40 Minute Mentor

In today’s episode of the 40 Minute Mentor, I’m joined by the former Bulgarian football international and Aston Villa captain, Stiliyan Petrov. Having started his professional football career in Bulgaria, Stiliyan joined Celtic, in 1999, where he went on to win ten trophies, including four Scottish Premier League titles. Following his success with Celtic, he moved to Aston Villa, ultimately becoming the club’s captain in 2009, leading the team to the semi-finals of the FA Cup and the final of the League Cup in his first season. With his career going from strength to strength, everything changed for Stiliyan in March 2012 when after going for some routine medical tests after a game, he was diagnosed with Leukaemia. He tackled this challenging part of his life with an incredible bravery and positivity and ultimately successfully beat the cancer, although the road to recovery took its toll and despite getting back to being fit and healthy, he ultimately had to retire from the professional game in May 2013. Stiliyan is extremely honest and open about the struggles he went through and it was amazing to sit down with him to learn more about his incredible career story and what he’s taken from both the highs and the lows so far. In this interview we talk about so many interesting and important topics including: Stiliyan’s early years and how he went from playing Sunday league in Bulgaria to professional football in the UK, when he didn’t speak the language! His take on what makes a great leader, how he adapted to the role of captain and his advice for others looking to get the best from their team. And his battle with cancer and post football career, how he overcame the mental and physical challenges that he faced and what the future holds for him now. As an avid Aston Villa football fan, I’ve followed Stiliyan’s journey throughout his career and it was a true honour to sit down with him and learn more about his life on and off the pitch. What he’s achieved is truly inspiring and it’s incredible to see how he’s managed to come back from such adversity to continue pursuing a career and life around the game he loves. Meeting Stiliyan dispelled a lot of the stereotypes I had about footballers. He is warm and very down to earth, honest and generous with his time and ultimately a very loyal, family man with strong values and a genuine desire to help others. I hope you enjoy listening to this very special episode and take some inspiration from Stiliyan’s amazing story and his wise mentorship. If you want to find out more about the Stiliyan Petrov Foundation and how you can help its mission to revolutionise the way leukaemia and cancer are treated, check out the Foundation's website following - http://www.thestiliyanpetrovfoundation.com/phone/index.html We’re always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode of the 40 Minute Mentor, I’m joined by founder and CEO of Rubies in the Rubble, Jenny Costa. Having started her career in finance, Jenny soon realised there was a bigger cause she felt passionate about. After reading that one third of all food produced globally is wasted, she knew she had to see it with her own eyes. So, one morning she decided to visit the New Covent Garden wholesale fruit and veg market. Her visit ended with her cycling back with baskets full of perfectly good and yet unsold produce. Produce that would have otherwise gone to landfill. That’s how Rubies in the Rubble, the UK’s leading ‘anti food waste’ brand, was founded. In 2011 Jenny started making and selling chutneys, made of produce saved from the rubbish heap. Having started with a single stall on Borough Market, Rubies in the Rubble now stocks their delicious jams, relishes, chutneys, ketchups and other condiments at major retailers, such as Waitrose, Ocado, Whole Foods and a large number of independent stores. In my conversation with Jenny, we cover some really interesting topics including: How Jenny took the leap from a lucrative career in investment management to selling home-made chutneys on Borough Market. Jenny’s key learnings as she’s taken Rubies from a single market stall to a rapidly growing business with products on the shelves of supermarkets up and down the country. And Jenny’s advice to fellow entrepreneurs on growing a team, building a successful culture and her approach to work life balance. I loved chatting to Jenny about Rubies in the Rubble and hearing how her team are disrupting the food industry with their amazing products. It was fascinating to hear her advice on how we can all help do our part to tackling the problem of food waste and how her team are setting the tone for it. It has certainly changed my view on the importance I place on the appearance of the fresh produce I buy, and hopefully my conversation with Jenny will inspire you to follow in her footsteps and reduce your own food waste too. If you want to find out more about Jenny you can check out her LinkedIn profile here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenny-costa-685b474a/ If you want to find out more about Rubies in the Rubble you can check out their website following - https://rubiesintherubble.com/ We’re always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode of the 40 Minute Mentor, I’m joined by my first guest from a tech Unicorn, as I speak with Fred Jones, Board Director and Head of New Mobility for Uber UK and Ireland. Uber need no introduction, they’re one of the world’s biggest tech businesses and have grown from a small scale start up in 2009 to one of the world’s most valuable companies, with a market cap of over $56 billion. Having started his career on Consulting, Fred