by Ben Andrews
At The Top explores the hard-earned lessons behind building, scaling, and leading a business as it grows beyond the founder. Hosted by Ben Andrews, we unpack the learnings you only get from walking the path yourself, and normalise the doubts and pressures that rarely get airtime. If you're building something, leading a team, or carrying the responsibility that comes with owning a business, subscribe and join the journey.
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🇺🇲
Publishing Since
4/15/2026
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July 8, 2026
Most mortgage brokers try to serve everyone. Andrew Johnson built a multimillion dollar business by deliberately ignoring 99% of potential clients. Andrew is the founder of Legal Home Loans, a mortgage broking business which only serves lawyers, judges and barristerrs. Instead of competing in a market with 22,000 other brokers, decided to focus exclusively on lawyers. In a country with 14.7 million employed people and just under 100,000 lawyers, he chose to serve less than 1% of the market. The result? Faster growth, deeper expertise, and a business model that allowed him to step away for two years while the company thrived. In this conversation, Andrew shares what actually happens when you niche down hard, why trying to serve everyone dilutes your ability to serve anyone well, and how choosing a narrow market allowed him to build trust, scale faster, and create a business that didn't depend on him being in the room. He also opens up about burnout, the 18 month process he used to step away from the business, and what he learned about purpose, delegation, and building a company that works without you. He explains: Why ignoring 99% of potential clients was the smartest business decision he ever made How niching down made marketing, messaging, and client acquisition dramatically easier The difference between going shallow across a broad market versus deep in a narrow one What he learned from a painful early exit The 18 month process he used to step away from his business for two years without it falling apart What structures, incentives, and culture had to be in place before he could leave Why trust, not systems, was the number one thing that allowed him to step back What he discovered about purpose after achieving the freedom he thought he wanted Why he's now expanding into accounting, and how to know when your niche is tapped out If you've been trying to serve everyone and wondering why growth feels so hard, or if you're burnt out and can't imagine stepping away from your business for even a week, this episode will change how you think about focus, delegation, and what it really takes to build something sustainable. Timestamps: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:48 The Power of Niching: Why Ignore 99% of Your Market? 00:04:24 Standing Out in a Crowded Market of 22,000 Brokers 00:05:58 Opening Doors: How Niching Unlocked Partnerships 00:07:00 The Marketing Strategy That Replaced Word of Mouth 00:07:47 Go All In: Making the Niche Decision 00:10:27 The First Business: Lessons from a Partnership Gone Wrong 00:13:06 Values Alignment: The Non-Negotiable for Shareholders 00:15:38 Burnout and the Decision to Step Away 00:17:49 Building a Business That Runs Without You 00:19:02 Culture First: Why All Ships Rise on a Rising Tide 00:23:50 The Founder's Dilemma: Are You Doing Too Much? 00:26:55 Finding Purpose: Why Andrew Came Back 00:28:17 Expanding the Niche: Launching Accounting Home Loans 00:31:03 Final Advice: Your Trajectory Can Change in a Second We're just getting started! Subscribe for more conversations with founders, operators, and their advisers. Andrew Johnson: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-johnson-075559a5/ Legal Home Loans https://www.legalhomeloans.com.au At The Top Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@atthetopwithben Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atthetopwithben/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/at-the-top-with-ben/ Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/show/1GTjCXqdQzQtZ33idMpQgo?si=C5gNvXDZSkWdxBz-mW13AA Apple Podcasts: http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-the-top/id1893782299
June 24, 2026
Most founders think about private equity when they're ready to exit. The reality is, understanding how investors think about valuation, risk, and growth could transform how you build your business today, even if you never plan to sell. Katrina Engelbert is a Director at Pemba Capital Partners, a private equity firm with $2 billion in funds under management and investments across 36 companies. She sits on the board of five portfolio companies and has spent years evaluating businesses, structuring deals, and working alongside founders through the most critical stages of growth. In this conversation, Katrina shares what actually happens when a business gets evaluated by private equity, why the gap between founder optimism and investor skepticism creates friction, and what the bar looks like for businesses that want to attract serious capital. She also explains how AI is reshaping the landscape, why services businesses are suddenly being valued like software companies, and what founders need to know before they ever take a meeting with an investor. She explains: Why founders and investors see the same business through completely different lenses The revenue and profitability thresholds that make a business interesting to private equity What actually gets priced into a valuation, and what doesn't The red flags that make investors walk away, even when the numbers look good How AI is changing deal flow, and why services businesses with automation potential are suddenly commanding software multiples Why liquidity preferences and earn outs exist, and when they actually make sense What changes when an investor comes on board, and why accountability lifts performance The reverse due diligence every founder should do before accepting capital Why every business owner should map out their strategy as if an exit is coming, even if they never plan to sell If you've ever wondered what private equity actually looks for, or whether your business is on the right trajectory to attract serious capital, this episode will give you the investor perspective most founders never get to hear. Timestamps: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:02 The Valuation Gap: Why Founders Feel Offended by PE Offers 00:04:20 Red Flags That Make PE Walk Away Immediately 00:06:03 Does Culture Actually Impact Valuation? 00:09:39 What Gets PE Really Excited About a Business 00:12:18 The AI Revolution: How It's Changing Private Equity 00:15:31 Services Businesses Trading Like Software: The AI Opportunity 00:18:35 Red Flags Revisited: Defensiveness and Unrealistic Forecasts 00:20:47 Due Diligence Explained: What Founders Need to Know 00:23:52 When PE Comes In: Revenue and Profitability Thresholds 00:25:51 The Teenage Years: Why PE Targets This Growth Stage 00:28:43 How PE Finds Deals and Why Inbound Inquiries Are Often Struggling 00:30:12 Reverse Due Diligence: What Founders Should Ask PE Funds 00:33:30 The Advisor Problem: When Your Lawyer Isn't M&A Ready 00:34:50 Liquidity Preferences Explained: Downside Protection or Trap? 00:37:56 Earn Outs vs. Management Ratchets: Aligning Incentives 00:39:30 Life After Investment: How Everything Changes 00:41:03 Rolling Equity: You Don't Have to Exit 100% We're just getting started! Subscribe for more conversations with founders, operators, and their advisers. Katrina Engelbert: LinkedIn https://au.linkedin.com/in/katrinaengelbert Pemba Capital Partners https://www.pemba.com.au At The Top Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@atthetopwithben Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atthetopwithben/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/at-the-top-with-ben/ Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/show/1GTjCXqdQzQtZ33idMpQgo?si=C5gNvXDZSkWdxBz-mW13AA Apple Podcasts: http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-the-top/id1893782299
June 10, 2026
Most business owners think cybersecurity is something they'll deal with later. The reality is, you're already a target, and the threat landscape in 2026 is unlike anything we've seen before. Ahmed Khanji is Founder and CEO of Gridware Cybersecurity, an award winning cybersecurity business. He recently stated that after 17 years in the industry, he's never been more worried. AI powered tools are now finding security vulnerabilities in minutes that used to take teams of PhDs a full year to uncover. Meanwhile, businesses are still operating without basic protections, hoping insurance will save them when things go wrong. In this conversation, Ahmed shares what actually happens when a business gets hacked, why the 10 to 100 employee range is the most vulnerable, and the five essential actions every business owner needs to take right now to avoid becoming another victim on the dark web. He explains: Why 2026 is the most dangerous year for cybersecurity he's seen in nearly two decades How businesses actually get hacked, and why it's usually embarrassingly simple Which businesses are most at risk, and why healthcare tops the list Why cyber insurance isn't the safety net most business owners think it is The danger zone for businesses with 10 to 100 employees, and why they're the easiest targets How AI is being weaponized by threat actors, and what tools like the Mythos model mean for global security Why building your own software with AI might be exposing your business to catastrophic risk The uncomfortable truth about your data: it's already out there Five practical actions you can take in the next few weeks to stop being an easy target If you've been putting off cybersecurity because it feels expensive, complicated, or unlikely to affect you, this episode will change how you think about risk. The question isn't if your business will be targeted. It's when. Timestamps: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:42 The AI-Powered Threat: Why 2025 Is Different 00:05:46 Is This Just Marketing Hype? 00:08:11 How Businesses Actually Get Hacked 00:10:52 The Ransomware Nightmare: When CEOs Cry 00:17:34 The Cat and Mouse Game: Are We Losing? 00:19:23 The Insurance Trap: Why Coverage Isn't Enough 00:21:26 Industry Risk Rankings: Who's Most Vulnerable? 00:29:36 The 10-100 Employee Danger Zone 00:32:22 The Mythos Model and AI Security Tools 00:34:09 The Vibe Coding Problem: Building Without Security 00:37:25 Your Data Is Already Out There 00:42:16 Five Essential Actions to Protect Your Business 00:46:48 Closing Thoughts and Resources We're just getting started! Subscribe for more conversations with founders, operators, and their advisers. Ahmed Khanji: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahmed-khanji/ Gridware Cybersecurity https://gridware.com.au At The Top Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@atthetopwithben Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atthetopwithben/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/at-the-top-with-ben/ Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/show/1GTjCXqdQzQtZ33idMpQgo?si=C5gNvXDZSkWdxBz-mW13AA Apple Podcasts: http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-the-top/id1893782299
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At The Top explores the hard-earned lessons behind building, scaling, and leading a business as it grows beyond the founder.
Hosted by Ben Andrews, we unpack the learnings you only get from walking the path yourself, and normalise the doubts and pressures that rarely get airtime.
If you're building something, leading a team, or carrying the responsibility that comes with owning a business, subscribe and join the journey.
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