Episode 10 - How Company Culture Actually Shapes Business Success | Patrick Smith

What does it really take to build a company culture that outlasts the founder's presence in the room? In this episode, Nate sits down with Patrick Smith, serial entrepreneur and CEO of Zally, a San Francisco-based AI company building a foundation model for behavioural intelligence. Patrick shares how he went from launching two businesses at age ten in Norway to navigating eleven early failures, and what those hard-won lessons taught him about leading with purpose. He opens up about Zally's unconventional approach to onboarding, including a 120-page founder stack that every new employee reads within their first two weeks, and why he believes true culture only reveals itself when the founder leaves the room. The conversation digs into the evolution of Zally's core values from Spark to Ask and why Patrick chose Grit as a defining principle despite pushback from the boardroom. Patrick also talks about building in stealth as an AI company, the importance of asking for help at every level of an organisation, and why he treats himself like an athlete to stay at peak performance as a founder. For anyone building a team, navigating startup life, or simply curious about what it takes to build a company that could change the world, this is a conversation worth your full attention. Key takeaways: Culture is set by the founder but owned by the team the real test is what happens when the founder leaves the room A founder stack (a documented, evolving vision document) gives new hires clarity and gives the team a shared language to build from Company values should evolve as the organisation grows don't be afraid to retire a value that no longer fits Asking for help is not a weakness; it is a core skill for founders and should be modelled from the top down Treating yourself like an athlete early mornings, exercise, diet, no alcohol directly impacts your ability to lead clearly Failure in the US startup ecosystem is viewed as a credential; in the Nordics and UK, it takes longer for the culture around you to accept and move on Building in stealth as an AI company requires a different communication strategy sharing the journey, not the product, is how Zally built its audience and attracted talent Connect with Patrick Smith on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/patrickmoesmith/ Visit Zally at: zally.com If this episode resonated with you, share it with a founder or leader in your network who could use the perspective. And don't forget to like, subscribe, and leave a review — it helps more people find the show. I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly. – Nate and the Second Order podcast team Connect with Nate Dinet on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nathanieldinet Visit The Step Manager website here: https://www.thestepmanager.com #secondorder #natedinet #thestepmanager #operationspodcast #deliveryoperations #founderbottleneck #scalingoperations #techstartups #saasoperations #businessoperations #operationalexcellence #startupscaling #revenueoperations #businessleadership #podcastforentrepreneurs Second Order is a podcast for technology founders, COOs, and operations leaders who want to understand what actually happens between closing a deal and delivering on it. Hosted by Nate Dinet of The Step Manager, each episode features honest conversations with CEOs, heads of business operations, and senior executives at SaaS companies, AI-native startups, and tech services firms - people who have built delivery systems under pressure and lived to tell the story. The podcast sits at the intersection of operational execution and company growth, covering the challenges most business podcasts skip over: delivery chaos at scale, the founder bottleneck, bespoke traps that erode margins, and the ongoing question of when to invest in technology versus people. If you're scaling a technology business and the gap between selling and delivering is where things get messy, Second Order is where you'll find the frameworks, stories, and hard-won insight to close that gap. Series Keywords (to be added to the channel): Second Order podcast, Nate Dinet, The Step Manager, delivery operations, operational scaling, SaaS operations, founder bottleneck, technology startup podcast, business operations leadership, revenue operations, scaling delivery, operational execution, AI startup operations, boutique consulting operations, operational architecture, post-sale delivery, Sprint Zero, technology services operations, COO podcast, operations podcast for founders