From the Beyond Growth archive
Human, real and local: Rachel Patterson on leading Geelong Broadcasters
15 October 2026
Read the field noteGrowth Intelligence
We find out what's really happening in Geelong business, and we share what we learn.
Geelong business research built from conversations with owners, directors and the advisers who see across many businesses.
Edition 01
Business performance and growth
Growth Intelligence · Geelong
First edition · Coming early 2027
What separates the businesses that are growing from the ones that are stuck?
We're aiming to speak with more than 20 Geelong business leaders about what's moved their businesses forward, what's held them back, and what's different about growing a business here right now.
For advisers and professional firms
You see across many businesses. That view is what this research is built on.
Accountants, lawyers, bankers and consultants sit across dozens of Geelong businesses at once. The patterns you notice are exactly what Edition 01 is trying to surface.
Take part in Edition 01- One hour, five questions. A single conversation, in person or online, working through the same five questions every contributor answers.
- Named or anonymous, your call. Nobody is quoted or named without agreeing to it, and you can review your quotes before anything is published.
- An early look at the findings. Contributors get a briefing on the findings before the edition is released, and printed copies to share with clients.
What we're exploring
Edition 01 explores business performance and growth, in depth, through conversations with local leaders and grounded in public data. Two more themes are in the pipeline.
Edition 01 · Under way
Business performance and growth
What separates businesses that are growing from those struggling to move forward, and what's different about doing it in Geelong.
In the pipeline
Technology and AI
How local businesses are actually using AI, where it pays off, and what's holding them back.
In the pipeline
Leadership and people
How organisations develop leaders, attract and keep talent, and build effective teams.
"Risk and growth are two sides of the same coin. You want growth, you are going to have risk. If you don't want any risk, you are not going to have growth."
Field notes
From the Beyond Growth archive
Clarity is kindness: Robine Stephenson on strategy that actually happens
6 October 2026
Read the field note
From the Beyond Growth archive
Start with current reality: Mark Neeld on building a startup inside a community organisation
2 June 2026
Read the field note
The podcast
Beyond Growth with Reyan Fernando
Long-form conversations with the people building and leading businesses in the region: the decisions, the setbacks and the lessons.
Listen on Spotify
Events
Edition 01 launch session
A two-hour workshop: the findings, a couple of local guest speakers on what they're seeing, and a printed copy of the edition to take away.
Early 2027, Geelong. Date and venue to be announced. Subscribe to hear first.
Subscribe for updates
Who's behind it
Growth Intelligence is a business research practice focused on the Geelong business community. It exists to find out what's really happening in local business and to share what it learns, in plain language, with the people running businesses here.
It was founded by Reyan Fernando, who has spent more than twenty years in and around Geelong business: building and running his own IT company, merging it with a larger provider, and more recently working alongside leadership teams across the region as a Certified EOS Implementer. He hosts the Beyond Growth podcast and sits on the board of the Geelong Chamber of Commerce.
That background shapes the questions Growth Intelligence asks. The research and its conclusions stand on their own.
Hear what we're hearing.
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