ScaleX™ Insider Podcast

Organisational strategy and culture in action – In this bite-size clip, Ben Utecht, NFL Super Bowl Champion, Chief Culture Officer, and award-winning global speaker, shares how companies can hire for culture and embed organisational strategy so it actually works. If you're an SME or B2B leader looking to align your people with your company's vision, this episode gives actionable steps to ensure new hires live your values from day one and reinforce them as the business grows.
Ben explains the full process: from sharing a 30-page culture creed during pre-screening, to interview questions designed to assess alignment with your organisational strategy, and a structured onboarding curriculum that educates employees on your company's principles. He highlights why knowing the "why" of your culture is essential, but how ongoing action and practice are the real drivers of cultural alignment, trust, and high performance.
Key Takeaways:
Hire for cultural alignment: Send candidates your culture creed and use strategic interview questions to ensure alignment with your organisational strategy.

Embed values through onboarding: Develop a learning programme where new team members explore and apply your organisational beliefs before starting their role.

Practise culture consistently: Establish weekly, monthly, and quarterly check-ins to reinforce behaviours that reflect your organisational strategy.

Develop leaders through culture: Use the culture creed as a leadership development tool to scale alignment across teams.

Move beyond annual reviews: Maintain an ongoing rhythm of practices that keep employees aligned to your organisational strategy and values.

By embedding these practices, leaders can transform organisational strategy from a theoretical plan into a lived culture that drives performance and trust across the company.
 
ABOUT BEN UTECHT: 
Ben Utecht is a former Indianapolis Colts Super Bowl Champion turned Chief Culture Officer and global keynote speaker. He helps organisations build high-performance company culture through belief-driven leadership, combining lessons from elite sport with practical business strategy. Ben is also the author of The Champion's Creed, where he shares his proven approach to creating scalable, purpose-led cultures that drive trust, performance, and long-term success.
 
CONNECT WITH BEN:
Website: https://benutechtspeaks.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benutecht/
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Champions-Creed-Transform-Culture-Through/dp/1394331231
 
ScaleX & Simple Scaling:
Book: Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles to 10x Your Business
ScaleX Elevate (under £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-elevate
ScaleX Accelerator (over £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-accelerator-programme
  Website: https://simplescaling.com
  Email: [email protected]
  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/simple-scaling
  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplescaling
 
#MentalResilienceForLeaders #LeadershipWellbeing #CognitiveLoad #StressManagement #ScaleXPodcast

Organisational strategy for leaders – In this clip, Ben Utecht, former NFL Super Bowl Champion and Chief Culture Officer, shares the powerful story behind the FAMILY acronym and how it shapes high-performance teams. If you're an SME or B2B leader looking to strengthen team trust, collaboration, and culture, this episode is packed with actionable lessons.
Ben recalls his first NFL team meeting with Tony Dungy, where the legendary coach emphasised that identity should extend beyond sport. Dungy introduced FAMILY – Forget About Me, I Love You, a principle that fosters selflessness, humility, and mutual respect among top-performing teams. Ben explains how applying this mindset to organisational strategy transforms businesses by building trust, transparency, and a culture that drives performance — proving that even the smallest, most diverse team can outperform larger competitors.
Key Takeaways:
Organisational strategy is people-first: Prioritise trust, transparency, and shared values over ego and size.

FAMILY principle: Forget About Me, I Love You – foster selflessness, respect, and collaboration.

Strength over size: The most effective teams succeed through alignment, culture, and mutual belief, not just raw talent.

Culture drives performance: A unified, value-driven culture strengthens team impact and business outcomes.

Clarity and transparency matter: Open communication among trusted team members maximises influence and efficiency.

 
ABOUT BEN UTECHT: 
Ben Utecht is a former Indianapolis Colts Super Bowl Champion turned Chief Culture Officer and global keynote speaker. He helps organisations build high-performance company culture through belief-driven leadership, combining lessons from elite sport with practical business strategy. Ben is also the author of The Champion's Creed, where he shares his proven approach to creating scalable, purpose-led cultures that drive trust, performance, and long-term success.
 
CONNECT WITH BEN:
Website: https://benutechtspeaks.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benutecht/
Book: https://www.amazon.com/Champions-Creed-Transform-Culture-Through/dp/1394331231
 
ScaleX & Simple Scaling:
Book: Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles to 10x Your Business
ScaleX Elevate (under £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-elevate
ScaleX Accelerator (over £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-accelerator-programme
  Website: https://simplescaling.com
  Email: [email protected]
  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/simple-scaling
  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplescaling
 
#MentalResilienceForLeaders #organisation strategy #CognitiveLoad #StressManagement #ScaleXPodcast

Organisational culture strategy is the difference between companies that stall and those that scale. In this episode, we unpack a powerful organisational culture strategy for SMEs and B2B leaders, exploring how belief-driven leadership creates trust, alignment, and high-performance teams.
If you're a founder, CEO or leader trying to scale, this organisational culture strategy will challenge how you think about values, behaviours, and performance. Most businesses talk about culture. Very few actually build a repeatable organisational culture strategy that drives results.
Former Indianapolis Colts Super Bowl Champion and Chief Culture Officer Ben Utecht shares how elite sport principles translate into a scalable organisational culture strategy for SMEs and B2B organisations.
You'll discover why culture is not a "nice to have", but the core organisational culture strategy behind growth, retention, and performance.
We explore:
Why every SME already has an organisational culture strategy (by design or default)

The difference between beliefs, values, and behaviours in your organisational culture strategy

How to build a repeatable organisational culture strategy that scales across teams

Why most B2B leaders fail to implement organisational culture strategy effectively

The "pebble vs boulder" approach to embedding organisational culture strategy

How to turn culture into a system, not just a statement

The role of leadership in scaling organisational culture strategy in SMEs

This conversation reframes organisational culture strategy as a performance driver, not a soft skill. If you're serious about scaling your business, your organisational culture strategy must become your competitive advantage.
TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Why organisational culture strategy matters
03:20 From NFL to business leadership
08:45 Beliefs vs values in organisational culture strategy
15:30 Culture by design vs default
24:10 Hiring and onboarding for culture
33:40 The practice gap in SMEs
41:20 Leadership and scaling organisational culture strategy
50:10 The power of suffering and purpose
58:30 Three timeless takeaways
ABOUT BEN UTECHT: Ben Utecht is a former Indianapolis Colts Super Bowl Champion turned Chief Culture Officer and global keynote speaker. He helps organisations build high-performance company culture through belief-driven leadership, combining lessons from elite sport with practical business strategy. Ben is also the author of The Champion's Creed, where he shares his proven approach to creating scalable, purpose-led cultures that drive trust, performance, and long-term success.
CONNECT WITH BEN:
Website: https://benutechtspeaks.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benutecht/
Book:  https://www.amazon.com/Champions-Creed-Transform-Culture-Through/dp/1394331231
SCALEX:
ScaleX Elevate: https://simplescaling.com/scalex-elevate
ScaleX Accelerator: https://simplescaling.com/scalex-acce...
Website: https://simplescaling.com
Email: [email protected]
Host: Brendan McGurgan, Co-Founder Simple Scaling
👍 Like for performance & resilience strategies
💬 Share your toughest pressure challenges
📤 Forward this to leaders and high-performing teams
#MentalResilienceForLeaders #organisation strategy,#CognitiveLoad #StressManagement #ScaleXPodcast

Becoming a recognised expert for SMEs – In this clip, Dorie Clark, bestselling author of Stand Out and The Long Game, explains why establishing yourself as a recognised expert is one of the most powerful strategies for SME and B2B leaders seeking to scale.
If you're an SME or B2B leader struggling to differentiate your business in a world of low-cost services and AI-powered competition, this episode gives you actionable insights on building authority, commanding premium pricing, and creating a brand that inspires trust and loyalty.
Dorie breaks down how being recognised for your expertise provides a quality assurance signal to clients, ensuring they choose you over cheaper alternatives. She shares how a strong personal or business brand can elevate your reputation so clients are proud to be associated with you—similar to the way people aspire to own a Mercedes or BMW. Drawing on examples from high-profile leaders, including Ford's former president Alan Mulally and his work with Marshall Goldsmith, Dorie highlights how credibility and recognition can transform careers, business outcomes, and long-term success for SME leaders.
 
