Businessman and investor Matt Haycox has released a blunt new warning for founders: your biggest problem probably isn’t sales, marketing or even cashflow. It’s people. According to Haycox, most small businesses bottleneck not because the product is weak or the market is slow, but because the founder hasn’t built the culture, processes or leadership structure needed to support real growth.
‘People and culture are the make-or-break part of running a business,’ Haycox says. ‘Founders think their biggest headaches are clients or revenue. Nine times out of ten, it’s their team. Or the lack of one. If you don’t build the right environment, nothing scales.’
The guidance forms part of the growing No Bollocks Business HQ, a straight-talking command centre for entrepreneurs who want clear direction rather than wishful thinking. The HQ, available at Matt Haycox’s No Bollocks Business HQ, includes execution-ready playbooks, case files and decision tools across all 11 pillars of building a real business.
The People Problem Founders Don’t Want to Admit
Haycox says the biggest issue is that founders assume culture will ‘sort itself out’. It never does.
‘Culture is happening whether you design it or not,’ he says. ‘If you don’t set expectations early, you’ll end up working for your business instead of running it.’
He argues that people problems are simply structural problems in disguise. Poor communication, unclear roles, reactive management, inconsistent standards and firefighting behaviour are all symptoms of founders trying to do everything themselves.
A study from McKinsey shows that companies with strong cultures outperform peers by up to 200% in profitability, yet most SMEs still underestimate organisational design.
‘Founders don’t need beanbags and slogans,’ Haycox says. ‘They need clarity, cadence and standards. That’s what fixes culture.’
A Fast-Growing Region Facing the Same Challenge
The UAE’s entrepreneurial boom makes this issue even more urgent. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2024 to 2025 report, the UAE is ranked the number one country in the world for entrepreneurship for the fourth consecutive year. The Dubai International Chamber recorded a 138% year-on-year surge in new company registrations in H1 2025, while the Dubai Chamber of Commerce added more than 35,000 new member companies during the same period.
Rapid launches mean rapid team growth. And rapid team growth creates chaos unless founders build structure early.
‘Dubai is full of opportunity, but also full of businesses that hire too quickly without building the foundations,’ Haycox says. ‘One bad hire in a small team can knock you off course for months.’
This is exactly why he launched his People & Culture resources within the HQ, available through the People and Culture framework for founders, a dedicated section focused on hiring, onboarding, performance management and leadership systems.
What Founders Get Wrong About Hiring
Haycox says the mistake most founders make is hiring based on personality or convenience rather than clarity.
‘People hire who they like, not who they need,’ he says. ‘It’s the quickest way to create resentment later. You end up with a team full of friends who can’t actually do the job.’
He breaks down two common traps:
- Hiring too late. Founders wait until they’re drowning. By then, urgency leads to bad decisions.
- Hiring too early. Equally dangerous. Hiring someone without a defined role or process creates confusion, not relief.
‘Hiring is not a guess,’ he says. ‘It’s a system. And most founders don’t have one.’
The Culture Fix That Actually Works
Haycox’s No Bollocks approach emphasises clarity first, consistency second.
He says strong culture comes from three simple but often-missed behaviours:
- Defining roles and expectations before someone joins
- Establishing a weekly rhythm so communication stays tight
- Giving feedback early, not when problems explode
A PwC global survey found that 80% of employees believe culture is a competitive advantage, yet only 30% say their leadership communicates expectations clearly.
‘That gap is where most small businesses fall apart,’ Haycox notes. ‘People aren’t mind readers. They want direction.’
Inside the No Bollocks People System
Within the People & Culture pillar of the HQ, Haycox includes:
- Hiring scorecards
- Onboarding templates
- Weekly meeting cadences
- Performance check-ins
- Leadership behaviours that stop overwhelm
- ‘Culture audits’ that show founders where the cracks are forming
But unlike generic HR advice, the HQ puts execution at the centre.
‘I don’t care about theories or frameworks,’ Haycox says. ‘If a founder can’t apply something in seven days, it doesn’t go in the HQ.’
Fixing People Problems Before They Spiral
Haycox encourages founders to treat people issues with the same seriousness as financial problems.
‘When your culture is off, everything slows down,’ he says. ‘Sales suffer, operations wobble, clients feel the impact and the founder ends up doing the work themselves. Fixing people problems early is the cheapest growth strategy you’ll ever have.’
A Fresh Closing Note
Haycox believes that strong people and culture systems aren’t optional extras. They’re what allow a business to grow without breaking the founder.
‘Your team determines your freedom,’ he says. ‘Get people and culture right and the whole business feels lighter. Get it wrong and you’ll work harder every year. The choice is yours.’
Both the No Bollocks Business HQ and the dedicated People & Culture pillar are now live on Haycox’s official website, offering founders a cleaner way to build teams that perform without the drama.
