Ricky Ho is a young entrepreneur, already on his second start-up company that is set to dominate the sourcing products arena. Yes, he has Alibaba to outmanoeuvre, but the signs are good, and his AI-inspired model has much to recommend it to SMBs/SMEs around the world.

Graham, Kevin, and Ricky (from SourceReady) introduce themselves and provide background on Ricky's career and the inspiration behind starting SourceReady, a platform that uses AI to help businesses find and vet suppliers outside of China.

Ricky explains how SourceReady differentiates itself from platforms like Alibaba. They do this by using a data-driven, objective approach to ranking suppliers based on factors like quality, compliance, and customer relationships - rather than just supplier advertising. This helps democratize access to supplier information for small and medium businesses.

The discussion shifts to the importance of managing supply chain risks. They discuss such as compliance issues, supplier financial health, and reputational risks. Ricky highlights how SourceReady's tools can help businesses proactively screen for and mitigate these risks, which is especially critical for smaller companies that may lack dedicated procurement teams.

Ricky shares his vision for SourceReady to become the go-to platform for businesses of all sizes to discover and vet suppliers globally, beyond just China. He discusses the challenges of changing user behavior and the need to provide a significantly better experience than existing options to drive adoption. The group also touches on the favorable market trends, like supply chain diversification, that could benefit SourceReady.

Ricky provides a brief testimonial on his experience being interviewed, and the group wraps up the discussion, with Graham and Kevin expressing optimism about SourceReady's potential for success.

Graham Arrowsmith

Graham founded Finely Fettled eleven years ago to help businesses market to affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner of MeclabsAI, providing AI Agents, workflows, and Phone-to-agent delivery systems. Now, Graham offers Answer Engine Optimisation so you get found by LLM search and Enterprise-level AI Solutions.

Kevin Appleby

Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com

Where does Executive Greatness come from? By helping executives, founders, and leadership teams communicate with conviction, clarity, and presence.

Ash is the Founder & CEO of the Executive Greatness Institute, where he has coached leaders at Cisco, Uber, Google, HPE, and Sprinklr to deliver powerful strategic narratives and keynote talks that inspire teams, boards, and customers.

He has also founded the Duh AI company, an incubator for AI-driven ventures.

The common thread across Ash's ventures and advisory work is conviction: the belief that when leaders communicate with purpose, people follow with energy and commitment. So, whether he is coaching executives, advising on digital transformation, or building AI platforms, his mission is to help people and organisations find their voice, tell their story, and realise their boldest ambitions.

The meeting begins with casual conversation as the participants introduce themselves and discuss topics like virtual backgrounds, lighting issues, and health concerns. They establish a relaxed, conversational tone.

The discussion turns to the importance of executive presence and effective communication. Ash Seddeek shares his expertise in helping leaders craft and deliver impactful messages tailored to their audience. He emphasises the need for energy, storytelling, and adapting the delivery style.

The group delves into the nuances of delivering effective investor pitches. Ash explains the importance of understanding the investors' perspectives and crafting the message accordingly, versus a more general employee communication. He highlights the need to build trust and excitement.

The conversation explores the potential impact of AI on communication and presentation. Ash and the hosts discuss the balance between AI-powered tools and the value of human expertise, presence, and the ability to provide honest, trusted feedback.

The meeting concludes with the hosts and Ash reflecting on the key takeaways from the discussion, including the importance of energy, audience adaptation, and the evolving role of technology in communication. They express gratitude for the insightful conversation.

Graham Arrowsmith

Graham founded Finely Fettled in 2014 to provide data from The UK High Net Worth Database to marketers targeting affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner for MeclabsAI, creating lead generation AI Agents & Workflows and introducing the MeclabsAI Platform. Graham also provides an Answer Engine Optimisation solution to get your website in shape to be found by LLMs.

Kevin Appleby

Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com

Marc Walton is a Professional Forex Mentor and Trader, and ex-fund manager, who has been working in the finance industry for over 25+ years. He started FMP in 2008 and mentors students on how to trade professionally.

He retired from full-time trading in spring 2020 and now focuses on running Forex Mentor Pro, which is his passion. On top of that, he takes on a few private clients who wish to fast-track their trading progress each year. He also actively invests in metals, mining stocks, and cryptocurrencies, which he shares with students in his second business, Your Investing Future.

Marc discussed the importance of financial education, noting that most people lack understanding of how money and the financial system work. He shared his own experiences of learning about personal finance, investing, and alternative income streams like trading and crypto. Marc emphasised the need to be proactive in managing one's finances and not relying solely on traditional retirement plans, which he believes are inadequate for the longer lifespans people are now experiencing.

The group discussed the growing impact of AI and automation on jobs, with Marc and Kevin sharing examples of how AI is already replacing certain tasks previously done by human workers, including graduate-level research and analysis. They noted that this trend will likely accelerate, requiring people to adapt and find new ways to create value.

The conversation turned to the challenges of finding fulfilling activities and ways to spend time in retirement. Marc shared his own struggles with this, while Graham and Kevin acknowledged similar difficulties in figuring out how they want to spend their time post-retirement, beyond hobbies like golf that they don't find particularly engaging. The group agreed that maintaining mental and physical health is crucial.

Graham Arrowsmith

Graham founded Finely Fettled ten years ago to help business owners and marketers market to affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner for MeclabsAI, where he introduces AI Agents that you can talk to, that increase engagement, dwell time, leads, and conversions. Now, Graham is offering Answer Engine Optimisation that gets you ready to be found by LLM search.

Kevin Appleby

Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com

Business Owners have plenty of challenges. We thought it would be helpful to invite Bill Squires to share his knowledge of those challenges, and more importantly, what to do about them in the next 100 days. Bill has a keen eye for commerce and finances. He wants to help individuals, teams, and businesses achieve their full potential. He has coached business owners (all with challenges), executives, and teams in all aspects of building rapid growth and profitable companies.

Bill Squires discussed his background, including his experience in the oil industry, getting an MBA, and then transitioning into business coaching about 8 years ago. He emphasized the importance of helping clients develop a clear vision and plan for their business, rather than just jumping into execution. Bill shared his 90-day planning process and the value of accountability in driving results.

Bill outlined some of the key challenges he sees business owners facing, including finding enough leads and customers, hiring and retaining good people, and getting their team to be more accountable. He noted that many business owners are working long hours but not seeing the financial rewards they expect.

The discussion explored the value of long-term planning, with Bill advocating for 5-year plans that get broken down into 90-day and weekly goals. Kevin challenged whether 5 years is too long to plan for, but Bill shared examples of clients who have achieved their ambitious 5-year goals by sticking to the plan.

Graham and Bill discussed the potential for AI-powered coaching tools that could scale Bill's expertise, while noting the continued value of in-person coaching and the importance of accountability that a human coach provides. They explored how technology and human coaching could complement each other going forward.

Bill outlined his various coaching programs, including one-on-one, group, and community-based offerings. He also shared his plan to eventually step back from the business by bringing on additional coaches and a business development manager to sustain the community he has built.

Graham Arrowsmith

Graham founded Finely Fettled eleven years ago to help businesses market to affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner of MeclabsAI, providing AI Agents, Workflows and phone-to-agent delivery systems. Now, Graham offers Answer Engine Optimisation so you get found by LLM search and Enterprise-level AI Solutions.

Kevin Appleby

Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com

Beyond the Business creator Dave Rogers, is also known as ‘The Business Explorer’. He's a previous TEDx Speaker, an award-winning Business Consultant, Coach and Author. For 30 years, he's been using that curiosity to help businesses tackle challenges.

On top of that, Dave’s not your typical business consultant. Yes, he’s worked for big corporations. And yes, he knows how to turn lofty strategies into real, practical results. But what sets him apart is how he brings it all down to earth. He works alongside business owners, start-ups, and leaders to turn “what if” into “what’s next.”

Kevin introduces the topic of Dave's new membership service for business owners, which Dave has been developing since his last appearance on the podcast about a year ago.

Dave explains that the membership is aimed at business owners. You know, the ones who have built successful companies but are now feeling "stuck". Maybe their business is running them rather than the other way around. The goal is to help them find a different way of looking at their business.

Dave outlines the three-tiered structure of the membership. The entry-level provides self-reflection frameworks and tools, the middle tier offering group coaching and training, and the top "inner circle" tier providing more personalised one-on-one support.

Graham and Kevin provide feedback and suggestions on the membership structure, including potentially removing the entry-level tier, increasing the pricing for the middle tier, and emphasizing Dave's personal involvement and expertise across all levels.

The discussion turns to the role of AI and automation, with the group debating how to balance the use of technology with maintaining the human connection and expertise that Dave can provide.

The participants wrap up the discussion, wishing Dave success with the launch of his new membership service and agreeing to stay in touch as he refines the offering.

Graham Arrowsmith

Graham founded Finely Fettled ten years ago to help business owners and marketers market to affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner for MeclabsAI, where he introduces AI Agents that you can talk to, that increase engagement, dwell time, leads and conversions. Now, Graham is offering Answer Engine Optimisation that gets you ready to be found by LLM search.

Kevin Appleby

Kevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com