ScaleUp Sound Bytes

ScaleUp Recruitment

ScaleUp Sound Bytes, where we discuss byte sized ideas to help you ScaleUp your team and your career.

  1. EP22: Brendan Malone - "Raiz Your Game"

    ٧ مايو

    EP22: Brendan Malone - "Raiz Your Game"

    In this episode, Brendan sits down with Sam to reflect on Raiz's 10 year journey, the lessons learned along the way, and what financial education in Australia should really look like. The conversation covers the highs, the hard calls (including pulling out of Southeast Asia), and the philosophy behind building a product designed to take customers from cradle to grave. It is essential listening for founders, fintech operators, and anyone who cares about how technology can shift behaviour at scale. We dive into: 💡 The original mission behind Raiz and why breaking down barriers to investing mattered 💡 The pivot from Acorns Australia to Raiz Invest and the road to IPO 💡 Why Raiz expanded into Indonesia and Malaysia, and why they came home 💡 How the product evolved from 5 portfolios to 9, including crypto, property and Plus 💡 Why "the decision not to make a decision is a decision" hits harder than it sounds 💡 The 3 month retention rule that shapes how customers experience the market 💡 Brendan's view on wealth as a right, not a privilege, and what Australia could learn from the US Trump accounts model 💡 Practical lessons on teaching kids the value of money, chores, jars and all A sharp, honest conversation about building something that actually changes people's lives. Check out Raiz Invest here: https://raizinvest.com.au/ #ScaleUp #SoundBytes #ScaleUpRecruitment #Fintech #Raiz #FinancialEducation #AustralianTech #Investing

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  2. EP21: Ben Chinwah "The $60 Billion Problem No-One Owns Until It's Too Late"

    ١٤ أبريل

    EP21: Ben Chinwah "The $60 Billion Problem No-One Owns Until It's Too Late"

    Ben Chinwah has spent over 20 years in the work health and safety space, and what started as a career pivot sparked by a conversation with a relative has turned into a mission to protect Australian workers and the businesses that employ them. As Founder and CEO of Laminar Pro, Ben is tackling one of the most underestimated compliance challenges facing small to medium businesses across the country: keeping their people safe, staying on the right side of the law, and not finding themselves on the front page of the Herald. In this episode, Ben breaks down why workplace safety is a $60 billion problem that too many businesses ignore until it's too late. From facing up to 25 years imprisonment and $20 million in company fines for duty officers, to the real-world cost of a fatality on a team and a community, the stakes are high. This one is for founders, operators, and anyone running teams in high-risk environments like construction, logistics, manufacturing, or warehousing. Here's a taste of what they get into:  💡 Why workplace safety sits at the intersection of compliance, culture, and leadership maturity, and why audit scores alone don't tell the whole story  💡 The legislation changes that made directors and managers personally liable for what happens on their watch  💡 How Laminar Pro was built off 20 years of consulting experience and real operational data across hundreds of Australian businesses  💡 The difference between a reactive safety culture and a resilient one, and what it actually takes to shift behaviour on the floor  💡 How Ben is exploring camera vision AI to detect PPE compliance and near misses across multi-site operations  💡 Why Ben believes bundling consulting with software is the right model for the SME market  💡 The hard lessons from building a SaaS product as a non-technical founder, including when not to overpromise on development timelines  💡 Why slow to hire, quick to fire is one of the most important lessons from building his team  If you're running a business with people in high-risk environments, or you're curious about what a purpose-built SaaS product looks like when it grows out of deep industry knowledge, this is well worth your time. Check Out Laminar Pro Here: https://laminarpro.com.au/  #ScaleUp #SoundBytes #ScaleUpRecruitment #WorkplaceSafety #WHS #StartupAustralia #SaaS #SME #Founder #Leadership

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  3. EP20: Sam Carigliano - "The Sky's the Limit"

    ٤ مارس

    EP20: Sam Carigliano - "The Sky's the Limit"

