Leading at Pace: How to Grow, Trust, and Fail Forward
In fast-paced, high-growth businesses, there’s often a tension between speed and sustainability. Can you build something well and build it fast? Can you push for high performance and truly invest in your people?
These questions were at the centre of my conversation with Gareth Anderson, Head of Business Management at Allica Bank, on The extra-Ordinary Leader podcast.
Gareth leads in an environment where things move at the speed of light. Alica is scaling at a rate that makes three years in the business feel like a lifetime. And yet, through all the pressure and pace, he’s proving that leadership isn’t just about driving results—it’s about trusting your people, creating a culture of experimentation, and making work feel like more than just a task.
Fast Doesn’t Have to Mean Frantic
One of the biggest myths in leadership is that speed comes at the cost of quality. Gareth is proving otherwise. He’s building teams rapidly but doing it in a way that ensures the culture isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving.
His secret? Clarity of purpose.
"When we recruit, we’re not just looking for people who can do the job," he told me. "We’re looking for people who get why we do what we do. We hire for curiosity, for mindset, for people who see opportunities where others see challenges."
Allica’s hiring process is unconventional, full of questions designed to uncover who someone really is. Questions like:
What gives you energy?
Tell us about a time when you didn’t thrive, what was missing?
These aren’t trick questions. They’re about understanding what drives a person forward, because in an environment like Allica, mindset is everything.
Trust First, Then Lead
This one hit me hard.
“If you’ve recruited them, then you need to trust them.”
That’s Gareth’s philosophy. And it’s something so many leaders struggle with. The temptation to micromanage, to hold onto control, to wait for people to earn trust rather than starting from a place of trust—it’s all so common.
But what if we flipped that?
"If I don’t trust my team from day one, I’ve made the wrong hire," Gareth said. "My job is to create an environment that challenges them but also backs them fully." For leaders, this is the real work: letting go of control and equipping people to succeed without needing constant oversight.
Fail Loudly, Fail Proudly
One of the biggest shocks Gareth had when he joined Allica was that failure is celebrated.
Coming from the world of big banks, he was used to an environment where failure was something to avoid at all costs. But at Alica, the mindset is different.
“We should celebrate people who try, people who experiment, and people who fall flat on their faces from having done so.”
Instead of playing it safe, Gareth’s team launches bold experiments. Some work brilliantly. Others flop. But even the flops aren’t wasted, they’re banked as learning. "We’ve tested sales channels that didn’t work. Instead of saying, ‘That was a disaster,’ we said, ‘Congratulations, we’ve learned something.’"
That’s the mindset shift. Failure isn’t a dead end—it’s data.
Energy Over Time Management
This conversation got me thinking about something I heard recently: time management isn’t the real challenge, energy management is.
So many leaders obsess over schedules, calendars, and efficiency. But what if we flipped the script? What if, instead of optimising time, we optimised energy? "The moment work starts feeling like just a task, we’ve got a problem," Gareth said. "It has to mean something. People stay at Alica because every day, they feel like they’re growing, learning, being stretched. That’s what keeps people engaged."
Three Leadership Lessons from Gareth Anderson
If you’re leading a team—whether in a fast-scaling business or a more traditional environment—here are three takeaways from this conversation that can transform your leadership:
Start from trust. If you’ve hired them, believe in them. Trust should be the default, not something that has to be earned over time.
Create a culture of experimentation. Stop fearing failure. Start encouraging people to try, test, and learn—without the fear of getting it wrong.
Make work more than just tasks. If your team feels like they’re just ticking boxes, you’re missing the point. Give them purpose, autonomy, and a reason to stay engaged.
Final Thought: Hitting the Target Without Missing the Point
Too many businesses get obsessed with targets, metrics, and results. But if you hit your numbers while burning out your team, losing the joy in your work, or failing to build something sustainable—then what’s the point?
extra-Ordinary leadership isn’t about the numbers you hit, it’s about the people you grow along the way.
[00:00:00] – Introduction to episode and to The extra-Ordinary Leader book
[00:01:58] – Introducing guest Gareth Anderson, Head of Business Management at Allica Bank
[00:03:07] – Gareth’s definition of extra-Ordinary leadership and why he never set out to be a leader
[00:04:06] – What "making a difference" really means in leadership
[00:05:52] – Gareth’s experience leading through rapid growth
[00:08:21] – How Allica hires differently
[00:09:42] – Gareth interviews Dolly with a real Allica hiring question
[00:12:00] – Creating a culture where failure is celebrated and learning is prioritised
[00:16:42] – Real-world example of failure and how Allica turns it into learning
[00:18:29] – Dolly’s personal story of failure and pricing mistakes in her business
[00:21:01] – Why stepping outside your comfort zone is essential for growth
[00:24:02] – The impact of experimenting and learning a new skill—Dolly’s kite surfing experience
[00:26:42] – Retaining top talent by combining high challenge with high support
[00:30:00] – Time management vs. energy management
[00:33:21] – Balancing big goals with the mechanics of execution
[00:35:43] – Why focusing only on targets leads to burnout and disengagement
[00:38:28] – Leadership today: shifting from permission-based cultures to initiative-driven teams
[00:40:34] – Three key leadership lessons: trust first, create a culture of experimentation, and make work meaningful
[00:43:46] – How Gareth manages stress and maintains perspective
[00:48:32] – Gareth’s household item that represents extra-Ordinary leadership: He-Man
[00:50:46] – The power of symbols in leadership and motivation
[00:51:26] – Final thoughts and reflections on leadership in a fast-paced world
