Richard Gregory is co-founder of AgencyNXD, a seasoned advisor, and Non-Executive Director to multiple tech firms and agencies, including Clicktech, Fluid Commerce and Ruler Analytics. Previously, Richard was Managing Director of digital agency Latitude, Director of Tech North, and co-founder ofSAScon.
A proud advocate for the digital and tech ecosystem in the North of England, Richard brings deep experience in growing businesses, building communities, and driving commercial impact across the sector.
As part of our Meet the Board series, we sat down with audioadpro advisory board member Richard Gregory to explore his journey, his perspective on the evolving tech landscape, and what the future holds.
- You’ve founded, scaled and advised a wide range of businesses – what leadership lesson has stayed with you throughout that journey?
The leadership lesson that has stayed with me—and one I find myself repeating most often as an advisor—is that growth is as much about what you stop doing as what you start. When you’re founding or scaling, there is an enormous temptation to chase every ‘shiny’ revenue opportunity or say yes to every client request just to keep the momentum going. But I’ve learned that ‘doing a few things better’ beats being ‘averagely present’ in a dozen different areas every time. If you try to be everything to everyone, you end up being nothing to anyone.
The hardest part of leadership isn’t choosing between a good idea and a bad one; it’s choosing between two good ideas so that the team can give 100% of their energy to the best one. I’m a big believer that saying ‘no’—whether to a distracting project or a client that doesn’t align with your core mission—is actually an act of respect for your team and your vision. It creates the ‘white space’ necessary for excellence. I see this with Michael and Roger at audioadpro; they have a very clear sense of what they are building, and by being disciplined about their focus, they ensure that when they do say ‘yes’ to a direction, they have the bandwidth to execute it world-class.
- You’re a passionate advocate for the tech ecosystem in the North of England – what progress have you seen, and where do you believe the biggest opportunities now lie?
The North of England has shifted from competitive cities to a unified, nationally recognised, cluster-based tech ecosystem, mapped by the 12 Clusters of Tech framework. Excellence is seen across the region, from FinTech/eCommerce (Manchester) to HealthTech (Leeds) and AI-driven InsurTech (Sheffield). This coordination, championed by bodies like Manchester Digital, presents the North as a formidable investment proposition, evidenced by established leaders (THG, Matillion) and high-growth companies (UrbanChain, Tractable).
The main opportunity is deepening cross-regional collaboration, creating a “National Investment Corridor” by aligning clusters such as the North West’s Industrial Digitisation with the North East’s Green Energy. The region is now the UK’s primary engine for Applied AI and the Green Transition, with scaling businesses focusing on plugging into the right pre-existing talent and infrastructure networks.
- As an advisory board member at audioadpro, what excites you most about the company’s direction and the role of digital audio in modern marketing?
What excites me most about audioadpro is the sheer enthusiasm Michael and Roger bring to the table. They have this infectious passion for the medium that reminds you why you got into this industry in the first place. But beyond that founder energy, I’m fascinated by the fact that digital audio is effectively ‘the channel advertisers forgot.’
While everyone was busy obsessing over social and search ads, a quiet revolution happened in audio. It evolved from broad, untrackable radio spots into a precision digital tool—it’s now every bit as targetable and measurable as display or video, yet it happened while most of the industry wasn’t looking. We’ve ended up with this incredible ‘blind spot’ in the market: a channel that offers deep intimacy and high engagement, but without the clutter and screen fatigue of other platforms. At audioadpro, we aren’t just selling ad space; we’re helping brands rediscover an incredibly potent, data-driven way to reach people in their most receptive, ‘un-scrollable’ moments. It’s a classic example of a huge opportunity hiding in plain sight.
- If you could wave a magic wand and solve one challenge facing digital businesses today, what would it be and why?
If I could wave a magic wand, I’d solve the ‘Ambition Bottleneck.’ There’s a bit of a myth that UK founders aren’t as hungry as the Silicon Valley crowd, but I think that’s total rubbish. From where I’m sitting—especially working with the likes of Michael and Roger at audioadpro—the ambition is definitely there; it’s just that our system often nudges founders toward the exit door a little too early.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with a successful business sale—it’s often the ultimate validation of years of hard work. But too often, we see brilliant companies sell at ‘chapter three’ when they had the potential to reach ‘chapter ten.’ When you’re a founder looking at a thinning pool of late-stage growth capital and a tax landscape that feels a bit like a moving target, taking a ‘good’ offer today can feel safer than holding out for a ‘legendary’ one tomorrow.
I’d love to see a system that makes it easier for founders to choose the long game. I look at Michael and Roger, and they aren’t just looking for a quick win; they are building the definitive platform for digital audio. If I could wave that wand, I’d ensure our investment and tax structures were designed to support that decade-long journey. We don’t need to stop rewarding exits, but we should definitely start making the path to ‘becoming the giant’ more attractive than the path to ‘selling to one.
Our thanks to Richard for taking the time to share his thoughts with us for this piece, and for the insight he brings as part of audioadpro’s advisory board—we’re looking forward to seeing what the future of the sector holds.