joined Uber in 2015 and climbed rapidly through the company, to where he is today. For those of you who are considering making this move yourselves, Fred’s journey from Consulting into tech is a really interesting one and something we discuss in detail in today’s show. In addition to his role at Uber, Fred advises a number of start-up and scale up businesses, including ourselves here at JBM, where he provides invaluable advice to myself and the team as part of our advisory board. We cover some really interesting topics in this interview including: How Fred made the move from Consulting into tech and his advice to others thinking of doing the same. What it’s like to work at one of the world’s biggest tech unicorns and why feedback is such an important part of Uber’s culture. And Fred’s advice to aspiring leaders in tech and why he sees optimism is a key characteristic that all aspiring leaders should foster. If you want to find out more about Fred you can check out his LinkedIn profile here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/fred-jones-2b25875/?originalSubdomain=uk If you want to find out more about Uber you can check out their website - https://www.uber.com We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode you get to hear from not one, but two brilliant guests as I chat with Henry Faber and Walter Kerr, founders of Oppidan. Frustrated by shortcomings that they saw in the tuition sector, Henry and Walter set up Oppidan to tackle the pressurised, anxiety-driven education market in the U.K. Their goal was to disrupt the tuition sector by focusing on mentoring children - not simply teaching them fact. Their services help children develop critical life skills like empathy and emotional intelligence and not just how to pass their 11+. Since founding the business in 2016 they have grown rapidly and in 2017 expanded from tutoring in to summer camps with their unique, Oppidan Camps. Taking the US summer camp experience and bringing them to the U.K for children aged 7-14. We discuss so many fascinating topics during this interview and go deep in to the state of education today including: The impact that mentoring can have on children, Why it’s important for children to learn these life skills at a young age and What we can do to help level the playing field when it comes to social class and educational achievement We also dig into the business side of Oppidan and Henry and Walter share their insights in to what it’s like launching a start up in a completely new niche and the challenges they’ve had to overcome along the way. I loved chatting to Henry and Walter who are truly passionate about their business and it’s great to see them making a real difference. I took so much away from this interview and it really got me thinking about how I’ll approach some of these critical decisions for my own 3 year old daughter, Sienna, as she grows up. So if you’re currently working in the education sector, you’re a parent wanting to know how to give your child the best possible start in life or you simply want to hear how two inspiring entrepreneurs are carving a brand new niche in one of the UK’s most traditional industries, I know you’re going to love this one. If you want to find out more about Walter and Henry you can check out their LinkedIn profiles: Henry Faber - https://www.linkedin.com/in/henry-faber-7989b5109/ Walter Kerr - https://www.linkedin.com/in/walter-kerr-145308119/ If you want to find out more about Oppidan you can check out their website - https://www.oppidaneducation.com/ We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s episode is a special bonus episode which was recorded live at our JBM drinks event last month. We run these events for a mix of clients and candidates who have helped us spread the word about JBM over the years, and without whom we wouldn’t be where we are today. The goal for these evenings is to bring together a mix of talented people from diverse backgrounds to get to know each other better, make new connections and to learn from some of the best and most inspiring mentors in our network. Our special guest and your 40 Minute Mentor at this latest event was the brilliant former McKinsey Consultant Caroline Murphree, who is now the UK Director of Growth & Operations at Wealthsimple. Wealthsimple is an online investment manager that combines user-friendly digital tools and personal investment advice to make smart, automated investing available to everyone. They have over 100,000 clients globally, £2bn in assets under management and have raised over $250m Canadian Dollars to fund their impressive growth. I am pleased to say that I am one of those 100,000 clients having recently set up a Junior Isa for my daughter, Sienna and I am a big fan. Two of the questions that I get asked most often by candidates are “how do I move in to Consulting” and “how do I move in to Tech”. Having moved from Silicon Valley into Consulting and then from Consulting back to Tech, Caroline has experienced this first-hand and she shares her advice on exactly these questions in today’s interview. This conversation isn’t just focused on Caroline’s career advice though, we talk about the challenges that come with growing a rapidly scaling start up, the importance of culture and her advice for others looking to expand their business into international markets. We also touch upon her views on diversity in tech and what the industry can do to promote it as well as the key role that mentorship has helped play throughout Caroline’s career. Those who were there on the evening, the JBM team and I got a huge amount from this interview with Caroline. It was great to get the chance to speak with her and I’m really pleased to be able to share our conversation with you. As this was a live event our interview was followed by some questions from the live audience. Some of whom where a little further from the microphones than others so please excuse the fact that some of the questions at the end of this episode are a little quiet. I hope you will all really enjoy this extra special episode and learn lots from the great insights that Caroline shares! If you want to find out more about Caroline you can check out her LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-murphree-73247112/ If you want to find out more about Wealthsimple you can check out their website - https://www.wealthsimple.com We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is the brilliant Ruth Penfold, People VP at Onfido. Onfido uses machine learning to help companies verify the identity of their users online. Founded in 2012 the business has gone from strength to strength and earlier this year raised $50 million in a funding round led by SoftBank Investments and Salesforce ventures. Ruth is a phenomenal leader in the people and talent space and as People VP and part of the executive team at Onfido she is responsible for all aspects of their people strategy. Helping their ever-growing team to manage the people and recruitment challenges that come with a rapidly growing tech business. As Ruth says, her role is to create the right environment for the people of tomorrow, whilst retaining the people for today. Prior to joining Onfido Ruth was the head of talent acquisition at Shazam, responsible for managing their global recruitment as they went from start up, to scale up, to a household name. In this conversation we go into detail on Ruth’s journey with both Shazam and Onfido and discuss her experience of helping to scale two disruptive tech firms, how she is focused on creating cultures that enable individuals to bring their true self to work and how she has tackled the challenges that come with scale up life. In addition to her high-flying tech career Ruth is also a practicing yoga instructor and writes a regular blog. Her approach to balancing the different aspects of her life and ensuring she makes time for the things she enjoys is really unique and Ruth shares some great advice on how she does this in today’s show. If you’re looking to understand how to grow your own tech business, explore ways to make your firm more inclusive, or just looking for some inspirational mentorship from one of the most engaging and honest leaders that I’ve met - this conversation is a must listen! If you want to find out more about Ruth you can check out her LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthpenfold/ If you want to find out more about Onfido you can check out their website - https://onfido.com/ We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is James Routledge, Founder of Sanctus. Sanctus is a mental wellness start up that is on a mission to inspire people to work on their mental health just like we do our physical health. They have a bold vision to put the world’s first mental health gym on the high street, and I for one hope that they can achieve this. James’s passion to help others improve their mental health came from his own experience having suffered mental health issues, following the failure of his first business Match Chat, something we discuss in detail in today’s show. The idea for Sanctus actually came about when he shared this struggle in a heart-felt and honest blog where he openly talked about the journey that he and his co-founder George had been through. This blog received 100s of responses and from this initial post the idea for Sanctus was born. Since then Sanctus has grown into a large team with over 40 businesses including Aviva, Secret Escapes, Tansferwise, RedBull amongst others, to help them reframe the conversation around mental health. Their amazing work has been featured in publications including the Times, The metro, and now the 40 Minute Mentor! I have close friends and family that have had struggled with their mental health over the years so when I heard about the work Sanctus was doing and saw the refreshing honesty and humour with which James talks about it, I was really keen to get James on the podcast to have a chat. This episode was recorded shortly after mental health week here in the UK and we go into some really important topics in this interview around mental health, the challenges we all face and what you can think about to look after yours. James’s experience of launching and growing a VC funded start up and then dealing with and overcoming its failure to get to where he is today is truly inspiring. It’s a little longer than previous episodes but I know you’re going to get so much from what he shares in this interview. If you want to find out more about James you can check out his LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdroutledge1?originalSubdomain=uk If you want to find out more about Sanctus you can check out their website - https://sanctus.io/ We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is the environmental entrepreneur, Kresse Wesling MBE, who is quite simply, one of the most inspirational people I’ve ever met. Kresse is the co-founder of the award-winning business Elvis and Kresse, who turn industrial waste into innovative, luxury products and return 50% of their profits to charities related to the waste that they use. It was a chance meeting with the London Fire Brigade in 2005 that gave Kresse the idea that ultimately become the business she runs today. At the time, the London Fire Brigade sent all of their decommissioned fire hose to landfill and Kresse thought that there had be a better way to reuse and recycle it. This led Kresse and her partner Elvis – hence the brand name – to launch Elvis & Kresse. Since founding the business Elvis and Kresse has gone from strength to strength. From their origins using reclaimed firehose they now work with 12 different waste streams, have several charitable partnerships and are involved with collaborations across industries. This includes a unique partnership with the Burberry Foundation to turn Burberry’s off cut leather into stunning bags and accessories. In recognition of the incredible work she has done, she was awarded an MBE and was named Cartier’s Women in Business Laureate in 2011. She has advised global brands, governments and recently sat on a judging panel with Will I Am from the Black Eyed Peas! In this episode we cover a range of fascinating topics including: Kresse’s childhood and why she decided to leave home at 16 to attend collage half way around the world in Hong Kong. How Elvis and Kresse started the business and the challenges that they had to overcome in their early years. Kresse’s philosophy on building a team and her approach to hiring great people. And the importance of the circular economy and why it is critical to your business’s long term success. It was a lucky encounter with her partner Elvis on a train back after a rugby match many years ago that led to me getting to know Kresse and hearing about their inspiring story and unique mission, played a big role in me setting up JBM almost 7 years ago. She was also the first person I asked to join our board of advisors and has been a brilliant confidante and mentor to me over the years. So if you’re thinking about launching your own business or want to know how you and your firm can achieve profitable growth that also helps the environment then you’re going to love this interview. If you want to find out more about Kresse you can check out her LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kresse-wesling-mbe-0933646/ If you want to find out more about Elvis and Kresse you can check out their website - https://www.elvisandkresse.com/ We're always keen to get feedback so if you have any thoughts once you’ve listened to this interview just drop me an email at james@jbmc.co.uk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is Iain Martin, former Managing Director of Moonpig and the recently announced, new CEO of Mahabis. I was introduced to Iain by a client who thought we’d really get on and he was completely right. Iain’s a great guy and was kind enough to come and talk at one of our recent JBM Ambassador networking events which is where this interview was recorded. Now, Most of you will have used Moonpig at some point in your life but for those who haven’t heard of them, Moonpig are the UK’s largest online card retailer with over 15 million cards sent through their online platform in 2017 alone. Iain was one of the early members of the Moonpig team and during his time as Managing Director, he grew the business from a team of just 8 people to a team of over 160, turning over £60m a year. This phenomenal growth led to Moonpig being acquired by Photobox for £120m in 2011. Iain’s story of how he became the MD of Moonpig and his take on what’s important when growing a tech business were fascinating and he shares so many great insights during this conversation. Including how they came up with the Moonpig jingle! Those who were there on the night really benefited from his insights and advice, and I hope that you will to. If you want to find out more about Moonpig you can check out their website - https://www.moonpig.com/uk/ If you want to find out more about Mahabis you can check out their website - https://mahabis.com/ If you want to find out more about Iain you can check out his LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/iainscv/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest and our first mentor is Charlene Chen, COO at BitPesa. BitPesa is an online payment platform that leverages Blockchain technology to significantly lower the cost and increase the speed of business payments to, from and within sub-Saharan Africa. I sat next to Charlene at an Innovate Finance dinner a couple of years ago and we instantly hit it off, sharing very similar views on the importance of people, culture and mentorship. She had a fantastic energy and I found her passion for BitPesa infectious. Charlene’s story is a really interesting and inspiring one that shows what you can achieve if you chose to follow the path less well travelled. Having started her career in Consulting she decided to take some time out to complete an MBA which led to her moving to Ghana for 3 months to work with the Tech Start up, Busy Internet. This trip opened her eyes to the opportunities that existed in Africa and after completing her MBA she went back to work with companies across Kenya and Tanzania for the best part of the last decade before moving to London to launch BitPesa. We cover some really interesting topics in today’s conversation and I hope you’re going to get a lot from what Charlene has to say. Whether you’re thinking about launching your own start up, considering an MBA or thinking of going to work in a different country or continent, there’s something in here for everyone. If you want to find out more about BitPesa you can check out their website - https://www.bitpesa.co If you want to find out more about Charlene you can check out her LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlenechen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices