Hiring for the Business You’re Building, Not the Business Today

For many founders, the journey to £1m ARR is fuelled by hustle, high-energy generalists, and a "lean in" culture where everyone does a bit of everything. But as you look toward a Series A or B raise, that same approach becomes your greatest risk. At the UK ScaleUp Investment Summit, David Williams from Sheffield Haworth delivered a stark message to founders: you must stop hiring for the business you have today and start hiring for the one you are building towards.

In the current market, investors are placing an increased reliance on team quality. A significant number of VC raises fail not because of the product, but because the team behind it is not the one that will take it to the next stage. Navigating this shift ahead of seeking institutional funding is key. Here were some of David’s key takeaways:

The "Generalist" Trap

The generalists who helped you reach your first £1m are often exceptional, high-impact individuals. However, as you scale toward £10m, the requirements of the business change. This is the stage where structure, accurate forecasting, and functional depth begin to matter more than pure hustle. Essentially, a founder’s primary job at this stage is to "fire themselves" from every department, one by one. This isn't about giving up control; it’s about building a scalable organisation that doesn't collapse if the founder isn't the final decision-maker on every detail.

The Missing Piece: The Strategic CFO

One of the most concerning findings from our recent founder survey is that 67% of future scaleups do not have a CFO in place. This is a critical gap. A proper CFO is essential for building investor trust through accurate forecasting. They bring cash discipline during rapid growth and provide credible downside planning, elements that become central to survival in tougher markets. Embarking on an investment round without a CFO in place may lead to poor investment decisions, missed funding opportunities, and stalled growth.

The Power of the Chair

For many Series A and B businesses, the highest-leverage hire is actually a strong Chair. Bringing in a Chair earlier than feels natural can provide the founder with essential "air cover" and instantly raise the bar for every future leadership hire.

A good Chair protects the founder from unwanted pressure, including from investors, and improves the quality of board-level decision-making overnight. It is a strategic move that ensures the business has the right commercial leadership structure in place to scale regionally and internationally.

Avoiding the Pitfalls

As you build out these leadership layers, David emphasised several common mistakes:

• Promoting loyalty over capability: The team that got you here might not be the team that gets you to £10m

• Hiring "safe" people: Avoid hiring leaders who won't challenge you. You need expertise that improves your decision quality.

• The "Magic Bullet" hire: Don't believe that hiring a single proven salesperson will automatically guarantee growth without the supporting structure in place.

Ultimately, scaling from Series A to B is about building capability, function by function, starting with Finance and Operations before moving into Commercial Execution and Strategy. By getting your house in order and hiring for where you are going, you demonstrate to investors that your business has the structural capability to take on their capital and deploy it effectively.

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Sheffield Haworth is a global executive search and strategic talent advisory firm operating across the financial services, technology, and professional services sectors. With over 200 professionals and 14 offices spanning EMEA, North America, and APAC, the firm specialises in placing exceptional executives in influential roles.

Their Technology practice partners internationally with private, investor-backed, and publicly listed businesses to deliver people-led change within Deep Tech, Enterprise Software, and Digital Services, ensuring clients realise their full potential.

Sheffield Haworth is a strategic partner to VenturePath. VenturePath members - the Sheffield Haworth team is on-hand to partner with you on your legal needs while scaling, raising or exiting.

If you would like a 1:1 call with Sheffield Haworth, get in touch via the VenturePath platform. 

About David

David is a Consultant at Sheffield Haworth, working within their Technology practice based in London. He joined Sheffield Haworth in March 2021. David specialises in identifying non-executive and board positions for PE and VC-backed Software, IT Services and Deep Tech industries. Working across Europe, David specialises in Non-Executive, CEO, CFO, CCO and COO roles.

Prior to joining Sheffield Haworth, he was a Principal at Alexander Ash, where he led research for senior appointments for Big 4 and Investment Banks working on a variety of Managing Director & Partner level hires. David started his career in a boutique search firm, specialising in IT Strategy & Architecture, where he established their research and market intelligence function.