Mentoring for agency owners who are starving or drowning
Most agency owners face one of two problems: you can't create demand reliably, or you have demand but can't deliver it sustainably. Usually it's the first. I work with owners of agencies with 3 to 30 people.
Without obligation. If I can't help, I'll point you somewhere better.
How the mentoring worksStarving or drowning
You might recognize one of these.
- Starving. You can't create demand reliably. Leads are hard to find and deals hard to close, and clients treat you as a commodity now that AI is widely available.
- Drowning. You have clients, but you're working yourself into the ground with no systems to scale. Everything depends on you.
Everything in between (hiring, scoping, pricing, writing proposals) is tactical and solvable once the bigger issue is clear.
One bottleneck at a time
Somewhere in your sales motion (offering, ICP, channel, approach, follow-up, close) one specific step is the bottleneck. We find it, fix it, watch what happens, and repeat. Every bottleneck you resolve reveals the next one.
What we work on
- Demand and positioning. We find the niche where you are not competing on price, and build the outreach that puts you in front of those clients.
- Delivery. We set up the work so that quality does not depend on you reviewing every deliverable.
- Team. We plan the move from a freelancer network to a team: which roles come first, and who leads when you don't.
- Pricing and scope. We fix how you price and scope projects, and turn one-off projects into ongoing work.
Three sessions a month
There is a 3-month soft minimum. You can cancel anytime, with no notice period and no cancellation fee.
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First call, 15 minutes
You tell me how the agency is doing. If I'm not the right person for it, I'll say so.
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Diagnostic
A focused first session to map the actual problem, not the one that's loudest. You leave with a written read.
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Sessions and review
The sessions are 60 minutes each, 1:1, on video. Between them I read what you send me (outreach copy, proposals, sales-call recordings, delivery plans) and leave comments. I don't sit in on live calls or co-work in the same doc.
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Hand-off
The goal is systems that run without me. We end when you're stronger, usually 6 to 12 months in.
Nobody teaches you how to run what you've built
I've founded, scaled, and sold software companies for over a decade. I've also run them into the ground, hired the wrong people, and made technical bets that cost me years.
I started my first agency in 2012. We built products for clients like Amazon, HUGO BOSS, and Daimler, became early movers in voice technology, pivoted into blockchain, and raised venture capital. At some point I burned out because I had no idea how to actually run what I'd built. Nobody teaches you that part. Not how to find clients, not how to keep good people, not how to say no to the wrong projects.
So I started over. Rebuilt my agency around speed and a lean freelancer network instead of headcount. Got honest about what I didn't know. And now I help agency owners and founders skip the expensive lessons I had to learn the hard way.
A working biography
I've run every flavor of business. Each one charges its own tax in time, money, or sleep. Calm is the one I'd choose again.
Agency business
First agency. Voice tech, IoT, mobile. Amazon, HUGO BOSS, Daimler as clients. Learned how to ship. Never figured out how to run a business. Two to three months of runway most of the time, a team depending on me, sleepless nights wondering where next month's cash would come from.
Product business
Crypto & venture-backed. Joint venture with two business partners I hadn't deliberately decided to be in business with. Like marrying someone you barely know. Pivoted into blockchain, raised venture capital, scaled fast, burned out faster. The expensive lessons happen here.
Venture business
Head of Engineering, Flowcarbon. Built and led the engineering org of an a16z-backed climate company. Front-end to back-end to chain. Confirmed two things I already half-knew: a solid product can be killed by incumbents who don't have to move. And being someone else's head of engineering, even a great one, isn't the same as freedom.
Calm business
speedrun.health. We build and operate digital care platforms for the German healthcare system: product, engineering, infrastructure, and regulatory responsibility under one roof. The bullshit-free version of everything I learned the hard way, now focused where software has real consequences.
Mentoring is strictly 1-to-1. You always talk to me.
“Alex brought deep insight and a sharp strategic lens to every interaction. His ability to cut to the heart of an issue while keeping conversations constructive made him a valuable voice in the room.”
One guarantee
If after the first paid mentoring session you feel like this isn't working for you, email me within 24 hours and I'll refund you in full, no questions asked. I'd rather you walk away than stay in something that isn't helping.
Full terms in the Terms of Service.
When I'm not the right fit
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You're 50+ people
You need a more specialised operator at that stage. Happy to refer you to someone in my network.
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You need a guarantee of a specific outcome
I can guarantee my honesty, the work, and the refund after the first session. I can't guarantee revenue numbers. Anyone who does is selling you something.
Questions
What results can I expect?
Honest answer: it depends. On what you're trying to fix, how quickly you implement, and what you're starting with. I can't promise you'll double revenue in 90 days. Anyone who does is lying. What I can promise is clarity on what's actually stuck, a concrete plan to fix it, and someone who's seen enough agency problems to help you avoid the obvious mistakes.
How do I compete when clients can just use AI?
You don't compete with AI. You compete with other agencies who are panicking about AI. The ones who win can articulate the value of experience, judgment, and accountability. AI can generate code. It can't own the outcome. If you're losing deals to "we'll just use AI," the problem is your positioning.
How is this different from business coaching?
I've run the same business you're running. I've made the pricing mistakes, the hiring mistakes, the "yes to every project" mistakes. This is pattern recognition from building agencies for over a decade, not theory from someone who's never shipped a product.
Starving or drowning?
Tell me how the agency is doing, and we'll work out which it is. If mentoring isn't what you need, I'll say so.
Prefer to write first? hello [at] alexgutjahr.com