Key Takeaways:
Expertise drives premium value:
Clients pay more for recognised skill and credibility, because they trust the results will be high-quality from the start.
Stand out in a crowded market:
For SMEs, B2B leaders, and entrepreneurs, recognition separates you from commoditised service providers and AI-driven alternatives.
Build a brand that reflects your authority:
A strong personal or business brand attracts loyal clients and positions you as the go-to expert in your niche.
Pride in association:
When clients are proud to work with you, it reinforces your market position, protects pricing, and strengthens long-term relationships.
Learn from the leaders:
High-profile figures, from executives to entrepreneurs, leverage coaching and strategic expertise to achieve transformative outcomes—and you can apply the same principles in your SME.
 
If you're an SME or B2B leader aiming to become a recognised expert, this clip will show you how to elevate your authority, attract premium clients, and build a bulletproof position in your market.
CONNECT WITH DORIE
Dorie Clark is a globally recognised business thinker, ranked in the Thinkers50 Top 50. She is the world's #1 Communication Coach (Marshall Goldsmith Awards), a bestselling author of The Long Game, and teaches at Columbia Business School.
Website: https://dorieclark.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doriec/
 
📘 Book: Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles to 10x Your Business
🚀 ScaleX Elevate (under £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-elevate
⚡ ScaleX Accelerator (over £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-accelerator-programme
🌐 Website: https://simplescaling.com
📧 Email: [email protected]
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/simple-scaling
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplescaling

Long game strategy for SMEs – In this clip, Dorie Clark, world-renowned business thinker and author of The Long Game, explains why long game thinking is not always the default answer for SME and B2B leaders and how to apply it strategically.
If you're an SME leader or B2B founder navigating growth, cash flow pressure, and scaling decisions, this episode breaks down when to prioritise long term strategy and when short-term execution is essential for survival.
Dorie challenges the assumption that the long game strategy for SMEs is always the right move. Instead, she highlights the importance of understanding your business life cycle. For early-stage SME and B2B businesses, cash flow and stability come first—before making long-term bets.
She explains the difference between strategic bets and gambling, emphasising that SME leaders must first build security through proven, short-term wins. Only then can they allocate time, money, and resources towards long game thinking that drives exponential growth.
This is a powerful framework for SME and B2B leaders who want to scale sustainably without risking the foundations of their business.
 
Key Takeaways:
Long game strategy for SMEs isn't always right:
Long game thinking must match your stage of business—early-stage SME leaders need stability before long-term bets.
Cash flow comes first:
For SME and B2B leaders, survival and financial security are the foundation before scaling strategies.
Strategic bets vs gambling:
Investing in long-term growth without margin is risky—true strategy requires calculated allocation of time and money.
Build margin before scaling:
Create breathing room through proven systems, then invest a portion into long game opportunities.
Balance short term and long term:
The most effective SME leaders combine immediate execution with future-focused thinking.
 
If you're an SME or B2B leader looking to apply long game strategy for SMEs without risking your business, this clip gives you the clarity to make smarter, more strategic decisions.
CONNECT WITH DORIE
Dorie Clark is a globally recognised business thinker, ranked in the Thinkers50 Top 50. She is the world's #1 Communication Coach (Marshall Goldsmith Awards), a bestselling author of The Long Game, and teaches at Columbia Business School.
Website: https://dorieclark.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doriec/
 
📘 Book: Simple Scaling: 10 Proven Principles to 10x Your Business
🚀 ScaleX Elevate (under £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-elevate
⚡ ScaleX Accelerator (over £2M revenue): https://simplescaling.com/scalex-accelerator-programme
🌐 Website: https://simplescaling.com
📧 Email: [email protected]
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/simple-scaling
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplescaling