Honest Talk About Agency Leadership: Are You The Problem?

with Simon Kelly

Episode 150

Summary:

Ever felt like your team is underperforming despite your best efforts?

Welcome back to The Agency Hour, where we help web design and digital agency owners create abundance for themselves, their teams, and their communities.

In this episode, Troy Dean and Simon Kelly, CEO and Head of Growth at Seriously Good Design, dive deep into the challenges of team leadership. They explore why most agencies struggle to grow beyond the founder, how to motivate team members beyond financial incentives, and the power of vulnerability as a leadership strength. You'll discover practical frameworks for accountability, the importance of clear outcomes over micromanagement, and why you should stop being the solution to all your team's problems.

What You'll Learn:

Why One-Time Projects Keep You Stuck – The hidden danger of unpredictable revenue and how to escape it
The Three Motivators of Human Behavior – Understanding what truly
How to Create Accountability Without Micromanagement – Simple systems for tracking progress and results
The Power of Vulnerability in Leadership – Why showing weakness actually demonstrates courage
Why You Should Stop Solving Your Team's Problems – How to break the dependency cycle
The Secret to Building a Self-Managing Team – Focus on outcomes, not processes
How to Align Your Team Around a Compelling Vision – Techniques for creating buy-in and engagement

This conversation goes beyond theory, offering actionable strategies to transform your leadership approach. Simon's candid admission about his own ego getting in the way (“Give other people a chance to be successful”) provides a powerful moment of reflection for any leader.

Handy Links:

MavCon – https://mvrx.link/mavcon
Simon’s Web Design Process – https://sgd.com.au/our-web-design-process/
Simon’s Paid Discovery Page – https://sgd.com.au/digital-strategy-workshop/
E2M Solutions – https://www.e2msolutions.com/agency-mavericks
WP Remote – https://wpremote.com

Watch Now

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Troy Dean

I am the Founder of Agency Mavericks. The reason I get out of bed every day is because I love helping people to grow their web design or digital marketing businesses. I do this through coaching, creating courses, speaking, consulting and heading up our awesome community.