Scale To Win with Dominic Monkhouse

In this episode, Nikola reveals his contrarian belief that AI can be better than humans at customer service (not instead of humans, they'll do very different work), why he spent two hours on the phone with Vodafone when he got their confirmation email with someone else's name on it (and why that's not really about AI or humans), why they built a "token leaderboard" internally to track which AI tools they're using most, why junior developers will definitely beat senior ones at learning these tools (plasticity just goes down as you age), how AI gives him superpowers as a CEO (a chief of staff reminding him he promised something 4 days ago), and why their business model is "Rolls Royce for large enterprises, BMW for everyone else." He also shares his journey from a Serbian family to the University of Cambridge, how his PhD supervisor convinced him not to do a PowerPoint job at McKinsey, and why he ended up founding a voice AI company instead of working in finance (he wanted to be "a proper monkey" as well as a PowerPoint monkey, in his words).

What you'll learn:

🤖 AI can be substantially better at customer service (humans already lost their role long ago in most companies)

📞 The Vodafone example: edge cases, six different humans bouncing you around, why most companies lack taxonomy of failures

💼 Rolls Royce + BMW model (premium high-touch implementation + self-serve platform for SMBs)

🧠 Plasticity matters: junior devs will beat senior ones at learning AI tools (nature's law—ability to learn new things decreases with age)

⚡ AI superpowers for CEOs (chief of staff reminding you of commitments, transcription of meetings, Slack tracking)

🎯 Why Google can't compete (they care about ads and compute use, not customer service—you go down their priority list)

📊 "Token leaderboard" to track which AI tools you're using most

🏢 From consulting motion + tech to becoming a platform business

About the Guest:

Nikola Mrkšić is CEO and co-founder of Poly AI, a Series D company building voice AI agents for enterprise customer service. The company is a spin-out from the University of Cambridge where Nikola met his co-founders and the whole senior research team. They'd all worked on building really good voice agents for their professional and academic lives. The business started with an idea to prove voice technology can be a good thing in people's lives, not just "that pesky thing that gets you to not speak to a human when you really want to speak to a human."

Connect with Nikola Mrkšić - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikola-mrksic/

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Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:17 Series D company background and voice technology focus
02:33 AI surpassing human customer service capabilities
05:18 Personal story of frustration with customer service
08:07 Successful AI implementations in hospitality and finance
10:58 AI handling sensitive customer service cases
13:16 Broad societal changes due to AI integration
15:00 Impact of AI on workplace efficiency and team dynamics
19:30 Young people naturally adapting to AI tools
23:30 Discussion on younger generations and AI fluency
24:46 AI improving individual weaknesses in the workplace
29:10 Transition of Poly.ai to a more platform-based model
33:01 Challenges of scaling B2B SaaS in different markets
36:01 Immigrant perspective in building successful companies
40:08 Nikola's educational journey and serendipitous career path
48:21 Competitive position against major tech companies

Setting up a business is a major life decision that should not be taken lightly—it is incredibly painful. The ups definitely outweigh the downs, but the downs can be dark. Having a co-founder makes all the difference. Matthew Duhig, CEO and co-founder of FX Digital, started the business at university with his co-founder Tom, to build a website for his sister's bridal shop for free. Fifteen years later, they've grown from £1.5M to approaching £10M revenue, from 20 people to nearly 80, and they've built connected TV applications for major media and sports companies. Along the way, they had one major near-death experience when a single client became 80% of revenue, then in-housed the work down to 60%—leaving Matt and Tom with no personal wealth or assets, living together, staring at the barrel. But they believed in their proposition, backed themselves against the wall, and won 4 of 5-6 bids they needed to win, which launched them into major tech company work and one of their best years ever.

In this episode, Matt reveals his four contrarian beliefs about building businesses: (1) Running a business is incredibly painful and decision should not be taken lightly; (2) Vision comes from consumption (reading, listening, watching—not plucking it from air); (3) Don't make promises you can't control (resentment is harder to overcome than anything else in teams); (4) The job of an entrepreneur is to reduce risk (not take risks). He shares why he's an absolute delegator (sometimes great, sometimes backfires), how he managed to get off the tools when billing five days a week, why he stays in touch with 5-10 people at any given time who might be future hires, and how Barcelona became their second office (Jack the QA lead asked if he could relocate and Matt asked him to set up an office instead).

