Kinnery

13/06/2026

A lot of businesses are still running on what the founder remembers. That works for a while, then the business gets bigger, more people join, and suddenly things start getting missed. Not because people don’t care, but because there is no clear process.

When something goes wrong, one of the best questions to ask is: what’s the process? If there isn’t one, that’s not a people problem, it’s a business problem. No process means no consistency and no consistency means no accountability. Without accountability, the same issues keep coming back. Where in your business are people still relying too much on memory?

If your business has grown but the structure hasn’t caught up, comment PLAYBOOK and I’ll send you the playbook.

12/06/2026

A Michelin star is only awarded to an establishment that is excellent. It is, in my opinion, one of the few accolades that can be relied upon.

At the weekend we went to a famous Michelin starred restaurant and much lauded hotel. It was excellent by almost every measure and I was impressed, not least, by the attention to detail. As I might expect the food was immaculately cooked and prepared. But it stretched much further than the food. The furniture, the building itself, the décor and the staff themselves were equally immaculate and prepared. It made me think of the time and effort that must go into preparation, selection and training.

How much time had been spent training the sommelier how to pour the wine, with one hand behind his back, while wearing the obligatory white gloves, and the waitresses to coordinate their unveiling of the food like a first class dance troupe? And how much in the moment coaching has taken place to refine those standards?

That is where the cost of production starts to escalate but that is also the difference between an excellent experience and a mediocre one is to be found.

It made me wonder two things, do we invest enough time training our team members on how to do an excellent job and if someone has never experienced a level of excellence, how can they know what the experience is like?

So the questions for today are:

• Does the amount of training we do with our front line staff really stand scrutiny?
• Who is accountable for in the moment, on the job coaching, rewarding and redirecting?
• What evidence do we have that it is being carried out effectively?
• Are these things that we constantly test and measure?
https://zurl.co/nYl98

(Yes, as you will notice I am embracing AI. I’m using it to generate images for some of my social posts).
Business Coaching for Ambitious Entrepreneurs - 1-on-1 Business Coaching, Scaling Up Strategy, and Leadership Team Development

🔗 Find out more on our website - https://zurl.co/2TFiF

👤 Connect on linkedin - https://zurl.co/ZuRc7

💬 If you have any questions – get in touch [email protected]

11/06/2026

Most founders assume that if something has worked up to now, they just need to do more of it.
More sales, more people, more effort. But growth doesn’t usually work like that. What got you to £1m probably won’t get you to £5m. What worked when there were 10 of you probably won’t work when there are 50.

That’s not because anyone has done anything wrong. It’s just that the business has changed, and at some point the founder has to change with it. The uncomfortable bit is this: some of the habits that helped you build the business may now be the things holding it back.

I’d be interested to know where other founders have felt this most. Was it people, process, leadership, or letting go?

If you know you’re still too involved in too many decisions, comment PLAYBOOK and I’ll send you the full guide.

11/06/2026

In this video I talk about something interesting called above and below the line - why it's important, and what it means. https://zurl.co/BjqKf

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

09/06/2026

This is an interesting article that looks at research-based truths about organisational culture and how to change it. https://zurl.co/2cMb5

Glenn Carroll and Jennifer Chatman share research-based truths about organizational culture and how to change it.

05/06/2026

It is interesting whenever I am about to make a significant purchase how I seem to notice things. Yesterday I went to look at a new car and outside the dealership there were a couple of salesmen having a bit of laddish banter and a cigarette.

It was noticeable, to me, how much that initial impression coloured my expectation about what dealing with that store might entail and reminded me that every touchpoint matters. Every time your brand comes into contact with your employees, customers and all the other stakeholders out there, they judge you.

This means that all the hard work and all the money marketers spend on advertising and promotion is pointless if the entire organisation isn’t out there every day doing what these communications say it will.

One of the challenges this brings is that if your team don’t completely understand and buy into every detail of what you are trying to create, how can you realistically expect them to act in an appropriate manner?

So the questions for today are:

• How clear are you on the behaviours you want your team to display?
• How well and how often do you communicate those expectations?
• Who is accountable for the inevitable redirects and in the moment coaching?
• Do they do that, insistently, consistently and persistently?

https://zurl.co/ec02O

(Yes, as you will notice I am embracing AI. I’m using it to generate images for some of my social posts).
Business Coaching for Ambitious Entrepreneurs - 1-on-1 Business Coaching, Scaling Up Strategy, and Leadership Team Development

🔗 Find out more on our website - https://zurl.co/2TFiF

👤 Connect on linkedin - https://zurl.co/ZuRc7

💬 If you have any questions – get in touch [email protected]

04/06/2026

Why not have a look at this video to get my advice on the 3 things you must do to look after the cash in your business. https://zurl.co/oiytv

My advice on the 3 things you must do to look after the cash in you...

01/06/2026

In this article, the discussion is about using culture as a strategic lever that shapes how employees act, how clients perceive your brand, and ultimately, how businesses grow.

https://zurl.co/l3UVR

Culture, when clearly defined, measured, and aligned with client expectations, boosts employee performance and business growth.

29/05/2026

If 21 years of coaching successful business leaders to be more successful has taught me anything it is this: ‘Life is a mirror’. What this means is that life generally and our business specifically reflects who we are and how we behave.

Fundamentally if the person at the top of the business is indecisive, the business will be indecisive, if they are naïve the business will be naïve and if they are aggressive, the business will be aggressive.

I wrote about entropy last week. The opposite of entropy in many ways is a sense of urgency. I am finding that a sense of urgency is cultural, in that either a business has a sense of urgency or it doesn’t. It is rare to find part of a business that operates with speed and urgency when the majority doesn’t.

We live in a world where speed is valued.

Ultimately that sense of urgency cascades from the top. Life is a mirror. That is why I only coach people at the top of the organisation, because any and all improvements at the top with cascade and amplify as they effect the rest of the business.

So the questions for today are:

• What can you see, in the business, that is really a reflection of you?
• Have you noticed that the best, and worst of you, is exhibited throughout the business?
• “As goes the leadership team, so goes the rest of the business”. What are you doing to constantly upgrade the leadership team? rituals are in place to celebrate your wins and praise the team?

https://zurl.co/12Aed

(Yes, as you will notice I am embracing AI. I’m using it to generate images for some of my social posts).
Business Coaching for Ambitious Entrepreneurs - 1-on-1 Business Coaching, Scaling Up Strategy, and Leadership Team Development

🔗 Find out more on our website - https://zurl.co/2TFiF

👤 Connect on linkedin - https://zurl.co/ZuRc7

💬 If you have any questions – get in touch [email protected]

29/05/2026

I recently joined Mark Bracknall from Theo James Recruitment on the Manufacturing Leaders Podcast for a conversation about leadership, pressure and what it really takes to run a business without losing yourself in the process.

So much of the work starts with stepping back and asking better questions. Where are we going? What am I still carrying that I shouldn’t be? What is actually within my control? And what does the business now need from me as a leader?

That is why I am offering leaders and business owners a free strategic session called the Business Reset (link in comments). It is an opportunity for business owners to take a look at where they are, what is getting in the way, and what needs to change if the next stage is going to feel less heavy than the last one.

Thank you for having me on. It was a very honest conversation, and I hope it is useful for anyone leading a business and feeling the weight of it.

https://zurl.co/E6jRR

In the latest episode of the Manufacturing Leaders’ Podcast, Mark Bracknall is joined by Ian Kinnery, who shares his journey from leading multimillion-pound ...