Business Without Bullsh-t

On this week's BWB Extra we get to know Ciaran Burke a little better. Ciaran is the co-founder of Swoop, a platform which helps small businesses secure finance without having to go grovelling to banks. We hear about how they managed to raise a whopping £5 million fund for the company, plus Swoop's action plan for going fully global .. all that plus moreCiaran’s Recommendations:Bank of Dave (film)BWB is powered by Oury Clark.

This week’s episode is essential listening for small business owners looking for ways to raise capital without having to grovel to HSBC.We chat to Ciaran Burke, COO & Co-Founder of Swoop, a financing platform which helps small businesses secure finance.We talk about the range of alternative financing options available to SMEs in the UK outside of traditional bank lending including the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and the government-backed Startup Loan scheme. Ciaran also explains how Swoop's credit eligibility and financing model works, and advises on the fine art of writing grant pitches.To date, Swoop has helped over 100,000 SMEs obtain over £1bn in financing across its businesses in the UK, Ireland, Canada, US and Australia.BWB is powered by Oury Clark.

This week's BWB Extra gets to know Allen Simpson a little better. Allen's the Chief Operating Officer at London & Partners, a Business Growth and Destination agency for London where Allen leads the global strategy, operational capacity and corporate reputation. We hear about how Allen went from flipping burgers in Mc Donalds to working for the UK government, this thoughts on the transformation of leadership and culture in the workplace, and that time he ended up on the front page of the Evening Standard for all of the wrong reasonsAlan's recommendation:Organisational Culture and Leadership - Edgar H. ScheinBWB is powered by Oury Clark

Meet Allen Simpson, COO at London & Partners, a Business Growth and Destination agency for London who do inbound and outbound trade and investment, conferences and events, and tourism promotion amongst other things. Allen's role takes care of leading the organisation’s global strategic thinking, operational capacity and corporate reputation at a crucial time for London.Allen's CV is an impressive read. Highlights include spending spent six years at Barclays Bank where he led the bank’s political strategy function, and acted as an adviser to the Chairman and wider senior leadership. He's also served in a number of government roles including within the UK Parliament and civil service.Our chat with Allen unpacks two main topics leading his boardroom discussions - the future of London and the effects of Brexit on the UK. So strap in and get a taste of Allen's turbo-charged intellect. It's tasty.Allen's recommended reading for us is Organisational Culture and Leaderhship by Edgar H. ScheinBWB is powered by Oury Clark.

BWB Extra gets to know this week's guest, Leo Rayman, a little better. Leo’s the Founder & CEO of Eden Lab who help make big companies more sustainable, and sustainable companies much bigger. Leo’s main points of focus include how 'green growth' can spark the positive power of business, Why 'clean share of market' is essential to understand for customer risk, and the big one .. EcoCapitalism.So kick back and get to know more about the man who plans to remove 5 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in the next 5 years.Check out Leo's book Recommendation:"Four Thousand Weeks" by Oliver BurkemanBWB is powered by Oury Clark.

Meet Leo Rayman, Founder & CEO of Eden Lab, a consultancy and venture studio helping make big companies more sustainable and sustainable companies much bigger. Leo was also former CEO and CSO of ad agency Grey London, Founder of WPP start-up Grey Consulting and Domain Expert Adviser to Carbon13, the Cambridge and Berlin based venture builder for the climate emergency.Things Leo talks about:How to make sustainability something that sparks imaginationHow 'green growth' can spark the positive power of businessWhy 'clean share of market' is essential to understand for customer riskEcoCapitalismAs you can see, Leo's got some fresh perspectives to offer the sustainability climate literacy conversation. So sit up, listen up and press play.BWB is powered by Oury Clark.

!NEWS FLASH!Our Business vs. Bullshit Quickfire Quiz Round is back! And my goodness did we miss itBWB Extra gets to know this week's guest , Steve O'Hear a little better. Steve's Senior Vice President of Zapp, London’s premium on-demand convenience app, Founder of his very own advisory firm O'Hear & Co and an Angel Investor with Atomico. In a past life, he was also a journalist covering European tech for 10+ years at Techcrunch. So kick back and get to know more about the man who wears many hats, and wears them very well indeed.Check out Steve O'Hear's show recommendation:Adapt or Die: How Netflix Took Down BlockbusterBWB is powered by Oury Clark

Meet Steve O'Hear, Senior Vice President of Zapp, London’s premium on-demand convenience app, Founder of his very own advisory firm O'Hear & Co and was a journalist for 10+ years covering European tech at Techcrunch.As you can see, Steve's a man of many hats and wears them damn well. So sit up, press play and pay attention. You can thank us later.Steve's links:tryzapp.comohearco.comBWB is powered by Oury Clark

BWB Extra gets to know this week's guest , Dr Phil Armstrong, a little better. Phil is a no nonsense Economist, Teacher, and Associate at The Gower Initiative For Modern Money Studies, an independent, non-profit organisation which is part of a growing international movement challenging the economic status quo of the last four decades. So kick back and get to know more about the man behind the magic of explaining Modern Monetary Theory.Check out Dr. Phil Armstrong's show recommendation:Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone FishingBWB is powered by Oury Clark.

For a special extended episode, we invited Dr Phil Armstrong on for a chat about Modern Monetary Theory, a topic which we all scratch our heads about, and one which Phil is an absolute poet at explaining.Phil is a no nonsense Economist and Teacher, and Associate at The Gower Initiative For Modern Money Studies, an independent, non-profit organisation which is part of a growing international movement which challenges the economic orthodoxy of the last four decades.Phil gained his master’s at the University of Leeds and PhD in Economics at the University of Solent. He started teaching economics in 1981 and has taught in the USA, France and UK. Phil supports pluralism in economics and is a strong advocate of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). He recently published his first book "Can Heterodox Economics Make a Difference?: Conversations with Key Thinkers" and co-edited "Modern Monetary Theory: Key Insights, Leading Thinkers".Strap in, press play and focus like your life depends on it.BWB is powered by Oury Clark.