Cameron Kinloch

True Vantage Partners

I work with CEOs, founders, executive teams and Boards to accelerate growth and strengthen governance during critical inflection points - fundraising, scale up, IPO prep, and M&A. 

My expertise spans Finance, Biz Ops, HR, Legal, and RevOps across a wide range of industries.

Key Projects:
• M&A Advisory: Led diligence, buyer negotiations, and Board updates for a fintech company exploring strategic alternatives.
• PE Portfolio Company Scale-Up: Built Finance, HR, and Legal functions from scratch for a PE-backed company to enable scale under new ownership.
• Fundraising & Forecasting: Developed 5-year models and investor decks that supported successful Seed and Series A raises.
• Liquidity Planning: Designed cash flow and scenario models to guide capital planning and lender alignment for high-growth businesses.
• Operating Discipline: Introduced OKRs and operating "rhythm of business" that improved alignment and accountability across teams.
• Biz Ops & RevOps: Helped establish forecasting, GTM analytics, and cross-functional planning processes.

I advise, support, and execute, bringing C-suite and Board-level perspective while helping companies build the financial and operational foundations to reach key milestones.

Board, CEO & CFO Advisor

EROAD

EROAD is a public telematics company, dual listed on the NZX/ASX exchanges. Member of the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee and the Nominations Committee.

Independent Board Director, Audit & Nom Gov Committees

Copper Cow Coffee

Independent Board Director

Weights & Biases

Successful exit to CoreWeave in May 2025.  W&B is building the best in-class, enterprise grade tools for AI developers. 

I am incredibly proud of our achievements at W&B. To highlight a few:

• Significant company scaling with 10x ARR growth and headcount growth from 90 to 270
• Built Finance & Legal teams from 0 to 15 + staff; supported scaling of People, Rev Ops and Deal Desk
• Launched first long-range model, AOP, and board reporting
• Forecast accuracy >97 %
• Closed $50M Series C-2 and managed investor relations
• Implemented treasury program
• Completed clean Deloitte first-year audit with no audit adjustments
• Deployed NetSuite, Pigment, Airbase; cut close to 8 days
• Opened Japan entity

Chief Financial Officer

Guided Board and CEO through M&A exit to private equity. Chair of Strategic Planning Committee. Finance Committee.

Independent Board Director, Audit & Strategic Planning Committees

Dynamic Signal

Led successful M&A exit to private equity for enterprise SaaS company with 30% of the Fortune 100 as customers. 

Led all M&A workstreams for the company (banker selection, diligence, negotiation of deal terms, closing of the transaction and integration) while also leading Finance, Legal and Revenue Operations.

Bulletproof 360

Joined as CFO of Bulletproof.  Promoted to COO and added to the Board of Directors within 6 weeks of joining.  The full executive team reported into me.

• Full operational responsibility across Sales, Marketing, e-Commerce, Supply Chain, R&D, Finance, Legal, HR, and Customer Service
• Restructured operations and cost structure to achieve profitability within 6 months
• Led creation of Compensation and Audit Committees and refinement of corporate governance policies and practices

Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Board Director

Ripple Foods

Full CFO responsibilities. Recruited to lead all Finance functions reporting to the CEO.

• Board: Led Board discussions on financials.  Managed Board agenda and resolutions
• Financings: $65mm Series C announced January 2018; led upsize of large debt facilities
• Audit: Managed successful completion of first year audit
• Team: Built out Accounting and FP&A team from 2 to 8 in ten months

SVP, Finance

Ripple

Full CFO responsibilities for global enterprise software and payments company, reporting to CEO.

Recruited to lead all Finance and Facilities functions.  Finance responsibilities spanned FP&A, Accounting, Business Intelligence, Investor Relations, Revenue Operations, Treasury, and Tax.

• Strategy: Developed framework to refine and drive alignment to long-term company strategy 
• Finance: $55mm Series B announced September 2016. Transformed Finance into a strategic partnering function across entire business and built out key finance functions from scratch
• Operations: Drove operational maturity and excellence as the company rapidly scaled its enterprise sales. Scoped, established and helped hire key roles across the company
• Metrics: Created company goal setting process and responsible for cascading goals throughout the organization. Defined key company metrics
• Tax: Led initiatives to optimize company's global tax structure
• Investor Relations: Established IR function for digital asset and equity investors
• Facilities: Led global facilities function and full build-out of 30,000 sq. ft new HQ

VP of Finance

Box, Sunrun

Recruited to establish and scale critical finance functions and the FP&A organization at several incredible companies.  Built teams and established finance functions from scratch through hyper-growth, international expansion, multiple acquisitions and IPO.  

Took Box through the S-1 process and Sunrun through IPO. Took on progressively larger and more senior roles culminating in VP, FP&A role.

VP of FP&A

As a CFO, COO and 4x Board Director, I bring over 20 years of experience leading companies through pivotal transitions and driving strategic growth. 

Here's how I've helped some of the most prominent startups on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley scale:

↳ Led companies to triple-digit growth and profitability within six months.
↳ Spearheaded numerous eight-digit debt, equity, and convertible fundraises.  Achieved 100% direct sales growth while reducing costs by 20%.
↳ Advised CEOs and companies ranging from $2M to $450M+ in revenue through multiple funding rounds, IPOs and M&A exits. 
↳ Served on 4 boards, both private and public, guiding CEOs and management teams.
    
I grew up in LA where grit and education were non-negotiable. That drive took me from a public school to Harvard—and eventually to Wall Street.

My time on Wall Street was a wild ride. While I loved the fast-paced world of finance, I found my true passion in Silicon Valley, helping tech companies grow and succeed.

I’ve enjoyed combining my financial expertise with the innovative spirit of startups, guiding them through growth, IPOs, and successful exits. In the past decade, I've had the chance to work with visionary founders, helping them scale while setting them up for long-term success.

Now, I’m on a mission to help companies grow, using everything I’ve learned.

Here’s how I can help you:

1) Speak at your event on leadership, finance, or scaling startups.
2) Advise your company on navigating growth challenges, preparing for an IPO, or improving financial performance.

Shoot me a DM or email me at cameron.kinloch@gmail.com, and we’ll chat more.

We are building the best in-class, enterprise grade tools for AI developers. Our vision is to be the single system of records for all things AI within an organization.

Used by teams at NVIDIA, OpenAI, Lyft, Blue River Technology, Toyota, and MILA, W&B is part of the new standard of best practices for AI.

Early in my career as a CFO, I opened a 60-slide board deck to present in our quarterly meeting.

By slide 4, the Chair stopped me and asked, “Cameron, what do you want from us?”

That question stung and it changed how I run boards forever. 💡

Board meetings aren’t report-outs.
They’re decision forums.

It’s not about reciting metrics or proving effort.
It’s about getting clarity on what moves next. 🎯

Here’s the 3-step formula I now follow to make that happen:

1) Start with the ask.

Before you open your deck, be clear on what you need from the board.
A decision? A green light? A perspective?

If you can’t summarize your ask in one sentence, you’re not ready to present.

2) Simplify the narrative.

Most CFOs think the board wants everything. They don’t.

They want the why and the so what. Cut the noise, connect the dots, and frame every slide around what truly matters to the business.

3) Tie every metric to a story.

Don’t stop at “what happened.” Explain “why it matters” and “what we’ll do next.”

Every metric should lead somewhere, otherwise, it’s trivia.

Once I reframed meetings around action, everything changed.
Our discussions became faster, decisions clearer, and execution sharper. ⚡

That shift also supercharged trust.

The board began seeing finance not as a function but as a strategic partner that keeps the business moving forward.

If you’re a CFO still measuring success by how much you present → flip it.

Measure it by how clearly the board moves after you’re done.

P.S. I advise CFOs and VPs of Finance on building decision clarity, tighter narratives, and leadership rhythms that move the business forward. Reach out if you want to strengthen how your team shows up in the boardroom.

Board Director | CFO & COO | 4 Exits, 2 IPOs | Advisor to High-Growth CEOs and CFOs

After 15 years in the C-suite and 4 board seats, I’ve noticed the same mistakes that quietly stop talented finance leaders from becoming CFO:

1) They think like controllers, not operators.

CFOs don’t just report numbers - they shape decisions.

If you never talk about customers, product, competitive pressure, or revenue levers, you’re signaling you’re a functional expert… not an enterprise leader.

2) They build relationships up, not across.

Great CFOs aren’t just trusted by the CEO and board.

They’re trusted by GTM, Product, Ops, and People because they show up early, listen, and help solve real problems.

3) They can model a forecast but not tell the story.

The CFOs who earn board confidence connect everything in one clean thread: what’s happening, why it matters, what options exist, and the trade-offs behind each path.

Boards remember the narrative - not the spreadsheet.

4) They wait to be invited in.

Future CFOs don’t sit back. They initiate scenario plans, pressure-test strategy, and surface risks before anyone asks.

5) They stay stuck in precision mode.

Perfect accuracy slows companies down.

Standout CFOs set decision thresholds, embrace scenario ranges, and call out the unknowns so the business can move faster.

6) They solve today’s problem, not the next stage.

Boards choose the leader who can scale the company from $20M → $50M, $50M → $200M, or pre-IPO → public.

Your mindset must shift with the stage.

7) They underestimate how much the CFO role is leadership.

Most misses aren’t technical - they’re about influence.
CFOs lead rooms, drive alignment, and bring clarity in moments where ambiguity is high.

The difference between a great finance leader and a CFO isn’t technical skill.
It’s how you think, how you lead, and how you show up.

PS: I coach finance leaders on strategic storytelling, board communication, and executive presence. If you’d like to explore working together, send me a DM.

Starbucks’ new CFO, Cathy Smith, turned heads this year with a $5 million cash signing bonus and a $6.4 million equity grant.

But the real headline isn’t the pay.

It’s why she was hired.

Smith stepped in at a moment when Starbucks was facing:

☕ Multiple quarters of declining same-store sales
☕ A weakening emotional connection with customers
☕ A culture and operating model that needed a reset

This wasn’t a “steady state” CFO hire.

It was a turnaround hire paired intentionally with CEO Brian Niccol.

Because today’s CFO mandate has changed.

It’s not just a finance problem.
It’s a leadership problem.

And that’s exactly why she was chosen.

Boards today don’t want CFOs who just balance books.
They want CFOs who can lead the business forward.

It’s no longer about reporting what happened, it’s about shaping what happens next.

1) From finance leader → enterprise leader

Cathy Smith wasn’t hired to oversee accounting.
She was hired to rebuild momentum - Using finance as the lens for execution, culture, and customer experience

2) From data → narrative building

Financial Precision matters, but it doesn’t move people
The CFO who can extract meaning behind earnings, costs, and forecasts, and turn it into a clear story, inspires belief across investors, employees, and the board.

3) From siloed thinking → cross-functional leadership

Turnarounds don’t happen from one department.
The most effective CFOs align teams, re-energize culture, and enable faster, better decisions across the entire business.

