaleup gave him the entrepreneurial foundations to go out on his own, how he built the initial prototype over weekends in his spare bedroom before raising a pre-seed in just two weeks, and the wild story of spending four months working inside a Singapore prison to deploy their air-gapped solution for the government. We also dig into why selling to enterprises is really about selling trust, how his background in MMA has given him the discipline and resilience to keep going through the toughest moments of the founder journey, and why he believes the next big opportunity is building products that agents love rather than just people.</p>no00:36:2830MMA Fighter Who Raised $4M to Build a Document AI Platform - Diego Perez, AnyformatfullToday we talk with Vaneesa about her journey from NYU law graduate and venture capital lawyer to co-founding Perry AI, the AI legal operating system built specifically for venture funds, private equity funds and credit funds. We cover how years of working inside the private capital ecosystem as a lawyer revealed a problem nobody had properly solved, why she and her co-founder spent months validating the idea with 25 funds before writing a single line of code, and what it was like to flip from advising founders on fundraising to becoming a founder raising capital herself. We also dig into how Perry AI is already being used across the UK, US, Germany and India, why being deeply vertical in a noisy legal AI market is their biggest competitive advantage, and why Vaneesa believes the best signal of product market fit is not when someone tells you the idea is good but when they actually pay for it.

]]>21d6d40f-e8e1-486f-b5db-21e51b156dd4Mon, 19 Oct 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Vaneesa about her journey from NYU law graduate and venture capital lawyer to co-founding Perry AI, the AI legal operating system built specifically for venture funds, private equity funds and credit funds. We cover how years of working inside the private capital ecosystem as a lawyer revealed a problem nobody had properly solved, why she and her co-founder spent months validating the idea with 25 funds before writing a single line of code, and what it was like to flip from advising founders on fundraising to becoming a founder raising capital herself. We also dig into how Perry AI is already being used across the UK, US, Germany and India, why being deeply vertical in a noisy legal AI market is their biggest competitive advantage, and why Vaneesa believes the best signal of product market fit is not when someone tells you the idea is good but when they actually pay for it.</p>no00:30:5229The Legal AI Platform Every Venture Fund Has Been Waiting For - Vaneesa Agrawal, Perry AIfullToday we talk with Jody about his journey from falling into recruitment twenty years ago to co-founding Atara Partners, an exec search firm placing senior leaders into founder led and VC backed businesses. We cover what it was really like to launch a business during Covid with no Wi-Fi and win a NYSE listed client on day four, how staying lean while others scaled aggressively turned out to be the decision that kept the lights on when the VC funding boom came crashing down, and why building a community of five hundred founders has become the most powerful thing Atara has ever done. We also dig into the Founders Circle events series, why twenty percent of their business now flows directly from community, and what Jody has learned from working alongside some of the most ambitious founders in the UK about what it really takes to build something that lasts.

]]>5583f51d-ed6d-4ae7-a7bc-05b815db388bMon, 28 Sep 2026 05:16:10 GMT<p>Today we talk with Jody about his journey from falling into recruitment twenty years ago to co-founding Atara Partners, an exec search firm placing senior leaders into founder led and VC backed businesses. We cover what it was really like to launch a business during Covid with no Wi-Fi and win a NYSE listed client on day four, how staying lean while others scaled aggressively turned out to be the decision that kept the lights on when the VC funding boom came crashing down, and why building a community of five hundred founders has become the most powerful thing Atara has ever done. We also dig into the Founders Circle events series, why twenty percent of their business now flows directly from community, and what Jody has learned from working alongside some of the most ambitious founders in the UK about what it really takes to build something that lasts.</p>no00:34:2628Exec Search Entrepreneur & Community Builder - Jody Saunders, Atara PartnersfullToday we talk with Christian about his journey from auditor at PwC to serial entrepreneur and co-founder of CYKOM, a two sided platform building the infrastructure for social sports communities and the brands that want to connect with them in real life. We cover how a career spanning accounting, M&A and helping over 40 startups raise funding gave him the perfect foundation to build his own company, the wild story of how he and his co-founder borrowed against their apartments to buy the entire stock of a bankrupt cycling company just to secure the brand name, and what those first twelve months of selling bikes out of an old grocery store while simultaneously building a tech startup really looked like. We also dig into why the trend of run clubs, social rides and real life community is accelerating in a world drowning in digital noise, how CYKOM is already expanding from Copenhagen into Germany and the Nordics, and why Christian believes the best thing his app can do is get people to spend as little time in it as possible.

