Why businesses fail to scale and how to fix it 

Tom Williams

Small businesses form more than 95% of all businesses in major western countries, and while definitions differ, it’s clear they are vital to economic growth and the provision of jobs. Yet most of them struggle to scale up. 

After launching a new business, founders are full of passion, drive, enthusiasm, and determination to succeed. However, after a few years, despite burning the candle at both ends, they typically bump into a growth ceiling and don’t understand why what got them to where they are won’t get them to the next level. With so many businesses struggling to make it past the first stages, Tom Williams is on a mission to help businesses around the globe break the cycle, scale up and achieve sustainable growth. 

In his new book, Tom shares what he considers to be the quantum shifts founders need to make to bust through their growth barriers at several different levels of turnover. He goes on to explain the essential springboards for founders to achieve sustainable business growth without burning out or sacrificing time for themselves or their families. These pillars are proposition, planning, people, process and promotion.  

Exploring these topics, the book unpacks the power of the right value proposition, business models and planning using growth strategies and financial tracking. Tom discusses building teams, communicating effectively and retaining talent alongside optimising business processes through a mix of systems and personal productivity. Finally, the book details effectively promoting a business through marketing, lead generation and sales and how when combined, all these elements can help a business keep growing.