Bits, Bytes and Business

Conversations with a range of business owners from across the globe that discuss the challenges, triumphs and failures that are faced when trying to build and grow a business. In addition we talk about the latest trends in tech and generally anything we feel is relevant for today's tech and business savvy audience The companies interviewed operate in a diverse set of industries and are of varying maturity from the new startup to the established multi-national.If you would like to take part in a podcast or would like to learn more then follow the link to Substack or LinkedIn and message us there

Bits, Bytes and Business is a business podcast hosted by Bhairav Patel, with 288 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Bhairav Patel hosts Bits, Bytes and Business, a business show with 288 episodes published.

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  Bits, Bytes and Business

  Fear Is the Problem, Not AI

  Sep 24, 202646 min

  Podcast-platform show notes for SoundCloud, in your functional reference format and under the 4,000-character limit. Fear is the problem, not AI | Mark Bentley returns | Bits, Bytes and Business with Bhairav Patel About This Episode Mark Bentley's first appearance became the most popular episode Bhairav Patel has released in ten years of podcasting, so he is back for part two. This time the self-awareness conversation runs straight into the middle of the current AI panic. Mark's argument is that the thing everyone fears was never the technology itself. His central idea: you are already running on a "biological AI" trained by your upbringing and education, and self-awareness is what lets you take back the controls. This is also the first filmed episode, so you can watch on YouTube as well as listen. What We Cover Why the difference between artificial and genuine intelligence is not processing power Mark's "biological AI" theory and what it means for how you think Using self-awareness to edit your own conditioning instead of running on autopilot Why trying to stop AI is wasted energy, and the better question to ask What actually changes for your business in the age of AI, and how little is new The one-minute habit for cutting through overwhelm and noise Raising a teenager to think independently in a world built to do it for them Why fear, not the tool, is the real risk Key Takeaways The tool is neutral. AI can build or destroy, and how it is used is the only variable that matters. You cannot halt AI, so spend your energy deciding how it fits your life and work. The fundamentals of a good business have not changed. Customers, execution, and judgement still decide outcomes. Critical thinking and self-awareness matter more now, not less. Manage the overwhelm by slowing down and creating deliberate pauses rather than consuming every update. Links Mark Bentley, breakthrough coaching (Gene Keys and Human Design): markbentley.com.au Watch the full episode on YouTube Listen to Mark's first appearance on the power of self-awareness in business Subscribe to Bits, Bytes and Business for more conversations with Bhairav Patel

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  Bits, Bytes and Business

  Get Your Feet In the Grass - Mark Bentley Trailer

  Sep 21, 20264 min

  Mark Bentley is back for part two, and this is the first episode we have filmed. He answers the five questions I ask everyone: What is your morning routine? What are you most proud of? What annoys you? What do you do to relax? What advice would you give to someone struggling with all the AI right now? As ever this is the trailer to the main event, where we pick up the self-awareness thread from Mark's first appearance and bring it right up to date. We get into staying grounded when AI has everyone overwhelmed, why the tool itself is never the problem, raising kids to think for themselves, and Mark's belief that the most powerful AI you will ever manage is the one already running in your own head. The full episode lands in a few days.

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  Bits, Bytes and Business

  Selling to Private Equity: What They Don't Tell You

  Sep 17, 202644 min

  Sorcha Lorimer built Trace, a boutique data privacy consultancy, from scratch. She bootstrapped it, landed enterprise clients across the UK, Europe and North America, and sold it to a private equity backed business. In this episode, she talks openly about what that journey actually looked like, from leaving a comfortable corporate role to navigating COVID, scaling as a lean team, and going through the opaque process of selling a business. She also introduces Onyxio, her new venture helping health tech and life sciences companies build confidence in how they use sensitive data. What We Cover - Sorcha's background in the NHS, digital agencies and financial services, and how that mix shaped Trace - The emotional reality of leaving corporate life and building from zero as a solo founder - Why she started with the end in mind and set an eight-year timeline to exit - How Trace pivoted from SaaS-led to consulting-led and what that taught her about business models - Navigating COVID as a small business reliant on enterprise relationships - How her corporate background helped her win enterprise clients and anticipate procurement blockers - The sale process: kissing frogs, dummy runs, knowing your numbers and being ready when the right buyer appears - Why selling to an experienced acquirer matters - Gotchas in deal structures: clawbacks, lock-in periods, IP clauses and leaving money on the table - What Onyxio does: a "passport office" for sensitive data, bringing legal, security and technical lenses together - Why data confidence matters more than ever in the age of AI - Her advice to her younger self: start earlier and stay curious Key Takeaways If you plan to sell, keep your house in order from day one, not just when a buyer appears The zero-to-one phase strips away your corporate identity and you need to be prepared for that Enterprise sales cycles are long, so diversify your client base with well-funded startups too Around 30-38% of deals succeed; many fail on compliance debt and poor documentation Stubbornness is an asset, but you have to be able to read the data and know when to pivot Selling a business is opaque and there is no standard playbook, so treat early conversations as dummy runs Links Sorcha Lorimer on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sorchalorimer Onyxio: onyxio.co

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  Bits, Bytes and Business

  Are you willing to take the hits? Sorcha Lorimer Trailer

  Sep 15, 20265 min

  Sorcha Lorimer was the founder of Trace, a data privacy consultancy she bootstrapped, scaled to enterprise clients across the UK, Europe and North America, and sold to a private equity backed business. She's now building Onyxio, which helps health tech and life sciences companies prove their sensitive data is safe to use. She answers the five questions I ask everyone: What is your morning routine? What are you most proud of? What annoys you? What do you do to relax? What advice would you give to someone looking to become an entrepreneur? As ever this is the trailer to the main event. In the full episode, Sorcha and I get into how she built and sold Trace, what she learned about navigating the sale process with private equity, and what she's building now with Onyxio in the world of sensitive data and health tech.

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  Bits, Bytes and Business

  Make Yourself Human - Alfie Elliott Trailer

  Sep 10, 20263 min

  Alfie Elliott is the Director of Select Group, a boutique recruitment business covering IT, business operations and consultancy across the UK and US. He started as a 16-year-old apprentice in East Croydon and has spent just under 15 years in the industry, working across financial services and consulting. He answers the five questions I ask everyone: What is your morning routine? What are you most proud of? What annoys you? What do you do to relax? What advice would you give to someone who's looking to get recruited right now? In the full episode, Alfie and I get into the realities of recruitment in 2025: how AI is filtering candidates before they ever speak to a human, why networking and relationships still matter more than a polished CV, what the job market actually looks like for over-50s, and how sober networking is changing the way business gets done.

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