Starbucks didn’t hire Cathy Smith for where the company is.

They hired her for where it needs to go.

And they placed a bet that finance leadership can help drive that shift.

Lesson:

The CFOs who shape the future - not just report the past - are the ones defining the next era of leadership.

PS: If you’re a CFO or VP of Finance preparing for that next step, I coach leaders on the real levers of the role: strategic narrative, board communication, and enterprise leadership. DM me if you want to explore working together.

Forbes called her the most powerful and influential CFO of the last decade…

But when Google hired Ruth Porat in 2015, most analysts doubted she was the right fit.

A Wall Street operator at an innovation-driven tech giant? 
Many assumed her discipline would slow Google down.

The opposite happened:

📈 Alphabet’s market value grew past $3 trillion during her tenure
🚀 The stock jumped after her early earnings calls
💡 The company consistently beat revenue and profit expectations

Here’s what she actually changed - and what today’s CFOs can learn from her:

1) Anchor decisions in data.

Porat was famous for saying, “The answer is a number.”
Data over opinions. Signal over noise. It cut through politics fast.

2) Replace passion projects with real frameworks.

She introduced structure to how Google funded big bets.
Teams had to prove why they deserved capital - not just ask for it.

3) Challenge the status quo.

She pushed back on excess, tightened spend, and reset expectations.
Not to clip innovation - but to fuel the right innovation.

4) Think in decades, not quarters.

Her support for AI and Cloud was grounded in long-term value creation.
CFOs don’t just protect the present. They underwrite the future.

5) Earn investor trust through transparency.

By separating core results from “Other Bets,” she gave investors clarity.
Clarity → confidence → multiple expansion.

Porat didn’t shrink Google. She sharpened it.

That’s the new era of finance leadership:

CFOs don’t just keep companies healthy. 

They shape strategy.
They influence product priorities. 
They build investor conviction. 
And they make the long term impossible to ignore. 💪

PS: If you’re a CFO or VP of Finance preparing for that next step, I coach leaders on the real levers of the role: strategic narrative, board communication, and enterprise leadership. 

DM me if you want to explore working together.

At 25, my boss called me into her office...

"You're making great progress, but we're holding off on the promotion..."

I didn’t get it.

Now that I’m in the C-suite, I see why that promotion never came.

I was the hardest worker in the room.
Answering emails at midnight.
Taking every project.
Saying 'yes' to everything.

But here’s what I didn’t understand then:
Hard work isn’t the same as visible impact. 💡

I kept my head down. 
I never talked about my wins. 
I never connected my work to the bigger business story.

20 years later, I still see employees being misled.

❌ The hardest worker doesn’t get promoted.
❌ The smartest worker doesn’t get promoted.

✅ The person who shows their value gets promoted.

Your work won't speak for itself.
You have to.

Make your value impossible to miss.

- Pitch your ideas in meetings
- Talk about your career goals during 1:1s
- Tie your wins to business objectives
- Bring solutions, not just problems
- Celebrate milestones through internal channels

Quiet mouths don’t get fed.

And in your career, visibility is a skill - not a personality trait.

Early in my tenure as a board director, I emailed a question about an assumption in the financial model.

Within hours...

- The Chair acknowledged the question
- A fellow director asked for clarification
- Management responded with context the next day
- The item was added to the next meeting agenda

That simple exchange told me everything → this board values transparency, accountability, and speed.

And I realized you can learn a lot about a board’s culture from something small: how they respond when a director raises a concern over email.

On less mature boards, the same note is met with silence, defensiveness, or deferral.

And the truth is, concerns don’t disappear.

 They just reappear later as bigger, more expensive problems.

Governance reveals itself in small moments.

A healthy board:

✅ Acknowledges
✅ Clarifies
✅ Discusses
✅ Acts

An unhealthy board avoids all four.

We talk a lot about culture in the boardroom, but you can usually see it long before the meeting starts.

In 2003, Michael Fiddelke joined Target as a finance intern.
In 2019, he became CFO.
In 2026, he’s set to become the CEO of the $106 billion giant.

Here’s a big lesson if you’re a finance professional and you want to scale your career:
🎯 Think beyond finance.

Fiddelke didn’t rise to the top just by mastering accounting entries or delivering perfect forecasts.

He rotated through merchandising, operations, supply chain, and strategy.
He learned how the business actually works.

That’s the part most finance professionals miss.
Here’s what thinking beyond finance actually looks like:

1) Understand how money moves. 

Go beyond the P&L. Learn where value is created, where it leaks, what slows revenue down, and what accelerates it.

2) Speak the language of operators.

Talk in customer impact, velocity, margin, and growth. When you translate numbers into business outcomes, influence goes up.

3) Build cross-functional trust. 

The best insights live with the people closest to the work. When they trust you, they’ll tell you what the spreadsheet never will.

4) Drive decisions.

Executives don’t need more data, they need clarity. Frame trade-offs, recommend a path, make decisions easy to act on. Then you’re a strategic partner, not just a reporting function.

5) Solve problems outside finance

Fixing bottlenecks in GTM, product, or ops grows your impact far faster than polishing another report.

The truth is simple:

You don’t grow your career just by getting better at finance.
You accelerate when you become more valuable to the business. 💡

That’s the shift Fiddelke made early.

And it’s exactly the shift high-growth finance professionals need to make now.

P.S. After 15+ years in the C-suite, 4 exits, and 2 IPOs, I now coach finance leaders on strategic storytelling, board communication, and executive leadership. If you’d like to explore working together, send me a DM.