]]>a9884f67-e146-4761-8aac-ab942b022e03Mon, 21 Sep 2026 07:14:48 GMT<p>Today we talk with Christian about his journey from auditor at PwC to serial entrepreneur and co-founder of CYKOM, a two sided platform building the infrastructure for social sports communities and the brands that want to connect with them in real life. We cover how a career spanning accounting, M&amp;A and helping over 40 startups raise funding gave him the perfect foundation to build his own company, the wild story of how he and his co-founder borrowed against their apartments to buy the entire stock of a bankrupt cycling company just to secure the brand name, and what those first twelve months of selling bikes out of an old grocery store while simultaneously building a tech startup really looked like. We also dig into why the trend of run clubs, social rides and real life community is accelerating in a world drowning in digital noise, how CYKOM is already expanding from Copenhagen into Germany and the Nordics, and why Christian believes the best thing his app can do is get people to spend as little time in it as possible.</p>no00:39:5327Copenhagen Founder Powering the Global Run Club Revolution - Christian Dideriksen, CYKOM.appfullToday we talk with Bernhard about his journey from extreme sports athlete and decade long career quantifying physical risks at one of the world's leading reinsurance firms to founding ScyAI, an AI lab building the intelligence layer for corporate insurance and risk management. We cover how a frustration with risk reports that never translated into real action sparked the idea for ScyAI, how he bootstrapped and built a fully AI enabled team that operates with the horsepower of a company five times its size, and what it took to close an oversubscribed €2M seed round backed by unicorn founders and top tier institutional VCs. We also dig into why founder market fit matters more than ever in the age of AI, why specialising in a vertical where you have a genuine right to win is the only strategy that makes sense right now, and why Bernhard believes the best companies of the future will be built in small high powered pods rather than scaling headcount the traditional way.

]]>d3301f1d-3ebe-4470-b5b2-42842246a5a0Mon, 14 Sep 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Bernhard about his journey from extreme sports athlete and decade long career quantifying physical risks at one of the world's leading reinsurance firms to founding ScyAI, an AI lab building the intelligence layer for corporate insurance and risk management. We cover how a frustration with risk reports that never translated into real action sparked the idea for ScyAI, how he bootstrapped and built a fully AI enabled team that operates with the horsepower of a company five times its size, and what it took to close an oversubscribed €2M seed round backed by unicorn founders and top tier institutional VCs. We also dig into why founder market fit matters more than ever in the age of AI, why specialising in a vertical where you have a genuine right to win is the only strategy that makes sense right now, and why Bernhard believes the best companies of the future will be built in small high powered pods rather than scaling headcount the traditional way.</p>no00:37:1726Pioneering AI Risk Management for the World's Critical Industries - Bernhard Rannegger, ScyAIfullToday we talk with Stefan and John about their journey from education industry veterans to co-founding AskEd, a voice AI platform building multilingual student recruitment agents that can live on a university website, be called on the phone or reached via WhatsApp in up to 80 languages. We cover how Stefan's redundancy sparked a weekend experiment with ElevenLabs that turned into a live prototype tested on the streets outside Middlesex University, how the pair went from a coffee in Farringdon to incorporating a company, securing £100k in angel investment and launching a full product in under six months, and why 60% of student leads coming in after 5pm represents a massive untapped opportunity for education institutions around the world. We also dig into what those first three months of building really looked like, why their combined 35 years of education experience gives them a genuine edge in a fragmented global market, and why they believe voice AI is about to become the new front door for every university, language school and education provider on the planet.

]]>9d148549-18c5-41d0-9158-f4a8d5227d18Mon, 07 Sep 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Stefan and John about their journey from education industry veterans to co-founding AskEd, a voice AI platform building multilingual student recruitment agents that can live on a university website, be called on the phone or reached via WhatsApp in up to 80 languages. We cover how Stefan's redundancy sparked a weekend experiment with ElevenLabs that turned into a live prototype tested on the streets outside Middlesex University, how the pair went from a coffee in Farringdon to incorporating a company, securing £100k in angel investment and launching a full product in under six months, and why 60% of student leads coming in after 5pm represents a massive untapped opportunity for education institutions around the world. We also dig into what those first three months of building really looked like, why their combined 35 years of education experience gives them a genuine edge in a fragmented global market, and why they believe voice AI is about to become the new front door for every university, language school and education provider on the planet.</p>no00:47:4325Two Founders Building the Future of Voice AI for Education Institutions - Stefan & John, AskEdfullToday we talk with Jitka about her journey from marketing strategist and serial consultant to founding Eterny, a company building an intelligence layer for financial institutions that turns mountains of dormant data into proactive insights for financial advisors. We cover how a deeply personal loss in 2019 revealed just how fragmented and inaccessible financial data becomes at the worst possible moment, how she flew to the US to validate her idea by talking to everyone from consumers on the street to the Department of Military Affairs, and what it really felt like to go from working for founders to being one herself. We also dig into the pivot from a B2C consumer app with seventeen thousand users to a B2B intelligence platform, why she believes the US is the right market to build in first, and why her biggest lesson has been learning to stay concise when you are deeply in love with the problem you are solving.