    In Episode 20 of ScaleUp Sound Bytes, Sam sits down with Sam Carigliano, Co-Founder and CEO of SkyCiv, to unpack how a simple beam calculator built at UNSW turned into a global structural engineering platform used in 160+ countries. No funding. No hype. Just solving a real problem and sticking with it. 🚀 From a University Lab to 15 Million Projects Solved 🚀 What happens when two civil engineering students can’t find the right tool online… they build it themselves? Here’s what Sam shares: 🔥 Why the best startups begin with a problem you’ve actually experienced 🔥 The power of “sell before you build” and testing demand with a fake buy button 🔥 How trust becomes your biggest barrier in a risk-averse industry 🔥 Why quality and QA had to overtake speed as the company matured 🔥 The shift from generalists to specialists as you scale 🔥 What it takes to win over engineers who have used the same software for 20 years They also dive into: 🔥 Bootstrapping in a slow-moving, highly regulated industry🔥 Building a global team organically across time zones 🔥 Why comfort and habit are harder to disrupt than competition 🔥 The 1% rule and how compounding improvements shape long-term growth 🔥 Hiring for curiosity, proactivity, and culture fit One of the biggest takeaways? Start. Don’t overthink it. Don’t build something “cool.” Solve a real problem. The rest compounds from there. If you’re building a product, leading a technical team, or navigating the shift from startup hustle to sustainable growth, this episode is packed with practical lessons. #StartupJourney #Bootstrapped #EngineeringLeadership #ProductMarketFit #ScaleUp #TechFounders #SoftwareEngineering #SaaS #ScaleUpSoundBytes #ScaleUpRecruitment

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  4. EP19: Nicole Gibson - "Disrupting how we interpret emotions through AI & Data"

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    EP19: Nicole Gibson - "Disrupting how we interpret emotions through AI & Data"

    In Episode 19 of #ScaleUpSoundBytes, Sam sits down with Nicole Gibson, founder of InTruth, former Mental Health Commissioner, and a force of nature at the intersection of biotech, empathy, and AI. 🧠 Emotion as Data. Consciousness as Design. 💡 They explore how Nicole is building technology that translates the subconscious language of the body into science. And it’s not just about decoding emotion it’s about designing systems that scale human connection, emotional intelligence, and mental health outcomes. 🔥 Here’s what they unpack: • Why emotion is faster than language and how it shapes every decision • What it means to build a biotech startup grounded in data sovereignty • The shocking reason utility bills can be an early indicators of domestic violence • How InTruth is being used across domestic violence, mental health, and rural farming • The power of emotion data in enterprise and team dynamics • Why Nicole believes mental health needs hard data like blood pressure for the mind 🌐 They also dig deep into: • Building a trillion-dollar business without selling your soul (or user data) • The problem with how governments treat innovation • Conscious leadership in a world racing toward artificial augmentation • The next wave of wellness: emotional AI + smart homes • Emotional literacy as the foundation of social change Nicole doesn’t just talk about disruption, she lives it! From influencing national policy to launching AI biotech grounded in ethics and empathy, this episode is packed with insights you won’t find anywhere else. #AI #MentalHealth #TechForGood #EmpathyInTech #ScaleUp #EmotionalIntelligence #StartupLeadership #InTruth #EmotionData #ScaleUpSoundBytes #ScaleUpRecruitment #WomenInTech #HealthTech #Technology #ScaleUpSoundBytes

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  5. EP18: Xharmagne Carandang - "The Path of a Founding Engineer"

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    EP18: Xharmagne Carandang - "The Path of a Founding Engineer"

    In this episode of ScaleUp Sound Bytes, Sam sits down with Xharmagne Carandang, founding engineer at Lorikeet, one of Australia's hottest startups, and someone who is quietly redefining what it means to build great tech with purpose. From working in federal government to startups barely past MVP, Xharmagne has intentionally gone from big to small, chasing learning, ownership, and impact at every step. We talk about what changes when you scale down, why engineers should care about the why behind what they build, and how Lorikeet is bringing clarity, trust, and empathy to AI in customer service. We dive into: 💡 Moving from “feature factory” coding to mission-driven product thinking 💡 Why clear context beats company size when it comes to making an impact 💡 How Lorikeet is helping teams train AI to sound human, and when AI should just butt out 💡 Designing UX for AI when the rules don’t exist yet 💡 The drop-off of women in engineering and how visibility, community, and role models matter 💡 Why engineers should act more like collaborators and less like keyboard monkeys 💡 Her favourite framework: thinking in bets (and how to avoid betting the house) 💡 Building sustainably, with dance classes as a burnout barometer Xharmagne brings a sharp mind and an open heart to her work, and this episode is packed with insights for anyone navigating engineering culture, ethical AI, or what it actually means to build software that helps people. #ScaleUp #SoundBytes #WomenInTech #AI #FoundingEngineer

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  6. EP17: Niklas Olsson - "The Canva for Numbers"

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    EP17: Niklas Olsson - "The Canva for Numbers"