12 career principles I’ve learned as a C-suite leader and 4x Board Director that I wish I knew on day one:

👇

1) Become the go-to person for hard problems. Solve what others avoid and you become impossible to replace. 💡

2) The best communicator wins.
It’s not the idea - it’s your ability to get others to believe in it.

3) You don’t get what you deserve. You get what you negotiate. Closed mouths don’t get promoted.

4) No one gets promoted for “doing their job.” Growth comes from stretching beyond your job description.

5) Make other people look good. If you help them win, they’ll pull you up with them. 🤝

6) Soft skills pay the highest ROI. Selling, influencing, navigating tough conversations - that’s leverage.

7) Speed matters. Fast movers get more opportunities because they create momentum.

8) Grow by being the least experienced person in the room. If you’re always the expert, you’re not learning anymore.

9) Being right isn’t enough. If you can’t persuade, you can’t lead.

10) Your first decade is about skills, not salary. Chase learning. The comp follows competence. 🎯

11) Reputation compounds. Every action builds or erodes your future opportunities. Protect it.

12) People don’t follow titles. They follow value. Become someone worth listening to.

What’s one lesson you wish you knew earlier?
Let me know in the comments.

I used to think the CFO role was about numbers.

Then I delivered a financial review with flawless charts, metrics, and margin breakdowns only for my CEO to look confused and say, “Cameron, what do I do with this?”

And that’s when it hit me:
Data doesn’t drive decisions, context does.

The best finance leaders translate reporting into business clarity. Here’s how:

1) Lead with the insight, not format.

❌ Here’s our revenue trend.
✅ Revenue is up 12%, but 80% of that growth came from one segment - concentration risk is rising.

Start with the meaning.
Start with why it matters.
Start with the thing people will remember.

When you give the takeaway first, the numbers finally have a reason to exist.

2) End with “So what?” and “What’s next?”

A great review doesn’t show what happened. It clarifies what leaders should do about it.

Before sharing any number, ask:

- Is this a risk to mitigate?
- An opportunity to accelerate?
- A decision that needs to be made?

Then close with a path forward:
“Here are the options, here’s the impact of each, and here’s what I recommend.”

Finance earns influence by offering judgment, not just information.

3) Turn variance analysis into a story about cause, not blame.

❌ We missed targets.
✅ We missed due to delayed hiring and slower onboarding. If we adjust sequencing and speed ramp time by 30 days, we recover trajectory.

Great finance leaders replace emotion with:

→ Pattern recognition
→ Accountability
→ Clear next steps

Because companies don’t need more reporting. They need clarity.

___ 

Once I shifted from presenting numbers to shaping decisions, everything changed:

⚡ Teams moved faster.
🎯 Leaders made sharper calls.
🚀 Execution tightened because priorities were obvious.

Finance becomes strategic when the story sticks.

P.S. After 15 years in the C-suite and four board seats, I now advise finance leaders on the skills that matter most: partnering with CEOs, communicating with boards, and leading at the executive level.

If you’re sharpening those muscles, reach out.

My CEO once said in frustration, “Cameron, can’t we just agree for once?”

We were prepping board materials, and I kept pushing back on his assumptions.

Early in my career, I saw moments like this as conflict.
Now, I see them for what they really are - trust being tested. 🤝

The best CEO–CFO relationships aren’t built on harmony.
They’re built on truth.

My job isn’t to match the CEO’s optimism or nod along.
It’s to protect clarity.

Here’s what great partnership actually looks like:

🧩 Challenge privately, align publicly It builds credibility in both directions.

🎯 Speak in tradeoffs, not turf wars “What’s the cost?” and “What’s the upside?” are the real questions.

📊 Push for facts, even when it’s uncomfortable

Respect grows when you bring precision, not politics.

A good CFO manages numbers.
A great CFO manages tension.

Alignment doesn’t mean agreement.

It means friction delivered with respect - and clarity that elevates the whole company.

P.S. If you’re a finance or operations leader trying to build this kind of trust with your CEO, I coach leaders through exactly that shift. DM me if that’s where you want to grow.

If you’re a CFO getting labeled “too cautious” or “too tough,” here’s the real story:

You’re doing exactly what the business needs.

Here’s why:

1) You protect the company from bad spending

When the world expected Apple to chase splashy acquisitions, CFO Luca Maestri stayed disciplined. No wasteful M&A. No undisciplined expansion.

A focus on efficiency, capital returns, and precision in R&D.
Instead, he doubled down on operational efficiency, capital returns, and precision in R&D spending.

✅ Result: Apple’s stock value grew approximately 800%, and its cash reserves now exceed $160 billion giving it the freedom to innovate that no competitor can match.

2) You ask the questions no one wants to answer.

When Ruth Porat joined Google as CFO in 2015, she immediately started asking uncomfortable questions about spending priorities and accountability.

She cut unnecessary moonshot projects and demanded clarity on ROI for each initiative.
Critics said she was “too strict” for Google’s free-spending culture.

✅ Result: Google’s market capitalization soared from $384 billion to nearly $3 trillion during her tenure, and she set the standard for financial focus in Big Tech.

3) You choose integrity over popularity.

As a finance leader and later CEO, Indra Nooyi resisted pressure to optimize only for short-term profits. She pushed PepsiCo toward healthier categories.
A move Wall Street initially hated.

✅ Result: PepsiCo evolved into one of the most diversified and future-ready CPG portfolios while competitors played catch-up.

The traits people criticize in CFOs are often the ones that keep companies resilient when things go wrong.

