I’m joined by Jo Dalton, a serial founder, investor, and champion of female entrepreneurs — to talk about what it really takes to build leadership teams, back founders, and scale businesses without losing your edge.

Jo founded JD & CO after years in corporate, determined to create a recruitment firm that actually supports entrepreneurs instead of chasing commission. She’s helped early-stage founders grow into unicorns, invested in female-led businesses, and built a reputation on authenticity and trust rather than traditional sales tactics.

In this episode, we talk about how to spot founder potential, why grit and resilience matter more than anything else, the biggest red flags she sees in leadership, and why AI is about to reshape the job market. Jo also shares why maintaining a startup mentality during scale-up is crucial, how to secure smart capital, and the cultural changes the UK needs to compete with the US on scale-ups.

Key Takeaways

Hiring for Scale-Ups: Why speed can hurt hiring decisions and how to balance urgency with quality.
Spotting Founder Potential: The traits Jo looks for, from obsession to self-awareness.
Female Founder Funding: Why smart capital and female-led funds are changing the landscape.
AI and the Future of Work: The skills young people should focus on to thrive in the next decade.
Maintaining Startup Mentality: How to keep your culture alive as you grow.

Whether you’re a founder, an investor, or scaling your team, this conversation is packed with insight from someone who has spent years inside the real growth stories.

🎧 New episodes of Screw It Just DO It drop every Tuesday & Thursday - so makes sure you follow wherever you listen. You’ll hear real conversations with founders who’ve taken a risk, built something from scratch, and figured it out along the way.

🔥 Want to take things further? Join me in person this October at the Festival of Entrepreneurs on the 8–9th October at the NEC in Birmingham. The Festival of Entrepreneurs is where 5-10,000 ambitious founders come together to learn from the people who've actually done it. I'm giving my listeners free 2-day passes.

Real entrepreneurs, real stories, real strategies – exactly like what you're hearing right now, but live and in person. Go to www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk and grab your free pass before they're gone.

https://eventdata.uk/Visitor/FestivalOfEntrepreneurs2025.aspx?TrackingCode=ACHISNALL

👉 Follow the show. Turn up in October. Screw It Just DO It!

#ScrewItJustDoIt #FestivalOfEntrepreneurs #StartupLife #Entrepreneurship

The Truth About Hiring for Scale-Ups with Jo Dalton

Screw It Just DO It with Alex Chisnall