245. Scaling a People-Powered Sales Team with Lisa Whitehouse

The CEO Help Desk from Run Like Clockwork

In this coaching session, Adrienne Dorison and Emily Doyle sit down with Lisa Whitehouse, founder of Clever Vine — a UK-based outsourced business development agency — to unpack the mental and operational roadblocks keeping her from hiring and scaling with confidence.

If you've ever second-guessed whether it's safe to grow your team, this one's for you.

Here's what we cover: ✅ What "team trauma" looks like — and how it lingers in your decision-making ✅ Why Lisa keeps jumping back into client work (and what it's costing her) ✅ The challenge of hiring for soft skills and high performance ✅ How to create capacity before you need it ✅ Navigating the tension between small clients and large contracts

Lisa shares how a past business failure still shapes her thinking — and how that fear shows up in her leadership today. Plus, Adrienne and Emily break down: - The mindset shifts required to grow sustainably - How to set up hiring systems that feel safer - Why pricing must reflect skill (not just service)

If you're a service-based business owner trying to scale your team without losing quality or control, this episode will help you lead with clarity instead of fear.

🔥 Hit play and let's get into it!

Top 5 Takeaways:

Fear Isn't Strategy – Past business trauma can silently shape present-day decisions. Unpack it or risk staying stuck. Hire Ahead of Demand – Build the bench before you need it. Otherwise, you'll always be catching up. Let Go to Grow – Just because you can jump in doesn't mean you should. Founder fill-ins cost more than they save. Profit Needs Pricing Power – If your service is high-touch and human-led, your pricing should reflect that. Don't Just Attract Talent—Train It – A clear onboarding timeline builds trust (and saves money).

Chapters

01:10 – Meet Lisa: What Clever Vine does and who they serve 03:42 – The challenge: balancing demand with capacity 06:58 – Why past team layoffs still shape Lisa's fear 10:24 – Jumping back in: the hidden cost of being the fallback 14:08 – Improving onboarding speed with better hiring clarity 17:02 – Balancing a values-driven culture with performance goals 19:50 – Creating team diversity across big and small clients 22:20 – Why pricing must match value in a human-led business 25:12 – Facing the fear: journaling, self-awareness, and belief work 31:00 – Lisa's biggest takeaway + next step

Connect with Lisa:

👉 Website: https://www.clevervine.co.uk