Leadership isn’t about being liked. It’s about being responsible.

After 15 years in the C-suite, 3 M&A exits, and 2 IPOs, I now help VPs of Finance and incoming CFOs sharpen their leadership, communication, and board presence. If you want to operate like the strategic partner every CEO wants, DM me.

There have been moments in my career as a board director where I’ve looked around the table and realized I was the only one with my hand up.

And I felt a familiar hesitation → “Is it just me?”

But here’s what experience teaches you:

Board work isn’t about avoiding disagreement.
It’s about protecting the decision.

Asking the lone question isn’t a sign you’re out of sync.

It’s often a sign you’re seeing something others haven’t processed yet.

Here’s why those questions matter:

1) Timing matters → early questions prevent late surprises.

In the early 2000s, LEGO was near bankruptcy after expanding into too many unrelated products.

The board asked a pivotal question: “What business are we really in?”

Refocusing on core brick-based play laid the foundation for their turnaround. 🎯

2) Discomfort matters → the best questions feel awkward before they become necessary.

When a question feels risky, it’s usually because it challenges an assumption the group has quietly accepted as truth.

That’s when a board earns its keep - by seeking a truer picture, not a more comfortable one.

3) Conviction matters → if it sits in your mind, it deserves airtime. 🔁

In the 1980s, Intel was still clinging to its memory-chip business even as Japan dominated the market.

Andy Grove kept asking why Intel was fighting to save a business it had already lost.

That conviction drove Intel to pivot to microprocessors -A decision that shaped the next 30 years of computing.

4) Perspective matters → fresh eyes catch what familiarity filters out.

Teams closest to a decision stop seeing its weak points. 🧩

A question from someone less entangled can break the certainty loop and reframe the entire discussion.

Remember:

Board work isn’t about perfect alignment.
It’s about pressure testing the decision until it’s truly sound.

And sometimes the most valuable person in the room is the one willing to raise a hand when no one else does.

One of the most important leadership lessons I’ve learned is this:
Hire for capacity, not comfort.

I learned that 15 years ago at Goldman.

I had years of capital markets experience - but not the traditional investment-banking background.

A Partner hired me anyway.

She wasn’t optimizing for familiarity.
She was optimizing for growth.

→ She saw trajectory, not gaps
→ She saw velocity, not pedigree
→ She saw how fast I could scale, not what I hadn’t done yet

And she didn’t shelter me from the work.

From day one, I was staffed on the hardest deals:

📈 70-hour weeks absorbing the pace of banking
📊 High-stakes negotiations with seasoned clients
⏳ Tight deadlines building and defending complex models

It was intense, uncomfortable, and career-defining.

But that experience shaped how I evaluate talent today - as a CFO, as a board director, and as a leader of teams:

- Who learns fastest under pressure?
- Who can operate at altitude before they feel “ready”?
- Who grows into stretch, not away from it?
- Who has the judgment to scale into bigger roles?

Capacity is the real differentiator.

Not resume lines.
Not prior roles.
Not perfect pedigree.

The leaders who bet on capacity build organizations that outperform.

The leaders who hire for comfort build teams that stall.

I’ve seen $500M+ companies crash post-IPO.
On the other hand, I’ve seen $100M companies thrive.

At Goldman, I helped evaluate IPO candidates and prepare them for the public stage.

In Silicon Valley, I was Head of FP&A at Sunrun and Box through their IPO journeys.

I’ve sat on both sides of the table.

And the brutal lesson is always the same:
Maturity beats size.

Most CEOs and CFOs nail the table-stakes metrics:

✅ Revenue growth rates
✅ Market size projections
✅ Competitive positioning

But the real predictors go deeper.

Here are the 5 signals that separate IPO-ready companies from the rest:

1) Consistent Performance → Six or more quarters of steady execution, hitting guidance even when markets shift.

2) Operational Discipline → 5-day close or less, SOX-ready controls, teams that thrive under investor scrutiny.

3) Narrative Clarity → CEO and CFO can articulate the growth story in one sentence - and analysts can repeat it.

4) Leadership Alignment → Management and the board united on strategy, numbers, and messaging.

5) Market Pull → Analysts already tracking and investors leaning in before the S-1.

Here’s the truth:

💪 IPO ≠ graduation ceremony
🎯 IPO = starting gun for quarterly judgment

The companies that thrive don’t just prepare for a financing event.
They build the muscles of a public company long before they ever file.

The real question isn’t: “Have we hit $X in revenue?”
It’s: “Are we mature enough to deliver quarter after quarter?”

P.S. I advise CEOs, CFOs, and boards on IPO readiness, governance, and financial strategy, drawing on 20+ years across Wall Street and Silicon Valley, 3 M&A exits, and 2 IPOs.

If your company is preparing to go public, now is the time to build those muscles.

LinkedIn should make you money, not drain your time. I turn CEOs into the most trusted voice in their market, FAST, with only 1 hour per week. | Top 1% LinkedIn Storyteller | CEO of Storytold

You’re busy running a company. You don’t have hours to spend on LinkedIn trying to guess what to post, why nobody responds, or how everyone else seems to be growing while you stay stuck.


That’s where Storytold comes in.


We turn your LinkedIn into a powerful lead engine, with almost no extra work from you.

We write your posts, rebuild your profile, create your content, grow your audience, and help you show up as the leader people want to follow.


All you do is talk with us for an hour a week, and approve what we create.


We handle everything else. Suddenly, your wasted 20 hours a week coming up with new ideas and writing content, just went down to 1 hour per week.


