From Founder-Dependent to Scalable: The Alchemy Story

A decade after founding Alchemy Creative Studios, Desiree Jones had built a business with a strong reputation, a loyal client base and a highly specialised team that helped some of South Africa’s largest listed entities translate complex organisational activity into investor-ready reports.

While the business was delivering solid results, inside, Desiree felt the strain. 

She could see that the business couldn’t grow further if everything still ran through her.

She knew Alchemy needed a new way of working, one that unlocked the potential of the team, reduced risk, and gave her the freedom to lead effectively. 

By the time Desiree contacted Grow in 2023, Alchemy had grown to a team of 11 reporting and language specialists, and revenue had consistently climbed. Yet the flat structure that had served Alchemy to this point was limiting the business and its people, as the lack of clear career paths risked losing talented people who wanted more room to grow.

She needed help moving from a business that depended on her to a business that could scale without her.

Desiree explored several coaching firms, but Grow’s approach felt distinctly different.

“I chose Grow because it felt like you would walk a journey with us. I needed someone who could help us solve it together.”

She also chose Grow because of the structure they would bring. The rhythm of monthly reviews and quarterly strategic forums was a sharp contrast to the entrepreneurial freedom she had allowed herself for years, but she knew it was necessary.
“Entrepreneurs can be wildly unchecked when it comes to business admin and structures,” she says, “and that does not build a self-sustaining business.”

The first priority was resourcing. Alchemy needed more hands, but not just any hands – the right ones.

With guidance from their coach, Alchemy used the Topgrading approach to clarify requirements, evaluate competencies and methodically sift through candidates.

It took nearly six months, but the outcome was worth the patience. Alchemy hired two reporting specialists who immediately strengthened the delivery backbone of the business. The Topgrading approach also paid dividends on the next hire, with the now-familiar process moving much faster.

These hires created enough breathing room to begin reimagining the operating structure.

Alchemy consists of two teams – namely the Language and Reporting and Insights teams. While the Language team’s structure served it well, the Reporting and Insights team had grown beyond its current design. 

With extra capacity in place, Alchemy worked with Orgro, an organisational design firm the leadership team met at a Grow summit, to reshape its reporting team structure. From the start of the project, Alchemy’s Grow coach, leadership team and the Orgro team met to ensure the project was well co-ordinated and supported. 

What had been a flat reporting team became a portfolio-led model, where each portfolio lead manages a group of clients, supported by reporting specialists. The portfolio leads report to the Head of Reporting and Insights. This shift helped redistribute work, created career paths and removed the risk of key dependencies. 

Desiree describes the impact plainly: “I really believe this structure has unlocked our next stage of growth and reduced key person dependencies in a big way.”

That belief was tested sooner than expected. When Desiree had to step away for extended periods due to her mom’s illness, the business continued to run. Projects were delivered, clients were managed and the leadership team operated with confidence.

“Everything carried on – our teams were exceptional,” she says, “and that showed me how far we have come.”

Another point Desiree highlighted as a part of the shift was rhythm. From the start, Grow introduced a cadence of structured monthly reviews and more intensive quarterly forums. These sessions forced the leadership team to pause, assess progress, unblock challenges, and recommit to their goals.

Desiree laughs about her initial resistance. “The meetings used to annoy me every time because I feel like I don’t have time for them, but it’s a good annoyance because we can feel the focus the meetings give us. If something is not achieved, we ask why, and it is usually lack of capacity, not effort.”

The discipline soon became a competitive advantage. Alchemy moved from trying to do everything at once to prioritising the most strategic, high-impact projects each year, focusing first on those that would deliver the greatest value. These were then broken down into well-planned, manageable phases across each quarter, giving the team clarity and momentum.  The culture shifted from perfectionism to what Desiree calls “launch and learn”, choosing progress over perfection.

The regular coaching rhythm, combined with the Grow learning modules, deepened the thinking and maturity of the leadership team. 

“The forum brought different voices and superpowers into the room,” Desiree says. “And the shared language we built strengthened the relationships between us, which is now being cascaded into our teams.”

To Desiree, the value of her coach goes far beyond frameworks. “He brings external insights and experience, and he is the custodian of our meeting and execution discipline. But he is also human and caring. He checks in, he supports us, and he connects us to opportunities in the Grow community.”

Those connections have given Desiree access to peers, ideas and practices from other industries, expanding her perspective and shaping Alchemy’s strategic direction.

The business has depth, structure and a team that can carry it forward. With the right team in place, a portfolio-led operating model and a consistent strategic rhythm, the business is positioned to flourish. Desiree is now working towards hiring a finance and operations head, a step that will allow her to spend more time on strategy and on developing her leadership team.

Alchemy’s next horizon is ambitious, driven by its 2030 strategy that charts the path to a business that is stable, scalable and shaped by leaders who take deep, collective accountability.