Behind the SME

About Behind the SME

Ever wondered what it really takes to grow a small or medium-sized business? In each episode, we dive deep into the stories, strategies, and secrets of innovative leaders in the SME world. From overcoming challenges to celebrating wins, this is your inside look into what drives success in today’s fast-paced business landscape. 🔑 Key insights 🌟 Real stories from real business owners ⚡ Actionable advice for entrepreneurs & leaders 💡 Fresh perspectives on industry trends Hosted by Adam Kene, the CEO of Kene Partners and Co-Founder of OPUS. Contact us: hello@behindthesme.co.uk Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-t... Connect on other platforms: https://linktr.ee/behindthesme Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Adam Kene

Category

business · business · business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

18 Oct 2024

Latest episode

15 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

33 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 Oct 2026

   The Role Clarity Gap: How Jobs Need to Change as Businesses Grow by Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill

   As businesses grow, roles change. But too often, the role plan does not change with them. In this episode of Behind the SME, Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill explore why role clarity becomes more important, not less, as people become more senior. The bigger the role, the more expensive ambiguity becomes. Senior leaders are expected to make decisions, delegate effectively, develop teams and shape the direction of the business, but many are still working from an outdated or incomplete idea of what their role actually is. Adam and Kate get practical: Why senior people need clear role plans just as much as junior staff Why the CEO’s role should evolve as the business grows How unclear responsibilities create confusion across the wider team Why people sometimes plateau because the business has not defined the next version of their role How to distinguish between comfort, stretch and panic Why role plans should focus on outcomes, not just tasks How to use a simple keep, start, stop and develop framework Why role plans should be reviewed regularly rather than written once and forgotten They also explore the idea of the S-curve and what happens when someone stops growing in a role. Sometimes the answer is not promotion. Sometimes it is a new challenge, clearer expectations or a different curve altogether. This episode is for founders, managers and leadership teams who want to create clearer roles, better progression and stronger accountability as their business grows. 🎙️ Behind the SME is hosted by Adam Kene, CEO of Kene. In Season 2, Adam is joined by leadership coach and author Kate Waterfall Hill to explore the leadership challenges behind growing businesses. Like what you hear? We’d love to know! 📩 Contact us: hello@behindthesme.co.uk (mailto:hello@behindthesme.co.uk) 🔗 Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme (https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme) 🌐 More platforms: https://linktr.ee/behindthesme (https://linktr.ee/behindthesme) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

2. 

   1 Oct 2026

   Your Relationship with Work: Finding Fulfilment Without Burning Out by Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill

   Your career is a long-term relationship with work. Like any relationship, it can become energising and purposeful, or draining and transactional. In Episode 4 of Season 2 of Behind the SME, Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill explore our relationship with work, why it matters more than we might think, and how leaders can build careers that remain fulfilling and sustainable over the long term. Working hard is not necessarily the problem. For some people, it can be deeply rewarding. The challenge comes when work consistently conflicts with your values, drains your energy or starts affecting how you show up for the people around you. For leaders in particular, that matters. Impatience, micromanagement, cynicism and over-control can all be signs that the relationship with work has started to shift. Adam and Kate explore how to recognise those patterns, understand your own boundaries and make more deliberate choices about where your time and energy go. You will learn: Why a career should be treated as a marathon rather than a weekly sprint How a leader’s relationship with work can influence the wider culture Why fulfilment does not mean being happy at work all the time How to identify the work that gives you energy and the work that drains it Why resentment can be a sign that a boundary should have been set earlier How to understand the real cost of saying yes Practical ways to push back, renegotiate priorities and protect your time Why individuals have more control over their own fulfilment than they might think Adam and Kate also introduce a simple relationship-with-work audit, looking at energy, values, control, boundaries, recovery, growth, relationships and purpose. And there is a practical challenge to try: a “No Week”. Do not automatically say yes. Ask what each new commitment will displace, renegotiate something that is not working and protect time for recovery or focused work. The question at the heart of the episode is simple: if your job was a relationship, would you say it was healthy? 🎙️ Behind the SME is hosted by Adam Kene, CEO of Kene. In Season 2, Adam is joined by leadership coach and author Kate Waterfall Hill to explore the leadership challenges behind growing businesses. Like what you hear? We’d love to know! 📩 Contact us: hello@behindthesme.co.uk (mailto:hello@behindthesme.co.uk) 🔗 Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme (https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme) 🌐 More platforms: https://linktr.ee/behindthesme (https://linktr.ee/behindthesme) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

3. 

   17 Sept 2026

   Meetings, Meetings and More Meetings: How to Make Them Worth the Time by Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill

   How much are your meetings actually costing your business? In Episode 3 of Season 2 of Behind the SME, Adam Kene and Kate Waterfall Hill tackle something almost every growing business struggles with: meetings, meetings and more meetings. Meetings themselves are not the problem. The problem is meetings without a clear purpose, the wrong people in the room, no preparation and no meaningful outcome. And the cost adds up quickly. A weekly 45-minute meeting with eight people uses 312 working hours over a year. At a loaded employment cost of £50 an hour, that is £15,600. If that meeting appeared on your P&L as a £15,600 recurring expense, would you renew it? Adam and Kate explore why meeting overload happens, what it can reveal about the wider business, and how leaders can protect more time for focused work without losing the collaboration that good meetings provide. You will learn: Why meetings should be treated as an operational cost How excessive meetings disrupt deep work and create task switching Why more attendees do not necessarily create more buy-in How meetings can mask unclear ownership, weak reporting and missing systems When an update should become a dashboard, document, video or message instead The five questions to ask before putting a meeting in the diary How clearer agendas, attendees and outcomes can make meetings more useful Why recurring meetings should have an expiry date rather than running indefinitely This episode is for founders, managers and leadership teams who want to spend less time talking about work and more time doing the work that moves the business forward. 🎙️ Behind the SME is hosted by Adam Kene, CEO of Kene. In Season 2, Adam is joined by leadership coach and author Kate Waterfall Hill to explore the leadership challenges behind growing businesses. Like what you hear? We’d love to know! 📩 Contact us: hello@behindthesme.co.uk (mailto:hello@behindthesme.co.uk) 🔗 Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme (https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/behind-the-sme) 🌐 More platforms: https://linktr.ee/behindthesme (https://linktr.ee/behindthesme) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Who has been a guest on Behind the SME

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Evgeny Shadchnev
• Leanne Maskell
• Michael Houghton
• Athena Peppes
• Mike Jones

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

1,322

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Spotify

5.0 / 5

14 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 34 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

22

Social presence

0

YouTube

68

Engagement

51

Contact Behind the SME

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Behind the SME