With Storytold, you get:

→ More time back each week

→ More trust from your audience

→ More leads without chasing anyone

→ More visibility with the people who matter

→ More momentum than you’ve ever had on LinkedIn


Our proven system works because it’s built on psychology, storytelling, and years of results with CEOs and world-leading companies.


If you’re tired of posting and getting nothing…

If you want LinkedIn to actually bring in clients…

If you want to look, sound, and perform like the expert you already are…

Book a call with us:   →  cal.com/storytold

Let’s get your story told.

Jack Dyer🕺

Well, that was a success!



This week, my team and I went
to The Business Show London 
and saw 25,000 businesses!

And only a few stood out to us.

We'll be promoting you next week.
Today I'm sharing the adventures 
of our newest team member... 

Jeff Von Duckington!

He's been giving out discounts like
he doesn't give a duck, and only 
a select few people were lucky
enough to meet him this week!

We met many who 
weren't duck-worthy. 

But if we gave you a duck, it means
you made a big impression on us
and we'd love to work with you!

Watch this space. Good things are coming next week.

Natasha, Gabrielle and
I will get your Storytold™
Trust me on this one.

🕺



Some fantastic people:

David Francis, Gemma Kavanagh and Richard Collins

Amie Crews and Paddy Keogh Weller

Katie Shaw and Jessica Hart

Nicola Lyle and Stella Chaplin,

Simon P. and Erina Singh Ellis,

Mike Strange and Clare Bungey

Russell Schaller and Kevin F.

And of course Katerina Christou, Jonathan Russell, Stephanie Henwood, Blair Fiander, Nicole Bachmann, Lewis Sweeting, Amy Parry, Michelle Scott, Alina Khardina

Stop posting in the dark. We turn your LinkedIn into a business asset, with almost ZERO effort from you. | Top 1% LinkedIn Storyteller | CEO of Storytold.

I worry that I’m never going to be rich.



When I was a freelancer in 2019,
I designed a campaign to the Maldives…

And every day I worked on the project,
I was constantly jealous that this was
a once-in-a-lifetime, luxury holiday,
I’d never have the chance to go on.

It was for the top Citroen salespeople.
The top dealers across the UK could
win a trip to LITERAL paradise.

And I got to design all the
collateral for the whole trip:

→ The itinerary
→ The brochures
→ The web banners
→ The branded menus
→ The personalised boxes
→ The excursions and events
→ Even the damn luggage tags


And I’d never get to go.

Except…. I was dead wrong.

6 years ago I designed this.


But last month,
with my proven Storytold system...
I finally got to go to the Maldives!


This is the power of hard work,
combined with having a dream
that you keep working towards.

For 5 days, my girlfriend and I
experienced what the super-rich
experience about 6 times a year.

So keep working,
keep building something,
and know that anything can
happen if you put your mind to it.

If you’re not where you want
to be right now, I hear you.

But you can be.

If your LinkedIn is neglected
That’s the best place to start.

I grew from 740 to 46K followers
with my proven Storytold system.

And you can too.


Let’s get you to the Maldives!

Burnout isn’t sexy. 




For the last 4 weekends, I’ve been:

- attending business shows in London
- going to public speaking events
- travelling across the UK for work
- running workshops to help others

On top of that, I’ve been working
12 hour days for 5 days a week. 

Which means I haven’t had a 
day off to rest in over a month. 


And y’know what? 


I’m an idiot. 


Because if I want to perform at my best
during the week, I need some downtime!

Humans aren’t designed to run on empty.
We need days off.


So today, I’m not travelling, I’m sat at home 
with my feet up and actually letting my brain 
recover by playing a mindless PC game! 

That photo is from Cardiff on Thursday
(one of many, many, many trips recently)


I’m not getting anyone’s #storytold today! 


Have a great weekend all, and remember:
High achievers like you can only achieve
if you give yourself permission to rest.

No alternative text description for this image

The loudest leaders are losing their voices.



Sometime in the last 20 years,
leadership became about showing off.

Every post was carefully crafted to say:

“Look how brilliant I am.”
“Look how many things I know.”
“Look how successful I’ve become.”


But thankfully, things have changed.


There’s so much ‘perfect’ AI content,
that those ‘perfect’ leaders are DONE.
We don’t believe them, and switch off.

The ones who ACTUALLY get attention
are the leaders who admit when they
falter, fail, or even duck things up.


Because it makes them HUMAN!


We pay attention to Leaders who:

→ Admit when “I made a mistake.”
→ Say, “I don’t know, but I’ll find out.”
→ Share the lessons they’re learning,
not just the ones they’ve mastered.


Your flaws don't make you weak.

They makes you RELATABLE.


So next time you want to share
something, don’t make it perfect.

Tell us about a time you got it wrong,
and we’ll all respect you a hell of a lot
more than all those ‘look at me’ leaders.

THAT’s how you get your Storytold™ 🕺
Join us for a limited time offer:

https://lnkd.in/e633ifJr

“I want him to do well, but not better than me.”



I overheard this in the gym the
other day (well, the locker room).

And I thought to myself…
I used to think this way.

No need to comment or tell us.
Have you ever thought this too?


This is a very limiting belief.
A mindset winners DON’T have.


For context, here’s the full story:

I was changing after going swimming.
Two other guys were in the locker room.

One guy was talking about his friend.
He got him a job at the same company,
and watched as his friend climbed the
ranks quicker than the guy talking did.

Eventually, his friend became his boss.
And he completed his story by saying:

“Like, I wanted him to be successful…
Just not more successful than me! 😂”

And I get it.
When I was young,
I thought this way too.
(to my shame, looking back)

But if someone is truly your friend,
And if you have an infinite mindset,

You don’t let your own jealousy
begrudge them their success.

You’re happy for them!
You want them to win!
You cheer them on!
You support them!

THEIR success is NOT a reflection of
your own inadequacy. But thinking that
you’re only successful if they’re not, IS.

Leaders know we can all be successful.
And: That comparison keeps you small.

The friend who did well was focused
on being the best version of himself.
By not comparing, he succeeded.

The jealous friend was constantly
comparing. And he got left behind.

Focus on your own journey.
Do the work. Make it happen.
And support others to join you.

There’s enough success for us all.

Jack 🕺

How I hit 46k followers (without using AI)



“AI really pulled through for me”

Someone said when I was freelancing.

No, really. Let me set the scene for you:

Hey Turnipheads, it’s Natasha here.
Where’s Jack? Don't worry about it.

Recently Jack and I spoke about the
hot topic of AI, live on Radio Cardiff.

We’re not against using AI as a tool.
But people become too reliant on it.
It can’t do what people really need.

For example, last year I designed
a little logo for a castle coffee shop.

Showed the guy the logo, and he said
“Nah, we used AI & it pulled through!”


Hint, it didn't.


The logo was badly drawn, low pixels,
not adaptable, no colours, not unique.
A coffee cup with a castle thrown in.

And they liked it….. For 3 days.
Then they just stopped using it.


AI didn't understand the nuances,
or their personality, or their SOUL…
so nobody connected with the logo
emotionally. They deserved BETTER.


👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

Connecting with an audience (and
growing to over 46k followers means
understanding personality and nuance.

This is something AI cannot replicate.

AI skips the ‘why’ and “gives outcome”
Worse, everyone can tell when you get
ChatGPT or Claude to write your posts.

I used to have 740 LinkedIn followers.
Now my team and I have +46,000…
Because we connect with EMOTIONS.
We tell authentic stories. AI doesn’t.

AI cannot get your story told.
No matter how fast/easy it is.


For brands that want to build trust.

For those who connect with people,

And for those who have a story to tell:

Thats where real design pulls through.

I’m Natasha, the designer at Storytold.


And our dedicated little team has helped
global CEOs grow on LinkedIn & beyond
with more genuine connections.

Let us help you get your story told:
https://lnkd.in/e2e-4UVa

🕺

AI cant design proper good like

I realised most CEOs are failing at LinkedIn, and here’s why:



Last week at the 
The Business Show London
a CEO told me difficult to hear:

“Jack… I think LinkedIn just isn’t
for people like me anymore.”

He sounded almost embarrassed
to admit it, and realised he meant:

“I’m posting into the void and
it’s making me doubt myself.”


I get it.


LinkedIn makes smart leaders feel invisible.
Especially when see competitors post the
same recycled ideas, and somehow get
200 likes and three inbound leads from it.


Meanwhile, their own content, the stuff they
spent 20 hours a week sweating over, gets
70 impressions, 2 likes, and duck-all else.
No clicks on their website, no calls booked.


I’ve learned this issue hides a very real fear:
He also said: “Maybe the problem is me.”


It’s not.


The problem is that today, CEOs are
expected to run a business AND magically
become world-class Content Strategists too.


That same CEO told me: “I’ve got a writer.
I’ve got a marketing person. But none of
it is landing us any new clients.”


And ‘cos I want to help him, I told him the truth.


A copywriter can write. A marketer can post.
But neither can build influence if the strategy,
psychology, and story aren’t connecting on
an emotional level with your audience.


–  It’s not about posting more often.
–  Or designing prettier photos.
–  Or being “more creative.”


It’s about having a message that
cuts through, CONSISTENTLY, without
draining the CEO’s time or brainpower.


So we ran a Brand Discovery session.
We rebuilt his message. We stopped
guessing. We created a strategy that
matched his buyers’ behaviour.


And within 3 weeks, his posts were
doing what they were supposed to:

Getting attention. Building authority.
Starting conversations. Attracting leads.

Not because he changed.
But because his strategy did.


You don’t need to post more.
You need a team that posts SMARTER,
and turns your expertise into demand.


That same CEO who used to spend
20 hours of worry, now spends one
hour a week laughing on a call with us.

And his LinkedIn has become a real
business asset, not just a time sink.


And if you’ve been spending 20 hours
a week writing LinkedIn posts that take
all your energy and give nothing back…


Then it’s time for a change.


It’s time to make LinkedIn work for YOU,
without you doing all the work. DM me.


We’ll help you get your story told.
https://lnkd.in/ecCVYZhK

What’s most important to your business?



Most would say ‘getting new clients’.
That’s the whole point of networking.

But in many leaders, the thought of
“networking” brings us out in hives.

What if there was a way to attract
more clients, organically, without
chasing down the leads yourself?


There is.


Storytelling.


It’s like magic.


And when you combine the two,
you become simply unstoppable.

For every 10 exhibitors at
The Business Show London,
there was 1 who told their story.
THEY’re the ones who got noticed.

When you turn your LinkedIn profile
into an optimised, story-driven page,

And when you tell #authentic stories
that provide raw value to an audience

That’s when you’ve transcended just
networking, and when your business
hits a higher level of real engagement.


If your LinkedIn page could make sales
while you slept… would you invest in it?


'course you would.


I did. And I went from a nobody,
to 45,000+ followers, a team of 5,
and #CEO of a flourishing business.

And to replicate this for yourself, join
the other Storytold™ partners here ↓
https://lnkd.in/ewa_-z-Z

What's a success story?



For me, it's more about 
the impact we have on
our clients lives than
just the numbers.

Sure, we grew Justin from
5,300 followers to 10,091
in just over three months.

Sure, we made Cassandra's
Sports Tech brand basically
famous with her audience.

But the most impactful moments
are where we grow a business
and the owner's personal life...

IMPROVES DRAMATICALLY.

That's what happens when
you get your Storytold™

Trust me on this one.

Most CEOs get 0 leads from LinkedIn for 1 reason:



Because they’re scared to look unprofessional.

LinkedIn creates a strange pressure where
leaders feel they must always be perfect:

Perfect tone, perfect message, perfect ideas.
But really, perfection is damaging their brand.

Humans (y’know the people who buy from us)
connect with other relatable, flawed humans

Not polish, perfect, poetic, professional posts
Stop PEEING everywhere! We need REAL!!

The moment you share something real,
not rehearsed, everything changes:

→  Your authority grows.
→→  Your audience pays attention.
→→→  Your content converts into leads.

Not because you kept being perfect.
but because you start sounding like YOU.


This is exactly what we help CEOs do:
turn your voice into posts that build trust,
cut through AI noise, and bring you leads…

… without you spending hours
writing posts that go nowhere.


We’ve done it for Leaders from New York
to Dubai. Join us to turn your LinkedIn into
consistent authority and new opportunities.

Let’s get your storytold.
Trust me on this one.


P.S. Who spotted the spelling mistakes in this post? They're importnat: They prove I wrote this myself, without AI!

I was writing a description of Storytold today, and there was a little “Generate with AI” button. Curious, I clicked it.

I also wrote my own, from my brain.
Can you guess which one is which?


OPTION A:
We emphasise authentic, real stories, an intimate Brand Discovery process, and help our clients communicate with real, ego-less stories about their past that connect them more authentically to their audience.


OPTION B:
We think creatively to deliver impactful results for our clients. We specialize in crafting and implementing strategies that elevate brand narratives and drive growth.
 
 
Did you guess which was which?
 

Mine was A. While my version isn’t
perfect, it definitely sounds more 
real than B, the AI written version.

The AI impressed me with how 
accurate the description was… 
But something wasn’t right. 

It somehow managed to be factual
correct with the description of our 
services, yet it also reads as hollow 
and soul-less at the same time.


This is why we need to use 
our human brains more often. 

This is why, when it comes 
to something important, 
we CANNOT outsource it to AI.

So if you're using AI to write content, 
you're damaging your reputation.

It doesn't have to be us, but get
a team of humans who write in
YOUR tone of voice instead.


Your business grows when you get your Storytold™

I gave away 3 secrets last night:



1. Know what you’re writing, and why
it matters to your audience. Content,
without intent, is meaningless.

2. Make your audience the hero.
It’s not about YOU. You’re just
the one delivering the message.

3. Format your posts nicely, in a way
that makes them attractive to read.
Nobody reads big WALLS of text.

Along with working 14 hour days and
making dozens of mistakes along the
way, that’s why Storytold™ has grown.

… From invisibility with 740 followers…
to influencing over 45,700 every day.

These “secrets” transformed my life.
They allowed me to go from employee,
to business owner with a team of five!

And I’m sharing them with you.
I don’t want anything in return.
Just use them, put in the work,
and thank me later!

This is how you get your #Storytold
(or message, and we’ll do it for you)

🕺🏻

Last week I did my first ever LinkedIn Live!  Let me know what you all think

Host of “Consulting Leaders”, Top 10% Active Podcasts Globally | I help B2B Coaches & Consultants get clients with Podcasts.

Description: 

Jack Dyer🕺 is the CEO of Storytold™, where he helps founders and consultants become influential online through authentic, visual storytelling, especially on LinkedIn. With 15+ years of experience in UX, branding, and narrative design, he turns a leader’s story into a commercial asset.
In this episode, we break down how consultants can use digital storytelling to attract better clients, build trust at scale, and communicate in a way that actually feels like them.

***************************************************************************

Links:

StreamYard (for guest):  https://lnkd.in/d3e233pv
YouTube (for sharing):  https://lnkd.in/dvJhggWp
Apply to be a guest: https://lnkd.in/dt6pEfjE

***************************************************************************

Jack's Bio: 

Jack Dyer is the CEO of Storytold™, a firm that helps founders and CEOs go from invisible to influential with authentic, visual storytelling. He’s a Top 1% LinkedIn storyteller with 45,000+ followers and more than 15 years of experience in UX, branding, and digital design.
His background spans award-winning websites, national digital systems, UX work across industries, and global brands like Jaguar Land Rover and Mercedes-Benz. At Storytold™, he and his team build story-driven websites and content systems that elevate a leader’s profile and grow their net worth.

***************************************************************************

Show Notes: 

Jack Dyer is a designer-turned-founder who now runs Storytold™, a consultancy focused on transforming how leaders communicate online. He helps consultants and CEOs move from being “good at what they do but invisible online” to becoming influential voices with a clear narrative and a recognisable digital presence.
His team creates UX-led websites, LinkedIn makeovers, creative concepts, video, and content that reflect a leader’s true personality, not the generic, polished persona most people default to. The goal is simple: make your digital presence a revenue-generating asset.
For consulting firm owners, Jack’s experience sits right at the intersection of story, design, and growth, a combination that can help any consultant communicate more clearly and close clients more easily.

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The Battle

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