Bold Leadership and Strategic Moves That Matter
- Feb 20
- 3 min read
By Maarten de Reij
The boldest move of 2025
This year, the boldest move we made was reinventing our entire commercial strategy. After a year of explosive revenue growth, we made the decision to shift from a marketing-led organization to a truly sales-driven company. That meant expanding our sales team from the foundation we already had and committing to a much more intentional, value-focused outbound motion.
Within our industry and beyond, many claim that “cold outbound is dead.” We proved that it doesn’t have to be, especially when you genuinely offer people something they need and benefit from.
By doubling down on value-first outreach, we unlocked even faster growth, making us the #1 fastest-growing B2B SaaS company in the Netherlands. And all of this happened while scaling the team from 8 to 30 people in a single year.
This pivot taught us that bold decisions aren't about following trends. They’re about trusting your conviction, challenging assumptions, and building systems that can scale and repeat.
Navigating tension when making high-stakes decisions
Some healthy tension is always present when you’re making bold moves. And I don’t try to suppress it.
I recognize it, sit with it, and use it as a signal to take the time to think more clearly and intentionally.
One of the biggest challenges this year was growing our team so quickly. Moving from a tight-knit group of 8 to a much larger organization creates natural pressure points. There was a real concern that our culture might dilute as we scaled. But that tension ultimately pushed us to be more deliberate. We were fortunate to bring in a great friend and colleague who helped execute a thoughtful plan to grow the culture as fast as we grew the team.
I break that tension down into two questions:
Is this tension justified?
If yes, I take steps to reduce risk and focus on what we can control. For example, when we committed to rapid growth, we sat down as a team and formalized our culture by defining our core values. Then we embedded them through bi-weekly discussions and ongoing initiatives. Today, every employee, new or old, knows them and lives with them.
Or is this tension simply the feeling of doing something new?
Often, once you analyze it, you realize the situation is far more reversible or manageable than it initially seems. Not every decision is a one-way door as Bezos would put it.
Of course, there are still moments where decisions carry real consequences and no easy way back. In those cases, the tension doesn’t disappear, but for me it becomes a source of clarity rather than hesitation. By acknowledging it and working through it with structure and intention, we’ve been able to make bold moves. From scaling our team to doubling down on strategies others said wouldn’t work.
A heads-up to other entrepreneurs: the tension never fully goes away. But it becomes energizing. And it can guide you to make stronger, more confident decisions.
My #1 leadership principle for 2026 is
Radical transparency anchored in uncompromising values.
I believe a strong culture is cultivated by its people. That means being transparent about expectations, challenging every team member to reach their full potential, and creating an environment where transparency, hard work and ambition are not just encouraged, but lived and embraced.
As we continue to grow, I’m committed to maintaining a high hiring standard to safeguard that culture. The people we bring in shape who we become, and preserving that transparency, discipline, and values-driven foundation will remain my guiding principle in 2026.
Connect With Maarten
Comments