What you'll learn:

💼 Why having a co-founder is massive (not dark and lonely on your own)

🚨 What near-death looks like (80% revenue from one client, they in-house the work at 60%)

📚 Vision comes from consumption (read, listen, watch—a year of immersion in industry)

🤝 Don't make promises you can't control (resentment is the hardest thing to overcome)

⚙️ The job of an entrepreneur is to reduce risk (not take them)

🎯 Delegation as core skill (sometimes great, sometimes backfires, but necessary)

📞 Keep a pipeline of 5-10 potential hires always (chat with them, stay in touch)

🌍 Barcelona expansion lesson (talent + cost benefits + less competition than London)

Book recommendations:

The Intelligent Entrepreneur - Bill Murphy Jr. - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Intelligent-Entrepreneur-Bill-Murphy-Jr/dp/0805094296

Simple Numbers, Straight Talk, Big Profits - Greg Crabtree - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Simple-Numbers-Straight-Talk-Profits/dp/1600374514

Simple Numbers 2 - Greg Crabtree - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Simple-Numbers-Straight-Talk-Profits/dp/1600374514

About the Guest:

Matthew Duhig is CEO and co-founder of FX Digital, a business that builds connected TV applications for media and sports companies. He started the business with co-founder Tom at university when Matthew was 20 years old—Tom was away due to a bike accident in London ("Tom get well soon"), so they're running it together remotely. They grew from £1.5M revenue (7 years ago) to approaching £10M now, with headcount from 20 to nearly 80. The business evolved from web design work for his sister's bridal shop (free work) to building websites for a few years, then in 2015 they stumbled across connected TV—creating applications for TV like you create mobile applications, then launching them onto streaming platforms. That niche and doubling down on it propelled their growth.

Connect with Matthew Duhig / FX Digital - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/matthewduhig

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Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:03 Starting FX Digital and early challenges
07:15 Surviving a critical business downturn
12:59 Personal sacrifices and work-life balance
17:10 Stepping back to foster leadership growth
22:25 Delegation and leadership management strategies
28:34 Benefits of hiring fractional leaders
32:48 Building and automating key business systems
35:03 Establishing a Barcelona office for expansion
37:30 Talent acquisition benefits in Barcelona
39:42 Influential books and educational resources
41:28 Sources of ongoing inspiration and learning

We will soon trust AI more than people with their own agendas. In 50 years, we'll realise 50%+ tax was madness when 20% could have worked. Digital voting will let people vote on issues, not political parties, and we'll have an executive of 40 people (like Singapore) instead of 1,000 MPs arguing endlessly. And Brexit will be remembered as the best thing that happened—because this entrepreneurial little island will reinvent how to govern, and the rest of the world will copy us as they've done throughout history. Simon Woodroffe, founder of Yo! Sushi and YoTel, original Dragon on Dragons' Den, performer at Edinburgh Festival, recording artist with the Blockheads, and now published author of "Yo Man," has built businesses across multiple industries starting at age 45—and he's got radical ideas about politics, taxation, and why megalomaniac control at the beginning is the right way to start any business.

In this episode from Thailand (where Simon now lives with his Thai wife after being brought up in old Singapore), he reveals how he started YoSushi after a Japanese TV producer said "conveyor belt sushi bar with girls in black PVC miniskirts," flew to Japan when it was expensive and difficult (Japan was the last great mystery of the East 30 years ago), found 2,500 conveyor belt sushi bars nobody in the UK knew about, and opened Poland Street with everything he had in the world—only to have nobody come for the first two weeks. Then the second Saturday, there was a 100-yard queue down the block because they'd done something so completely different. He shares why he was nicknamed "the steamroller," why megalomaniac control is perfect at the beginning but you must let go after three years, how he hired Robin Rowland who closed all the Yo Below bars much to Simon's chagrin (but was absolutely right), and why he's earned roughly 1% of YoTel turnover every quarter for years—which has funded everything since and probably saved him from going broke.

