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What does it take to double a business in just six years? Most CEO’s would point to a strategic acquisition plan or simply market luck.
But for Patrick Atkinson, CEO of Chadwicks Group, the secret was the who, not just the what.
In our recent webinar, Behind the Scenes at Chadwicks Group: Making Culture Drive Results, Patrick sat down with Breakthrough Global CEO Zannah Ryabchuk to unpack the journey of scaling from €500m to nearly €1bn. Despite a backdrop of market turbulence and economic volatility, Chadwicks turned its culture into its greatest competitive advantage.
"I just felt if we could harness everyone in the same direction, we would achieve so much more together." - Patrick Atkinson, CEO, Chadwicks Group
Strategy is Only Half the Battle
Many businesses hit a ceiling when they reach a certain scale. Often, it's because the strategy has outpaced the people. Zannah, with her background in behavioural science and leadership psychology, noted that navigating complex change requires a people-first approach. You can have the most brilliant plan in the world, but if your team doesn't own it, it won't scale.
If you missed the live session, you can watch the full recording below to see exactly how they aligned their leadership to outperform the market.
5 Lessons in Scaling Through Culture
Patrick and Zannah identified five key pillars, that you can start using today, to maintain momentum and focus.
- Alignment Goes Beyond Leaders: Alignment requires intentional work to ensure every single person, from the C-suite to the shop floor, understands how they fit into the future direction of the company.
- Build a Culture of Trust: At Chadwicks, trust was built through disciplined repetition, transparency and consistent follow-through.
- Prioritise Progress over Perfection: In a volatile economy, 100% certainty is in any decision is a myth. The leaders must encourage a culture of experimentation, choosing to make a move and course-correct rather than being paralysed by the perfect choice.
- Customers are the North Star: When things get complex, simplify by looking at the customer. Every internal shift was filtered through one question: "Does this make it easier for them?"
- The One Degree Shift ®: Avoid change fatigue by ditching the massive overhauls. Resilience comes from consistent, cumulative improvements. By dialling up performance just one degree at a time, Chadwicks achieved a massive transformation without burning out their workforce.
Ready to Break Your Growth Ceiling?
Are you facing a similar growth ceiling? Our Breakthrough Programmes are designed to help organisations align their leaders and mobilise their people to solve complex growth challenges.
The Chadwicks story is a masterclass in leadership psychology and execution. Whether you are navigating your own €500m ceiling or looking to foster more resilience in an era of AI and disruption, the insights from Patrick and Zannah provide a practical roadmap for sustainable growth.
Read the deep dive into our partnership with Chadwicks Group and how we helped them embed these cultural shifts across the entire organisation.
