Grow, Lead and Exit
Your Agency on Your Terms

Strategic insight and practical coaching for agency founders navigating uncertainty - helping you build an agency without compromising your life, values, or well-being.

Are you feeling stuck in the messy middle of agency growth? Are you struggling to break through, step back, or plan your next move?

You’re not alone in the challenges you face. I’ve been there too.

I built, scaled and exited my own agency, facing the same leadership pressures and tough decisions. Unlike generic business coaches, I bring real-world experience, board-level insight, and no-nonsense coaching to help agency founders, like you, confidently lead and unlock real value. Over the last 15 years, I’ve helped over 50 agencies do just that. Let’s talk about scaling smarter, avoiding costly mistakes, and shaping your agency’s future - giving you options on your terms.

Growth should feel like progress, not pressure.

– Karl Heasman, Agency Coach & Board Advisor

Why work with me?

How I can help
your agency

No two agencies are the same, and neither is my approach. I adapt to your agency’s unique challenges and trajectory, ensuring the support you get aligns with your goals - on your terms.

Scaling isn’t just about growth - it’s about sustainable, profitable growth. Through one-to-one coaching, strategic planning, and structured advisory sessions, I help you break through plateaus, refine your business model, and increase the value of your agency. Whether you’re aiming for higher profitability, a stronger leadership team, or a more structured operation, we’ll create a roadmap that works for your vision, your goals, and your future.
Running an agency isn’t just about managing clients - it’s about leading with clarity and control. My approach combines executive coaching, leadership development, and hands-on mentoring to help founders step back from the day-to-day, make better decisions, and create a business that can run without them. From refining your strategy to handling the challenges of hiring, delegation, and operations, we’ll shape a leadership approach that gives you more control, not more stress.
Whether you want to sell, step back, or secure long-term stability, a successful exit starts long before you decide to leave. Through exit planning workshops, valuation strategies, and succession planning, I help agency owners build a sellable, scalable business that gives them real options - whether that’s attracting buyers, transitioning to a leadership team, or simply gaining more freedom. Even if you’re not planning an exit yet, structuring your business for value today ensures long-term security for tomorrow.

View my services

What I offer

Clear strategic roadmap

Know exactly what to do next to scale smarter, not harder.

Faster growth, less stress

Scale profitably while reducing founder dependency.

Work-life balance regained

Scale without burning out - I help founders reclaim their time.

Increased agency valuation

Make the business more valuable, whether for sale or long-term sustainability.

Smarter decision-making

Gain clarity and confidence in agency growth strategies ready for the future.

Exit-ready business

Build a sellable agency that runs without the founder.

Success stories

I've worked with various business coaches during Aspire's 10-year lifetime and Karl has been the best by far. He knows agencies inside out and quickly got to know my character, so he could coach me at the right level and support with the right tools. It's been a challenging time for all companies, with such big environmental and economical challenges to overcome, but Aspire has made more progress over the last 12-months than ever before and I'm sure much of that is down to great guidance!

Layla Smith, Managing Director, Aspire PR & Marketing, Hampton Hill
Karl is an excellent source of practical wisdom in the agency world. Having worked with Karl as a coach for some time now, I've experienced a vast range of challenges especially over the last 12 months, and at each stage, Karl has managed to quickly identify the underlying root cause and suggest an innovative solution based on his knowledge of my own strengths and weaknesses as well as those of our business. I can confidently say that Karl's had a huge impact on our business and on me personally as a leader.

Ritam Gandhi, Founded, Studio Graphene, London
“Karl has been a fantastic enabler for our business, bringing a range of proven tools, ways of thinking and activities that have helped us get a clear idea of the direction our agency is heading during a period of change. We've been impressed and would recommend others to try his agency consulting services too.”

Ben Matthews, Co-Founder, Empower Agency, London