by George Sotiropoulos | Oct 2, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner
In Dubai, working for free is almost a rite of passage for business owners. It has happened to me more than once, and never because I offered.There was always a big payoff dangled just ahead, close enough to believe in, like a greyhound chasing the mechanical rabbit...
by George Sotiropoulos | Oct 1, 2026 | Business Value
Once upon a time….Carl walks into a beautiful clinic with serious chest pains.He is seen by Dr Sam, a heart specialist with more than thirty years behind him. Sam listens to the symptoms, and he listens to what Carl really wants. Carl wants to be well enough to walk...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 30, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
A while back I watched a buyer walk away from a business he had spent weeks looking at.Good numbers, pretty profitable and the business was something he had seeking for a while.And yet he walked.Why?“Because this isn’t a company, it’s a project”And he didn’t have the...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 29, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
Most owners are about to waste AI, and it will have nothing to do with the AI.Here is why and it comes from a 19th century story.When electricity first reached the factories, everyone rushed to install it.But most owners simply bolted it onto what they already had....
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 28, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
Ever seen that reality show about the Pawn shop.Some guy hauls in his grandfather’s watch, dead certain it is worth a fortune. By his eyes, you can tell he is already spending the money in his head.Rick looks it over, makes a face, and says “let me call my...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 25, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
“That’s How It’s Done Here”How often have you heard or believed those words?Perhaps in your industry there is something you follow as if it came from the Lord himself.One of the advisors at our deep dive session told us about a client of his...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 9, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
Colin took the family to Crete in June.By Wednesday he’d taken fourteen calls.Not one of them was a crisis.One was the wifi password for the meeting room. One was whether the Hendersons get ten per cent or their usual eight. One was where the spare key to the...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 2, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner
So what is it you want to see?My client was asking me earnestly.I had just come with a dozen requests and he was beside himself.Was I jerking his chain? Being difficult?“I’m a lamb,” I replied.“A happy go lucky lamb chewing on grass and being...
by George Sotiropoulos | Sep 1, 2026 | Business Value, Dependency on Owner, Scaling the Business
“I’d have got rid of Dean four years ago. I just can’t.”Rob runs an industrial packaging distribution company. Six million in revenue, thirty-one staff, decent margins, the sort of business a trade buyer would look at twice.Dean has been his...
by George Sotiropoulos | Aug 14, 2026 | Business Value, Customer Experience
In my last post I told you about the scowling woman at the restaurant who put a deep flurry of clouds in the experience when we went to sit down.After we sat though I nearly forgot about her as we had excellent food with generous portion sizes and good drinks.The...