]]>d81106f0-844f-4975-afde-4a08c3396394Mon, 31 Aug 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Jitka about her journey from marketing strategist and serial consultant to founding Eterny, a company building an intelligence layer for financial institutions that turns mountains of dormant data into proactive insights for financial advisors. We cover how a deeply personal loss in 2019 revealed just how fragmented and inaccessible financial data becomes at the worst possible moment, how she flew to the US to validate her idea by talking to everyone from consumers on the street to the Department of Military Affairs, and what it really felt like to go from working for founders to being one herself. We also dig into the pivot from a B2C consumer app with seventeen thousand users to a B2B intelligence platform, why she believes the US is the right market to build in first, and why her biggest lesson has been learning to stay concise when you are deeply in love with the problem you are solving.</p>no00:39:4424The Founder Turning Financial Data Into An Active Intelligence Engine - Jitka Paterova, EternyfullToday we talk with Daniel about his journey from management consultant to co-founding ShipShape VC — a free investment search engine that has helped over seven and a half thousand companies identify the right investors for their raise, with those companies going on to raise a combined £2.1 billion and counting. We cover how a frustrating experience trying to find specialist investors for a fintech series A sparked the idea, why the investment market was fundamentally broken for founders who couldn't afford expensive platforms, and what those first two and a half years of building in a pre-LLM world really looked like. We also dig into why finding investors who truly understand your niche can dramatically change your valuation, why Daniel believes the US is the best place to start a company today, and how ShipShape is now setting its sights on making private equity markets more accessible for everyone.

]]>2e21935e-3822-4b07-9870-4ada94fae289Mon, 24 Aug 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Daniel about his journey from management consultant to co-founding ShipShape VC — a free investment search engine that has helped over seven and a half thousand companies identify the right investors for their raise, with those companies going on to raise a combined £2.1 billion and counting. We cover how a frustrating experience trying to find specialist investors for a fintech series A sparked the idea, why the investment market was fundamentally broken for founders who couldn't afford expensive platforms, and what those first two and a half years of building in a pre-LLM world really looked like. We also dig into why finding investors who truly understand your niche can dramatically change your valuation, why Daniel believes the US is the best place to start a company today, and how ShipShape is now setting its sights on making private equity markets more accessible for everyone.</p>no00:44:4423The VC Search Engine Helping Founders Raise £2.1Bn and Counting, Daniel Sawko, ShipShape.vcfullToday we talk with Elias about his journey from digital transformation consultant to co-founding Fibionic alongside two childhood friends from the same village in Tyrol, Austria. We cover how the team developed a nature-inspired manufacturing process that places carbon and glass fibres exactly where they are needed - just like the wing of a dragonfly - cutting weight, improving performance and making lightweight composites viable for mass production for the first time. We also dig into what it took to close a €3M seed round that was massively oversubscribed, how signing their first real customer in Selle Italia proved the technology worked in the real world, and why Elias believes the biggest lesson for any hardware founder is to fall in love with the problem, not just the solution.

]]>49b1a6cf-63a2-463f-add0-47f197cfe566Mon, 17 Aug 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Elias about his journey from digital transformation consultant to co-founding Fibionic alongside two childhood friends from the same village in Tyrol, Austria. We cover how the team developed a nature-inspired manufacturing process that places carbon and glass fibres exactly where they are needed - just like the wing of a dragonfly - cutting weight, improving performance and making lightweight composites viable for mass production for the first time. We also dig into what it took to close a €3M seed round that was massively oversubscribed, how signing their first real customer in Selle Italia proved the technology worked in the real world, and why Elias believes the biggest lesson for any hardware founder is to fall in love with the problem, not just the solution.</p>no00:39:3622Austrian Startup Redefining Global Lightweight Manufacturing - Elias Hirschbichler, FibionicfullToday we talk with Nacho about his journey from VC investing in Argentina to consulting at Bain, working at Latin America's biggest crypto exchange Bitso, and ultimately founding Rexi - an AI powered platform replacing the spreadsheets and manual processes that financial institutions still use to reconcile billions of dollars in transactions every day. We cover how watching a $160M mismatch emerge from the collapse of Synapse became the moment that everything clicked, what it was really like to pitch 70 funds and receive 70 rejections before finding a way through, and why he believes picking the boring problem nobody else wants to solve is actually the greatest competitive advantage a founder can have. We also dig into how Rexi is already live with enterprise banks less than a year after their pre-seed round and why the team is betting on Latin American talent to build a global finance operations powerhouse.

