Episode 21. The Growth Ceiling: Why Founders Struggle to Let Go with Mouaz Alnouri

In this episode, I sit down with Mouaz Alnouri, a long-time friend and someone I’ve worked with closely over a number of years as he built and scaled his business Skillfield.Mouaz is the founder of Skillfield, a data and cybersecurity consultancy working with some of Australia’s largest telcos, utilities and enterprise organisations. When we first started working together, Mouaz was doing what most founders do early on, selling, delivering, leading the team and carrying a lot of the load himself. Since then, the business has grown, the team has expanded, and Mouaz has transitioned into an executive chairman role where his focus is strategy, leadership and where the business goes next.We talk about that shift and why moving from operator to leader is one of the hardest parts of building a business. It sounds good on paper. In reality, letting go is uncomfortable, slow and very easy to get wrong. Mouaz shares how coaching, board training and completing his MBA helped him step back, zoom out and build a structure that does not rely on one person holding everything together.We also get into Mouaz’s journey into Australia. Growing up in Damascus, working across the Middle East and Africa, migrating with his young family, and starting a business without an established network. It’s not a journey untraveled but it’s a challenging one and Mouaz’s approach became an inspiration for how I run my business after I met him. Partnerships and values are a big part of this conversation. Mouaz is clear on what he will and will not compromise on, including walking away from revenue when it puts culture or people at risk. As he puts it, “If the short-term win does not take you to a long-term win, then it is a distraction.” It’s a mindset that explains a lot about how Skillfield has grown.We also talk cybersecurity without the usual fear-based noise. Mouaz breaks down what actually matters for small and medium businesses, why it does not need to be complex or expensive, and why most security issues still come back to people, habits and basic discipline.One of my favourite parts of the episode is Mouaz’s approach to learning, which is refreshingly practicall. “Don’t do learning for the sake of learning. Identify the problem you need to solve, then go and learn.” a lot of people go around collecting qualifications for the sake of it, in the end it doesn’t always get you anywhere meaningful without intention. This was Mouaz’s first ever podcast, and I was glad to do it with him. If you are building a business, thinking about how to scale without burning yourself out, or navigating the jump from founder to leader, there’s plenty in this conversation for you.You can connect with Mouaz on LinkedIn or learn more about Skillfield online.Connect on LinkedInCheck out Skillfield's Website