Book recommendations:

How to Get Rich - Felix Dennis - https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Get-Rich-Felix-Dennis/dp/0091927447

Yo Man - Simon Woodroffe - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Yo-Man-Simon-Woodroffe/dp/1398616761

About the Guest:

Simon Woodroffe is the founder of YoSushi (celebrating 30 years in January) and YoTel (now over 30 hotels worldwide, much bigger business than YoSushi), original Dragon on Dragons' Den (series 1-3), performer at Edinburgh Festival where he did a one-man show, recording artist with the Blockheads, and published author of "Yo Man" (his second book—the first was his autobiography). He's done a few things. He's 77 years old, was brought up in old Singapore, has lived all over the world, and now lives in Thailand with his Thai wife. His home base is Thailand because it's the best place he's found after searching everywhere.

Simon started YoSushi at age 45 after a long, hard life that hasn't always been good. He's now a licensor of both YoSushi and YoTel, broadcasting on social media, and trying to give something back to the world to improve it—whether politically or directly helping one person at a time. He always said that when he was knocking on other people's doors, if he was ever the one whose door was knocked on (which is the situation he finds himself in now), he would always try to respond to everybody. And he does.

Connect with Simon Woodroffe - https://www.linkedin.com/in/yosimonwoodroffe/

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Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:01 Introduction to Simon Woodroffe's journey and achievements
02:37 Simon on world improvements and his life in Thailand
03:47 Predictions on digital voting and government change
06:37 A small executive model for better governance
10:00 Reducing taxes by changing government spending
12:00 Trusting AI over human biases for balanced insights
14:06 Launch of Simon's book, Yo Man, and the ATM story
16:57 Bringing conveyor belt sushi to London
20:05 Transition from steamroller to delegator in business
21:36 Successful expansion under Robin Rowland's leadership
24:10 Involvement in Yotel and its global success
28:59 Importance of theatre and 'ziz' in business branding
30:07 Letting go of control for business growth
31:28 Transition to TV and participation in Dragon's Den
35:14 Enjoying Dragon's Den and investments made
38:08 Overcoming challenges during Yo Sushi's opening weeks
42:29 Creative 'yo' brand extensions and their impacts
45:01 Making tough business decisions swiftly and confidently

Conflict is not a dirty word. You don't need a trigger warning; you need to know the trigger better. Don't rush to solve the problem. And when you're negotiating, remember it's not about you. Scott Walker is a kidnap-for-ransom and extortion negotiator who's spent 20 years with a ringside seat into what makes human beings think, feel, and act—particularly in times of stress, overwhelm, challenge, and conflict. Over 300 cases across every major continent, and touch wood, every single person came back. That's a 100% success rate in an industry where the average is 93% (better than the All Blacks' win rate), and all those lessons apply directly to everyday business and life.

In this episode, Scott reveals why 80% of his time on a kidnapping case was spent dealing with the crisis within the crisis (internal politics, egos, competing demands, silo thinking—not the kidnappers), why the conflict call with bad guys is essential (managing expectations when they want £10M but you're offering £250K), and the immediate action drill he learned after threatening grieving parents in his first case. He shares why most leaders spend their time dealing with internal politics rather than customers, why feeling seen-heard-understood is the only thing people want in a negotiation, and why resilience isn't something you hashtag on a mug—it only comes from doing hard things and being uncomfortable. Plus: how he went from Scotland Yard detective inspector avoiding paper cuts to three live kidnaps in his first week in the private sector, and why the All Blacks' motto "don't be a dick" is actually brilliant negotiation advice.

What you'll learn:

⚔️ Why conflict is essential (embrace difficult conversations without being belligerent)

🎯 The empathy loop: demonstrate understanding first, it's not about you

⏸️ The immediate action drill: interrupt pattern, ride the 90-second cortisol wave, ask better questions

🧠 Why you don't need trigger warnings (develop skills to handle anything, don't control others)

🚫 Why rushing to solve problems is dangerous (buy time, find the real issue)

👂 How to listen at level five (not for gist or to argue, but for what's really being said)

💡 Why 60% of sales don't close (people think it's too risky for them personally, not the company)

📊 The crisis within the crisis (80% of time spent on internal politics, not the bad guys)

Book recommendations:

Legacy - James Kerr - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legacy-All-Blacks-James-Kerr/dp/1472103536

Awaken the Giant Within - Tony Robbins - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Awaken-Giant-Within-Immediate-Emotional/dp/0671791540

How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie - https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0091906814

About the Guest:

Scott Walker is a kidnap-for-ransom and extortion negotiator who's spent the best part of 20 years having a ringside seat into what makes human beings think, feel, and act—particularly in times of stress, overwhelm, challenge, and conflict. Over 300-plus cases (including piracy and extortion) across every major continent, and touch wood, every single person came back. That's a 100% personal success rate in an industry where the global average over 50 years is 93%—better than the All Blacks' win rate at roughly 90%, and vastly better than most salespeople's 30% close rate.