]]>37817536-d165-4ab9-9084-c92810345abbMon, 10 Aug 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Nacho about his journey from VC investing in Argentina to consulting at Bain, working at Latin America's biggest crypto exchange Bitso, and ultimately founding Rexi - an AI powered platform replacing the spreadsheets and manual processes that financial institutions still use to reconcile billions of dollars in transactions every day. We cover how watching a $160M mismatch emerge from the collapse of Synapse became the moment that everything clicked, what it was really like to pitch 70 funds and receive 70 rejections before finding a way through, and why he believes picking the boring problem nobody else wants to solve is actually the greatest competitive advantage a founder can have. We also dig into how Rexi is already live with enterprise banks less than a year after their pre-seed round and why the team is betting on Latin American talent to build a global finance operations powerhouse.</p>no00:39:35How a $160M Banking Mismatch Sparked the Idea for Rexi, Ignacio Berardi, RexifullToday we talk with Dhruv about his remarkable journey from coding his first website at the age of eleven in India to building H+ Technology, a holographics company that reached an $85M valuation before being sold in 2017. We cover what it really takes to build and exit a deep tech business, the founders burnout that led to three anxiety attacks in 2015, and how ancient Indian breathwork techniques helped him recover without a single medication. We also dig into why that personal experience became the foundation for Prana Labs, the world's first health intelligence platform combining biometric data, calendar insights and scientifically grounded breathwork to help people manage stress, sleep better and perform at their best.

Download the Vayu App now - https://vayu-prana.com/download

]]>397ea184-2e01-46d2-a6a0-e86b16a6adafMon, 03 Aug 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Dhruv about his remarkable journey from coding his first website at the age of eleven in India to building H+ Technology, a holographics company that reached an $85M valuation before being sold in 2017. We cover what it really takes to build and exit a deep tech business, the founders burnout that led to three anxiety attacks in 2015, and how ancient Indian breathwork techniques helped him recover without a single medication. We also dig into why that personal experience became the foundation for Prana Labs, the world's first health intelligence platform combining biometric data, calendar insights and scientifically grounded breathwork to help people manage stress, sleep better and perform at their best.<br /><br />Download the Vayu App now - <a href="https://vayu-prana.com/download" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">https://vayu-prana.com/download</a></p>no00:43:3920Serial Founder Built an $85M Company Now on a Mission in Health Tech - Dhruv Adhia, Prana LabsfullToday we talk with Arthur about his journey from game developer at Ubisoft and Sega to founding Gamevestor, the world's first and only crowd investing platform exclusively for video games. We cover how the post-COVID funding drought left talented game studios with nowhere to turn, why the frustration of being unable to raise funds for his own game became the spark that created an entirely new asset class for everyday investors, and what it really took to get a financial platform regulated in France, one of the toughest regulatory environments in the world. We also dig into the pivot Gamevestor made after launch, why converting passionate gamers into investors was harder than expected, and why Arthur believes the future of the gaming industry lies with the medium sized studios making the next generation of hit games.

]]>ea487cd3-31d8-447a-89fe-813c52b88893Mon, 27 Jul 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Arthur about his journey from game developer at Ubisoft and Sega to founding Gamevestor, the world's first and only crowd investing platform exclusively for video games. We cover how the post-COVID funding drought left talented game studios with nowhere to turn, why the frustration of being unable to raise funds for his own game became the spark that created an entirely new asset class for everyday investors, and what it really took to get a financial platform regulated in France, one of the toughest regulatory environments in the world. We also dig into the pivot Gamevestor made after launch, why converting passionate gamers into investors was harder than expected, and why Arthur believes the future of the gaming industry lies with the medium sized studios making the next generation of hit games.</p>no00:43:0919Global Investment Platform Funding the Future of Gaming - Arthur Van Clap Ceulen, GamevestorfullToday we talk with Christina about her journey from physicist at the University of Colorado to founding Invisix, a deep tech company partnering with ASML with €20 million in seed funding. We cover how her PhD research into short wavelength light sources became the foundation of an entirely new category of chip measuring technology, what it took to convince one of the world's most advanced technology companies to license the technology and let her take it to market, and how the explosion of AI created the perfect moment to bring Invisix to life. We also dig into what it really feels like to go from scientist to CEO, why naive optimism is one of the most important traits a founder can have, and why she believes entrepreneurship is less of a choice and more of an exciting illness that lives inside you.

]]>8a194aae-dee6-4cb0-bfee-576e2b6addd3Mon, 20 Jul 2026 03:32:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Christina about her journey from physicist at the University of Colorado to founding Invisix, a deep tech company partnering with ASML with €20 million in seed funding. We cover how her PhD research into short wavelength light sources became the foundation of an entirely new category of chip measuring technology, what it took to convince one of the world's most advanced technology companies to license the technology and let her take it to market, and how the explosion of AI created the perfect moment to bring Invisix to life. We also dig into what it really feels like to go from scientist to CEO, why naive optimism is one of the most important traits a founder can have, and why she believes entrepreneurship is less of a choice and more of an exciting illness that lives inside you.</p>no00:25:2618Scientist who Raised €20m to Measure the Future - Christina Porter, InvisixfullToday we talk with Sarah about her journey from KPMG consultant in Germany to co-founding Scaliify in Dubai - a business helping SMEs with digital transformation, HR strategy and software implementation. We cover what made her walk away from a clear path to partnership, how a holiday in Dubai changed everything, and what those first twelve months of running a business with her partner were really like. We also dig into why she believes most companies are not ready for AI until they get the basics right, why HR should be at the centre of every AI transformation conversation, and why the managers of today may be the last generation to lead a purely human workforce.

]]>36249dac-4f98-41be-9e6b-9dfd7830d63cMon, 13 Jul 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Sarah about her journey from KPMG consultant in Germany to co-founding Scaliify in Dubai - a business helping SMEs with digital transformation, HR strategy and software implementation. We cover what made her walk away from a clear path to partnership, how a holiday in Dubai changed everything, and what those first twelve months of running a business with her partner were really like. We also dig into why she believes most companies are not ready for AI until they get the basics right, why HR should be at the centre of every AI transformation conversation, and why the managers of today may be the last generation to lead a purely human workforce.</p>no00:27:5517Leaving the Corporate Ladder to Build the Future of HR - Sarah Mittiga, ScaliifyfullToday we talk with Alison about her remarkable four decade career in recruitment, starting at what became Hays in 1985 and rising to run her own office at 21 and her own company at 22. We cover what it was like to be part of Hays from the very beginning, the lessons she took from working across every model in recruitment from contingency to statement of works and master service providers, and what it really takes to build a recruitment business worth selling versus just being a great recruiter. We also dig into where she sees the biggest opportunities in the market today, why she believes the CRM is the most underused asset in most recruitment businesses, and how agentic AI is finally starting to deliver real return on investment for those willing to embrace it.

]]>36ec6750-7911-4109-bf03-0a779f5f691eMon, 06 Jul 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Alison about her remarkable four decade career in recruitment, starting at what became Hays in 1985 and rising to run her own office at 21 and her own company at 22. We cover what it was like to be part of Hays from the very beginning, the lessons she took from working across every model in recruitment from contingency to statement of works and master service providers, and what it really takes to build a recruitment business worth selling versus just being a great recruiter. We also dig into where she sees the biggest opportunities in the market today, why she believes the CRM is the most underused asset in most recruitment businesses, and how agentic AI is finally starting to deliver real return on investment for those willing to embrace it.</p>no00:34:2516Building, Scaling and Selling in Recruitment - Alison Humphries, Recruitment LeadershipfullToday we talk with Gerard about his journey from chartered accountant in Melbourne to building two businesses that are changing the way companies think about global talent. We cover how a chance meeting with Zondwa Mandela, grandson of Nelson Mandela, completely shifted his perspective and led to the creation of Talent Match Africa, why he believes Africa is the most overlooked talent market in the world right now, and how smart people on the ground in South Africa and Kenya are using tools like Claude to deliver work that rivals anything produced in the UK, US or Australia. We also dig into why he thinks the barrier to starting a business has never been lower, how AI is creating entirely new job categories while disrupting others, and why anyone sitting on a business idea in 2026 has absolutely no excuse not to give it a crack.

]]>e4a52987-1c18-4334-93e8-0773e38238c2Mon, 29 Jun 2026 08:00:00 GMT<p>Today we talk with Gerard about his journey from chartered accountant in Melbourne to building two businesses that are changing the way companies think about global talent. We cover how a chance meeting with Zondwa Mandela, grandson of Nelson Mandela, completely shifted his perspective and led to the creation of Talent Match Africa, why he believes Africa is the most overlooked talent market in the world right now, and how smart people on the ground in South Africa and Kenya are using tools like Claude to deliver work that rivals anything produced in the UK, US or Australia. We also dig into why he thinks the barrier to starting a business has never been lower, how AI is creating entirely new job categories while disrupting others, and why anyone sitting on a business idea in 2026 has absolutely no excuse not to give it a crack.</p>no00:27:0415Why Africa is the Next Frontier for Global Talent - Gerard Holland, Talent Match AfricafullToday we talk with Anne about her journey from getting kicked out of high school in St. Louis to building Tryp Studios, a global network of over a hundred vetted senior specialists available to businesses on a fractional basis. We cover how a career spanning New York fashion, London interiors and editorial partnerships shaped her instinct for spotting talent and building relationships, why she jumped in with both feet and had to figure it out as she went, and how the idea of simply finding her friends good work became the foundation of an entire business model. We also dig into why she believes everyone is becoming a solopreneur whether they like it or not, how AI is reshaping marketing and PR for her clients, and why the human connection at the heart of Tryp is something she refuses to automate away.

]]>934b4034-35c6-4995-b2c2-b46ae7b2fc5bTue, 23 Jun 2026 08:05:45 GMT<p>Today we talk with Anne about her journey from getting kicked out of high school in St. Louis to building Tryp Studios, a global network of over a hundred vetted senior specialists available to businesses on a fractional basis. We cover how a career spanning New York fashion, London interiors and editorial partnerships shaped her instinct for spotting talent and building relationships, why she jumped in with both feet and had to figure it out as she went, and how the idea of simply finding her friends good work became the foundation of an entire business model. We also dig into why she believes everyone is becoming a solopreneur whether they like it or not, how AI is reshaping marketing and PR for her clients, and why the human connection at the heart of Tryp is something she refuses to automate away.</p>no00:36:5514The Art of Turning Your Network into a Business - Anne Leathers, Tryp StudiosfullToday we talk with Jonny Staker about his journey from leaving school at 15 to building, selling and now acquiring companies of his own. We cover how a failed attempt at pulling pints became the catalyst for a lifetime of entrepreneurship, what it really feels like to sell a business to a private equity firm after 14 hours of negotiations, and why he believes naivety is one of the most powerful assets an early founder can have. We also dig into the thinking behind his best-selling book The Frame, why controlling the conversation is the most underrated skill in business, and how Vanquish is now focused on helping expertise-led firms grow and scale in a world where AI is rapidly commoditising everything else.

]]>0cd2bb86-17f0-471b-91ea-3eb4439c0609Mon, 15 Jun 2026 05:32:09 GMT<p>Today we talk with Jonny Staker about his journey from leaving school at 15 to building, selling and now acquiring companies of his own. We cover how a failed attempt at pulling pints became the catalyst for a lifetime of entrepreneurship, what it really feels like to sell a business to a private equity firm after 14 hours of negotiations, and why he believes naivety is one of the most powerful assets an early founder can have. We also dig into the thinking behind his best-selling book The Frame, why controlling the conversation is the most underrated skill in business, and how Vanquish is now focused on helping expertise-led firms grow and scale in a world where AI is rapidly commoditising everything else.</p>no00:39:2413Building to Selling to Investing, Entrepreneur and Investor - Jonny Staker, Vanquish GroupfullToday we talk with Sandeep about his journey from biotechnologist and pharmaceutical sales rep to founding Vmarsh Healthcare, a global consulting and advisory firm operating across six offices and 37 countries. We cover how a career that took him from South Asia to Europe, Africa, Singapore and Australia shaped his unique approach to healthcare consulting, why he built Vmarsh around seasoned industry veterans rather than fresh MBAs, and how staying human in a world increasingly driven by AI and data is at the heart of everything Vmarsh does. We also dig into why grit and discipline will always matter more than qualifications, and why the difference between a dream and an accomplishment is simply desire.

]]>29daa81e-e5d7-4b2f-b32a-4ce1971ccff9Sun, 07 Jun 2026 20:19:37 GMT<p>Today we talk with Sandeep about his journey from biotechnologist and pharmaceutical sales rep to founding Vmarsh Healthcare, a global consulting and advisory firm operating across six offices and 37 countries. We cover how a career that took him from South Asia to Europe, Africa, Singapore and Australia shaped his unique approach to healthcare consulting, why he built Vmarsh around seasoned industry veterans rather than fresh MBAs, and how staying human in a world increasingly driven by AI and data is at the heart of everything Vmarsh does. We also dig into why grit and discipline will always matter more than qualifications, and why the difference between a dream and an accomplishment is simply desire.</p>no00:41:2212The Man Behind a Global Healthcare Consulting Empire - Sandeep Sharma, Vmarsh HealthcarefullToday we talk with Ivan about his 25-year journey in tech and how a chance encounter with a friend led him to discover a gap in the construction industry, sparking the creation of both BIM Direct and Techifide. We cover what it was like to build a software outsourcing business leveraging Brazilian talent for UK clients, how Bentley Systems came knocking and eventually acquired his team, and why he made the decision to relaunch Techifide as a specialist recruitment business focused solely on the architecture, engineering and construction sector. We also dig into how he is using AI to streamline operations without losing the human element, and why he believes the developers who will thrive in the AI era are the ones who can talk to clients, not just write code.

]]>0408f085-4580-461f-ab6b-dd22c7770c4fMon, 01 Jun 2026 05:40:25 GMT<p>Today we talk with Ivan about his 25-year journey in tech and how a chance encounter with a friend led him to discover a gap in the construction industry, sparking the creation of both BIM Direct and Techifide. We cover what it was like to build a software outsourcing business leveraging Brazilian talent for UK clients, how Bentley Systems came knocking and eventually acquired his team, and why he made the decision to relaunch Techifide as a specialist recruitment business focused solely on the architecture, engineering and construction sector. We also dig into how he is using AI to streamline operations without losing the human element, and why he believes the developers who will thrive in the AI era are the ones who can talk to clients, not just write code.</p>no00:25:0411Acquired, Relaunched and Ready - Ivan Gasparetto Filho, TechifidefullToday we talk with Jean about his journey from the Ivory Coast to London and how unfortunate circumstances became the catalyst to found Akwatalents - a bilingual recruitment business and community on a mission to bridge the gap between Francophone and Anglophone West Africa. We cover why he believes recruitment has lost its human touch and how he is bringing it back, how he is building a community of 117 members across 15 countries from his bedroom in London, and why his vision goes far beyond recruitment - creating a platform that connects the West African diaspora with local businesses across the region.

]]>9186311b-8569-4622-88c9-e79bf910d4c9Fri, 15 May 2026 13:48:26 GMT<p>Today we talk with Jean about his journey from the Ivory Coast to London and how unfortunate circumstances became the catalyst to found Akwatalents - a bilingual recruitment business and community on a mission to bridge the gap between Francophone and Anglophone West Africa. We cover why he believes recruitment has lost its human touch and how he is bringing it back, how he is building a community of 117 members across 15 countries from his bedroom in London, and why his vision goes far beyond recruitment - creating a platform that connects the West African diaspora with local businesses across the region.</p>no00:28:3610Building Networks in a Mission to Unite West Africa - Jean Daho, AkwatalentsfullToday we talk with David about his journey from growing up in the South Bronx to founding Ribott Partners, an award-winning leadership and board advisory based in Abu Dhabi. We cover how sport saved him from the streets and shaped his entire approach to developing high performing leaders, why he believes the best leadership development borrows directly from elite athletic coaching, and what it really means to lead under pressure in today's world of constant noise, shifting markets and rapid change.

]]>7d7c44b0-9241-4de7-851e-8aa78559b0c7Mon, 11 May 2026 07:43:45 GMT<p>Today we talk with David about his journey from growing up in the South Bronx to founding Ribott Partners, an award-winning leadership and board advisory based in Abu Dhabi. We cover how sport saved him from the streets and shaped his entire approach to developing high performing leaders, why he believes the best leadership development borrows directly from elite athletic coaching, and what it really means to lead under pressure in today's world of constant noise, shifting markets and rapid change.</p>no00:53:169Leading in the Arena, Lessons from the Bronx to the Boardroom - David Ribott, Ribott PartnersfullToday we talk with Chris about his journey from qualified electrician in the UK to building two thriving recruitment and staffing businesses in Australia. We cover how two years living and working across Southeast Asia shaped his outlook on business and people, what it really takes to survive the first two years as a founder, and how his love for the Philippines led to the creation of ProSource - offering Australian construction and NDIS businesses access to enterprise-level offshore talent at a fraction of the cost.

]]>fcc6d44f-dc48-4d92-8020-f45b5c46bedeWed, 29 Apr 2026 14:35:03 GMT<p>Today we talk with Chris about his journey from qualified electrician in the UK to building two thriving recruitment and staffing businesses in Australia. We cover how two years living and working across Southeast Asia shaped his outlook on business and people, what it really takes to survive the first two years as a founder, and how his love for the Philippines led to the creation of ProSource - offering Australian construction and NDIS businesses access to enterprise-level offshore talent at a fraction of the cost.</p>no00:35:13Building a Recruitment Empire From Sydney to Southeast Asia - Chris Gath, Specify & ProSourcefullToday we talk with Paul about his journey into legal recruitment, founding Hunters Legal and building a boutique agency that works with some of the UK's most prestigious law firms. We cover the grit and determination it took to get through the early years, how COVID reshaped the legal recruitment market, and why in a world increasingly driven by AI, the human touch and personal relationships remain at the heart of what makes a great recruiter.

