Scaling a business isn’t just about sales, systems, or hiring—it’s about leadership. And it’s often the missing piece when a company hits a wall.
In Perth, we’re known for rolling up our sleeves and building businesses from the ground up. That gritty, hands-on founder energy gets things moving fast. But at some point, that same approach starts to hold the business back. Growth exposes leadership gaps, and ignoring them can be expensive, financially and culturally.
Here’s what many scaling companies in Perth get wrong about leadership, and what you can do to shift gears
1. Founders Stay Too Central for Too Long
In the early stages, it makes sense for founders to wear many hats. But in scale-up mode, this becomes a liability. Research by McKinsey found that scaling companies with distributed leadership teams grow faster and are more resilient than those still centred on one or two key individuals .
But here’s the truth: what got you here won’t get you there.
The companies that scale well have one thing in common: they build leadership teams that can run without the founder in the middle of everything.
What to do instead:
- Build a leadership team with clearly defined roles and ownership of strategic areas.
- Empower team leads with budget and hiring responsibility — even on a small scale.
- Focus your time on coaching and vision, not daily approvals.
2. Promoting High Performers Without Developing Them
A common mistake is promoting your best technician or salesperson to a manager — without giving them any leadership support. According to Gallup, 82% of companies fail to choose managers with the right talent for leadership roles .
In Perth, where hiring senior external talent can be costly and risky, internal promotions are often the go-to. But without the right training, this leads to middle managers who struggle with conflict resolution, delegation, and team motivation.
What to do instead:
- Introduce internal leadership development programmes, even informal ones.
- Pair newly promoted managers with mentors inside or outside the business.
- Invest in short courses or coaching—there are many great local options available.
3. Underestimating the Role of Culture in Growth
Culture isn’t ping pong tables and team drinks. It’s how your team behaves when you’re not in the room. And if you don’t intentionally shape it, it’ll shape itself,
and not always in ways that help you scale.
When new people join and the pressure increases, your culture either holds the business together or lets it drift apart.
What to do instead:
- Define your core values and behavioural standards and live them —hire, fire, and promote based on them.
- Create communication rituals (weekly stand-ups, quarterly all-hands) to reinforce values and mission.
- Use performance reviews to assess cultural alignment, not just output.
4. Avoiding Difficult Conversations
Growth creates tension: new processes, new hires, changing expectations. But many scale-up leaders avoid difficult conversations, especially in close-knit teams. The result? Unclear expectations, resentment, and underperformance.
That underperformer who everyone knows isn’t cutting it? That leadership tension that no one names? These things fester.
What to do instead:
- Train all managers in feedback models like SBI (Situation–Behaviour–Impact).
- Hold regular one-on-ones focused on performance and wellbeing.
- Make “healthy conflict” part of your leadership training and expectations.
Scaling Leadership as You Scale Operations
The bigger your business gets, the more leadership becomes your bottleneck — or your superpower. While many Perth businesses get the operations right, they forget to evolve the people leading those operations.
Scaling sustainably isn’t just about processes and funding. It’s about growing your leadership capability in step with your revenue. Do that well, and your business can thrive far beyond the founder’s reach.