Connect with Scott Walker - https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottaw/

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Sign up to receive our weekly Curious Leadership newsletter:

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Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:

https://linkedin.com/in/dominicmonkhouse

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to negotiation and life skills
03:09 Personal anecdotes about family and negotiation
14:08 Aligning with clients to uncover real issues
21:11 Developing resilience and managing emotions
25:37 Techniques for emotional control and effective questioning
29:12 Journey from the police to a negotiation career
36:54 Handling difficult workplace conversations
40:25 Book recommendations and learning influence skills
44:44 Final thoughts and closing remarks

Failure is a better business school than an MBA. Most agencies will never scale because their founder is the product. Minority investment beats full acquisition. And self-doubt isn't a weakness to overcome—it's the edge that separates high performers from those who are growing. Luke Tobin, entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Unusual Group, has built and sold three companies in three different industries over 20 years (the largest being Digital Ethos with an eight-figure exit in late 2022), and he's learned that the people we look up to the most—the ones who seem to have it all figured out—are often the ones who struggle with doubt the most. The difference? They find a way to move anyway.

In this episode, he reveals why imposter syndrome appears when you're stepping outside your comfort zone (which means you're doing something productive), why he's writing a book about doubt after interviewing 30 high performers from ex-SBS commandos to actors, and why doubt is actually the cost of admission to the next level. He also shares hard lessons from scaling to 90 people before his exit, hiring 5-6 people per month without proper vetting, and making the mistake of being the eye of the storm instead of creating mini-storms with good people.

What you'll learn:

🧠 Why self-doubt is the cost of admission to the next level (imposter syndrome = you're expanding, not retracting)
📚 Why failure beats an MBA (founders with scars are shrewder, better, wiser)
🎯 Why most agencies never scale (founder is the product, won't delegate, sits at eye of storm)
👥 How to transition from basketball (50 people, you're on court) to football (100 people, you're off field)
💰 Why minority investment beats majority acquisition (founders lose motivation after 60-70% exit)
📊 The hiring mistake: loyalty vs capability (promoting based on tenure, not experience)
✅ Unique hiring practice: pay candidates for full week in business before offer (non-negotiable for mid-tier+)
🏢 Why remote work is dangerous for junior people (no water cooler conversations, no training)

Book recommendations:

Never Split the Difference - Chris Voss - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/1847941494

The Psychology of Money - Morgan Housel - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Psychology-Money-Timeless-lessons-happiness/dp/0857197681

The Obstacle is the Way - Ryan Holiday - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Obstacle-Way-Ancient-Adversity-Advantage/dp/1781251492

About the Guest:

Luke Tobin is an entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Unusual Group, a holding company investing in marketing and creative service businesses to help them scale without losing control. He's been building companies for over 20 years with three successful exits in three different industries, each one bigger than the last. The largest was Digital Ethos, a performance marketing agency he sold in late 2022 after scaling to 90 people with an eight-figure exit. He's also a partner in a venture studio in San Diego rolling out consumer goods products, and he has 800,000 followers on social media where he shares success psychology week to week.

Sign up to receive our weekly Curious Leadership newsletter:
https://subscribe.monkhouseandcompany.com

Follow Dominic on LinkedIn:
https://linkedin.com/in/dominicmonkhouse

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction
01:00 Luke's business background
03:14 Debunking common entrepreneurial myths
09:15 Perceptions shaping our reality and decisions
15:43 Biggest business failures and lessons learned
19:46 Preventing businesses from getting stuck due to founder focus
28:32 Transitioning from founder to CEO roles
30:07 Balancing remote and in-office work environments
35:58 Cultivating leadership and curiosity for business growth
40:19 Recommended books for personal and professional development