Episode #17
Ep17 Founders, Consistency, and Growing People from Within | Jad (Washmen) | See Me Podcast | Máire
Welcome to the See Me Podcast, hosted by psychotherapist and neurodivergent advocate Máire Crouchman. In this episode, Máire is joined by Jad, co-founder of Washmen, one of the Middle East's most recognisable on-demand services. From starting his career as a field engineer in the Canadian oil fields to building a business with about 550 people and cleaning more than 6 million items a year, Jad brings a rare, honest view of what leadership actually looks like once the excitement of the early days is over. Together, they explore the emotional side of building a business that no business school teaches, how to detach from work without losing your edge, and why the strongest teams are built on explicit expectations, weekly one-on-ones, and a leader who is consistent in the way rules and values are applied. Jad shares the practices that transformed his organisation, from writing a 16-page personal operating manual for his team, to using the Four Disciplines of Execution to cut late orders from 11.5 per cent to 1 per cent, to building an environment where the same core team has stayed together since 2022. The conversation also turns to psychological safety and why physical safety has to come first, how to grow people from within, how AI has taken him back to the joy of building, and what he would tell his younger founder self. ✨ In this episode: The emotional part of building a business no one prepares you for Learning to detach from work without losing family life Writing a 16-page personal user guide for the team Weekly one-on-ones and moving implicit expectations into explicit ones The Four Disciplines of Execution and cutting late orders from 11.5 per cent to 1 per cent Retaining the same core team since 2022, and what makes people want to stay Physical safety, psychological safety, and why consistency of rules matters Growing people from within, from driver to operations manager Delegation, micromanagement, and knowing when each one serves the business Hiring for values and character, not just the role Firing with dignity, and letting people go so you can sleep at night What AI has given back to founders who love building Advice to his younger self, including executive coaching, daily movement, and 30 minutes a day with just your own thoughts About the host: Máire Crouchman is a psychotherapist, educator, and neurodivergent woman dedicated to creating spaces where every kind of mind is welcome.