    From Delivery Vans to Design Led SaaS: The Wild Ride of Niklas Olsson! In this episode of ScaleUp Sound Bytes, Sam sits down with serial founder and spreadsheet disruptor, Niklas Olsson. He’s the brains behind klaro and has previously built everything from delivery startups to data platforms, with an acquisition or two along the way. Niklas is what happens when you mix industrial design, a love of math, a dash of chaos, and five startup journeys. He’s gone from sketching Ferraris to building what he calls the “Canva for numbers” empowering non-finance folks to make big decisions without breaking a spreadsheet or their spirit. Check out a little of what we cover: 💡 Why numerical thinking is a superpower and how klaro is making it mainstream 💡 Building startups by living the customer experience (yes, he drove the van himself) 💡 How posting a humble Google Sheet exploded into thousands of downloads and sparked a company 💡 The dangers of spreadsheet spaghetti and why templates aren’t enough 💡 What it means to build a values-led team: mindful intentions, side by side, forever a student 💡 Getting from zero to MVP using content, community and pure scrappiness 💡 Lessons from five startups with what worked, what flopped, and what he’d never do again Whether you’re an aspiring founder, a frustrated spreadsheet warrior, or someone who’s ever wondered if maybe there's a better way to crunch numbers, this one’s for you. Niklas is sharp, honest, and design led in everything he does and it shows. #ScaleUp #SoundBytes #StartupWisdom #DesignLedFounder #ScaleUpRecruitment

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  7. EP16: Yaniv Bernstein - "Startups, Principal Engineers, AI and the Future"

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    EP16: Yaniv Bernstein - "Startups, Principal Engineers, AI and the Future"

    Sam kicked off 2025 with a bang, sitting down with none other than Yaniv Bernstein, Founder and CTO of Vera (check them out here  https://vera.guide). He's the co-host of The Startup Podcast, former VP of Engineering at Airtasker, ex-Google-er, and all-around startup legend. In this episode, we dive into the mindset, mechanics, and missteps of scaling early-stage startups. Yaniv talks candidly about what drew him into the startup world after a decade at Google, how he accidentally launched a bootstrapped podcast business, and why the title "Principal Engineer" is often misunderstood, especially in startups. Whether you're an aspiring founder, a startup engineer with ambition, or someone trying to decode the difference between a CTO and a VP of Engineering (spoiler: it's messy), this is one to get stuck into. Here’s a taste of what we get into: 💡 What makes a great startup hire (smart, gets shit done, and thrives in chaos) 💡 Why founders should do everything themselves until they absolutely can’t 💡 Principal Engineers as multipliers, not managers 💡 Hiring too senior, too soon: the rookie mistake most founders make 💡 AI’s impact on engineering teams and why junior devs should be worried 💡 The difference between being a technical founder and a founder with technical help 💡 Knowing the rules of the game: the most underrated startup advice ever 💡 How a podcast side hustle accidentally turned into a real business This episode is honest, unfiltered, and packed with wisdom from someone who’s seen it all – from corporate giant to zero-to-one startup and everything in between. If you're in tech, thinking about launching a startup, or just want to understand how high-performing teams actually get built, do yourself a favour and listen in. #ScaleUp #SoundBytes #ScaleUpRecruitment

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  8. EP15: Nicholas Clancy - "What it Takes to Succeed in a Start-Up"

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    EP15: Nicholas Clancy - "What it Takes to Succeed in a Start-Up"

    Sam sits down with Nicholas Clancy, CTO of EngineRoom. What’s special about Nic is that Piero actually placed Nic into his first role as a software engineer into Pooled Energy about a decade ago. Fast forward a to now years and Nic has scaled his career into CTO. All of this would not of been possible if he was in a corporate environment. Tune in a discover Nic’s personal journey, what it’s like to work in a high growth start up and the mindset of what's required to succeed. If you are thinking of joining a start-up or leaving your cushy corporate role for an opportunity with one, you need to listen to this. Learn from someone who has navigated their way to Head of Engineering and CTO of two start-ups and is continuously challenging the status quo. We talk about: 💡 High tolerance to risk and failure 💡 Velocity of decision making and execution 💡 Time and indecision kills start-ups 💡 Ownership and accountability 💡 High tolerance to risk + fast decisions = things going wrong. 💡 How do you react and own those mistakes when it impacts real customers? 💡 Start-ups own it, normal companies cover it up and play the PR game 💡 Changing the status quo 💡 How what you do is fundamentally different #ScaleUp #SoundBytes Time Stamps 00:00 Intro01:02 Overview of Nick’s Journey so far12:02 Angel Investing15:33 What defines a start-up?17:01 4 Characteristics true startups exhibit24:17 Most important thing you need to have when joining a start-up39:16 Do you need to mimic characteristics of a Start-Up to succeed?45:10 What do startups want to see in Engineers?52:35 What start-ups need to be able to offer59:00 Most valuable tech and leadership books1:01:26 What habits do you attribute to your success?1:02:52 Who is the most influential person in your career and why?1:04:07 Outro

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ScaleUp Sound Bytes, where we discuss byte sized ideas to help you ScaleUp your team and your career.

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