James Reed: all about business 56. Banishing bureaucracy: How Octopus Group built a culture of entrepreneurship leading to a $9 billion valuation | Chris Hulatt
How do you build a culture where risk-taking is celebrated, bureaucracy is banished and everyone thinks like an entrepreneur?
In this episode, James is joined by Chris Hulatt, Co-founder of Octopus Group, a multi-billion-pound investment and energy business that started in a living room and grew into a global force spanning fund management, renewable energy and technology.
Chris shares how Octopus went from backing UK startups to creating Octopus Energy, now valued at $9 billion, and why initiatives like Springboard are helping employees become founders themselves. We talk about how to make fast decisions without perfect data, why bureaucracy kills creativity and what it really takes to scale up without losing your entrepreneurial spark.
Timecodes:
02:43 - Octopus Energy: The Startup Story
09:16 - The Importance of Financial Literacy
12:21 - Octopus Group Funds & Investment Approach
17:21 - Culture of Entrepreneurship at Octopus
21:40 - The Springboard Scheme for New Ventures
25:08 - Success Stories & Learning from Failure
28:44 - Barriers to Entrepreneurship in the UK
31:13 - Octopus Group’s Shared Purpose
34:05 - Decision Making & Avoiding Bureaucracy
41:05 - Customer-First Philosophy
44:05 - The Future of Octopus Group
Donate to the BigGive Christmas challenge NOW!
Follow Chriss Hulatt on LinkedIn
Find out more about Octopus Group
All About Business is brought to you by Reed Global. Learn more here
This podcast was co-produced by Reed Global and Flamingo Media. If you’d like to create a chart-topping podcast to elevate your brand, visit Flamingo-media.co.uk