]]>58418d1e-48cb-4f28-81f8-c232a5e94c52Mon, 27 Apr 2026 05:30:58 GMT<p>Today we talk with Paul about his journey into legal recruitment, founding Hunters Legal and building a boutique agency that works with some of the UK's most prestigious law firms. We cover the grit and determination it took to get through the early years, how COVID reshaped the legal recruitment market, and why in a world increasingly driven by AI, the human touch and personal relationships remain at the heart of what makes a great recruiter.</p>no00:23:297Building Trust with the UK's Highest Courts - Paul Burgin, Hunters LegalfullToday we talk with Spencer about his journey from employment to entrepreneur, founding Valoris Group and building a leading recruitment company in the energy sector, all whilst starting a family. We cover why there's never a perfect moment to start and why that shouldn't stop you, how Valoris are keeping the human touch at the heart of what they do whilst leveraging AI, and how they're carving out a leading position in their space.

]]>6442e57a-0fc0-4dbf-992c-1a09d456aba6Fri, 10 Apr 2026 06:53:09 GMT<p>Today we talk with Spencer about his journey from employment to entrepreneur, founding Valoris Group and building a leading recruitment company in the energy sector, all whilst starting a family. We cover why there's never a perfect moment to start and why that shouldn't stop you, how Valoris are keeping the human touch at the heart of what they do whilst leveraging AI, and how they're carving out a leading position in their space.</p>no00:28:446Employee to Entrepreneur and Leading Recruitment Company - Spencer Gregson-Gray, Valoris GroupfullToday we talk with James about the hospitality industry, his background as a restaurant owner and how his team are now helping business with a full suite of consultancy & staffing services across the UK and in Europe, UAE and US.

]]>cb224247-b908-4c86-9ea3-3a7b176b5c9aFri, 10 Apr 2026 03:44:14 GMT<p>Today we talk with James about the hospitality industry, his background as a restaurant owner and how his team are now helping business with a full suite of consultancy &amp; staffing services across the UK and in Europe, UAE and US.</p>no00:28:04From Behind the Bar to Advising the Boardroom - James Watson, Antidote RecruitmentfullToday we talk to Reece Deignon about recruiting in the hospitality and events space, his experience from a tech led process and how EasyStaffing are evolving but keeping that personal touch.

]]>e93ad833-8824-4436-a130-f71a1967322eFri, 10 Apr 2026 03:43:27 GMT<p>Today we talk to Reece Deignon about recruiting in the hospitality and events space, his experience from a tech led process and how EasyStaffing are evolving but keeping that personal touch.</p>no00:25:504Scaling Hospitality Staffing Without Losing the Soul - Reece Deignon, EasyStaffingfullToday we speak to Manoj Bhatt about cyber security from a personnel and consultant point of view, the market at the moment and new risks that AI bring to our online data

]]>174f4943-352c-47c7-95e8-00c7a043f867Fri, 10 Apr 2026 03:42:38 GMT<p>Today we speak to Manoj Bhatt about cyber security from a personnel and consultant point of view, the market at the moment and new risks that AI bring to our online data</p>no00:35:523The Cyber Risks Nobody's Talking About Yet - Manoj Bhatt, CyberhashfullToday we talk with James Marklove from Instaso about recruiting across the pond, learnings from his experience in multiple recruitment verticals and the effect AI is having on the cyber security market

]]>93210781-e1d0-49eb-9bce-03763d8383e4Fri, 10 Apr 2026 03:41:36 GMT<p>Today we talk with James Marklove from Instaso about recruiting across the pond, learnings from his experience in multiple recruitment verticals and the effect AI is having on the cyber security market</p>no00:27:162 Cyber, AI, and Recruiting Across the Atlantic - James Marklove, InstasofullToday we talk with Ross Thorpe from NGS Security about the recruitment landscape within the security and concierge space, how AI is developing and how NGS are diversifying to thrive in an AI world.

]]>0454a967-5004-433f-ae75-3244e906a93dFri, 10 Apr 2026 03:39:50 GMT<p>Today we talk with Ross Thorpe from NGS Security about the recruitment landscape within the security and concierge space, how AI is developing and how NGS are diversifying to thrive in an AI world.</p>no00:30:121 From Guarding Doors to Future-Proofing a Business - Ross Thorpe, NGS Groupfull