Autonomy not anarchy, and other stories....

For those of you who listen to the podcast, the next season starts next week. I've lost count of seasons, but we're 148 episodes in and I'm really proud of the catalogue of great founders, CEOs and Investors I've had on the show, many have gone on to great exits, including more then one Unicorn, many are still scaling, and a few fallen by the wayside. Such is the world of start-up/scale-up.

On the podcast we talk about our guests technology, but also about their founding journey, and their aspirations and plans for the future. The investors share great industry insights, but also a window into how they go about investing, the who, why, where, what and when. And of course how much! Don't forget we're also on YouTube (Here ) as well as all Podcast platforms.

Podcast aside I try to share my experience and insights around Leadership, building high-performing teams, company culture and issues around work and productivity. I'm blessed to have founded two companies and worked with hundreds more, alongside my mentoring for cleantech accelerators like Rockstart and Techstars. Hopefully you find some of this content useful. I'm always keen to hear feedback, or answer questions on these topics.

These are stories and issues that have sparked my interest in the last few weeks.

Should companies let staff do what they want? I spoke at a Cleantech start-up/investor event in Berlin not so long ago and was asked what are the key factors behind a high performing team and culture. I listed 6, a big one was Autonomy. People often think in zero-sum game mindsets. Autonomy...?Read more

Out of a job but not ready for the golf course: how about joining a board? The article focuses more on corporate executives, but I am frequently approached by executives from the start-up/scale-up world who are looking at Portfolio careers. Firstly for the sector, keeping the huge volume of knowledge and skills, as well...?Read more

Four questions for every manager to ask themselves.? In case you don't have access to the Economist I'll list the full four questions below. Significantly though, they are all related to hiring, retention, culture and automation. In short, people. Your people, your team. ?We all know the job of...?Read more .?

Jobhunters flood recruiters with AI-generated CVs (at all levels, as if hiring wasn't hard enough).? I wasn't at all surprised to read this in the FT this morning. ChatGPT cover notes and CV's have been a blight for some time, and I expect it will only get worse. ? Recruiting is hard, I know, I've spent over 25 years in executive search, and...?Read more .?

Britain’s unusual stance on Chinese electric vehicles.? There is no point closing the gate, when the horse has already bolted! ?That seems to be an understanding the British have, that the US in particular, and some European states, France for example, don't choose to grasp, where EVs and...?Read more .?

Industry related Insights

If you have a specific interest in Energy Storage and all things Grid, I'd recommend subscribing to David Beeston 's newsletter. David is an Associate Partner and Heads our Storage and Grid practice. You can find it here

If Future Mobility and all things mobility transition are your thing, I'd recommend subscribing to Stephen R. 's newsletter. Stephen is Managing Partner and leads our Future Mobility practice. You can find it here .

Leadership Search Mandates

Much of what we do at Hyperion Search Ltd is under the radar, but here are two searches that may be of interest.

CTO- Batteries- UK https://www.dhirubhai.net/jobs/view/4010234153

MD- Circular Economy - Germany https://www.dhirubhai.net/jobs/view/4000342782

Non-Executive Chairman - EV - UK https://www.dhirubhai.net/jobs/view/4023702267

I hope you find the content useful. I'm always keen to hear feedback and podcast suggestions. Book suggestions for that matter too.

David