Podcast Summary:

James Reed: All About Business
Episode 56: 3-Step Hack to Getting Better Ideas from Every Employee | Chris Hulatt
Date: December 8, 2025
Host: James Reed CBE (Reed Global)
Guest: Chris Hulatt (Co-founder, Octopus Group)

Overview

In this lively and practical episode, James Reed sits down with Chris Hulatt, co-founder of Octopus Group, to explore how to instill entrepreneurial thinking across an organization, the importance of values-driven business, and actionable strategies to unlock innovation from every employee. The conversation traverses the remarkable growth of Octopus—from humble beginnings to market leader—its approach to creating a culture where everyone can contribute ideas, the lessons learned from failures and successes, and the unique "Springboard Scheme" for in-house entrepreneurs.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origins and Evolution of Octopus Group

• Founding and Growth

  • Octopus started 25 years ago in a living room, initially as a fund management company (01:45).
  • Early focus: UK smaller companies and venture capital, later expanding to real estate, infrastructure, renewable energy.
  • Standout success: Launching Octopus Energy, now the UK’s leading power supplier (02:51).
  • Initial investment in Octopus Energy was £10 million, with recent valuations nearing $9 billion (04:49, 05:03).

• On Venture Mentality

  • “Most of the things we do as a business today have come about from ideas that people in the business have brought forward and suggested.” – Chris Hulatt (22:40)

2. Embedding Innovation Across the Company

• Hundreds of Entrepreneurs, Not Just a Few

  • Octopus strives to be "a company of hundreds of entrepreneurs"—creating a culture where anyone can contribute and innovate.
  • Ideas originate at all levels; even junior staff are empowered to propose new ventures (21:22, 21:26).
  • “Everyone sat in the building could be a source of the next really interesting idea for a product or the next new area we take the business.” – Chris Hulatt (22:41)

• Culture of Openness and Accessibility

  • No private offices; founders work in open plan spaces (30:23).
  • “Simon, the other founder, he sits in our reception area...to see the flow of people coming in and out” (30:31).

• Springboard Scheme: Internal Entrepreneur Program

  • Staff with ideas can take paid time off to launch a start-up, with a safety net to return if it doesn’t work out (32:27).
  • Example: Parent Cloud – founded by an HR employee during maternity leave to support new parents (35:56).
  • Success measured not just by start-ups created but also by personal/professional growth upon return to Octopus (36:41).

Notable Quote:

• “We’re trying to de-risk it for people, to encourage people to be entrepreneurs and say, you know, most people, if you really push them, they could come up with something they are passionate about.” – Chris Hulatt (33:50)

3. Values-Driven Business & B Corp Commitment

• B Corp Journey
  • Becoming a B Corp required legal and operational changes to prioritize all stakeholders—staff, customers, communities, shareholders, the environment (14:38-15:25).
  • B Corp status has helped in talent recruitment and attracting values-aligned investors (16:39, 17:24).
  • “It was one of the best things we did. I’m really proud and really pleased with it.” – Chris Hulatt (18:00)

4. Product and Market Innovation

• Octopus Money & Financial Coaching

  • Addresses the gap in financial literacy; only 8% get regulated advice (06:51).
  • Focuses on broad financial coaching rather than niche investment advice (09:06, 09:44).

• Expanding Internationally from Staff-Led Ideas

  • Example: Opening in Australia after a junior employee’s persistent suggestion (23:18–24:13).
  • “From that one idea and a bit of persistence...there’s 55 people across Sydney and Melbourne.” – Chris Hulatt (24:10)

5. Funding Future Entrepreneurs

• Venture Capital Trusts & EIS
  • Octopus is deeply involved in tax-incentivized UK venture investing, which encourages entrepreneurial risk-taking (19:15–20:14).
  • Advocates extending these schemes and proposes a national “Springboard”-style entrepreneurship programme (41:46).

6. Decision-Making and Risk Appetite

• Encouraging Trials, Accepting Mistakes

  • Failure is a natural, accepted part of launching new ideas (27:38–27:58).
  • Learnings from each attempt are valued, whether the venture succeeds or not.
  • “The right people can do amazing things…a good person can take a sort of reasonable idea and make a success of it.” (27:58, 39:44)

• Fast, Lean Decisions over Bureaucracy

  • Champions “move quickly, be decisive, don’t get bogged down in bureaucracy” (46:46).
  • “Make decisions quickly without perfect analysis. You cannot wait until you know all the answers.” – Chris Hulatt (48:26)

7. Customer-First Mentality

• Customer Experience as Differentiator
  • Octopus Energy’s technology and customer service focus set them apart in a crowded market (50:22–52:17).
  • “If you look after customers and you do a great job of that, then you'll build a big business.” – Chris Hulatt (53:46)
  • Licensing Kraken platform technology to other utilities (51:05).

Memorable Quotes & Moments (Timestamps)

• On Entrepreneurship and Risk:

  • “You can always make another decision. The worst is to just sit, not make a decision.” – Chris Hulatt (49:17)

• On Values-Driven Growth:

  • "We can still make a business incredibly successful and valuable, but go about doing it in a slightly different way…" (15:25)

• On Taking Ideas Seriously:

  • “In some businesses people are protected by layers of EAs and assistants... It’s not like that for us.” – Chris Hulatt (30:22)

• On Internal Spin-Outs:

  • “If it works, great. If it doesn’t, you have learned so much... you come back a much better educated person.” – Chris Hulatt (36:41)

• On UK Start-Up Ecosystem:

  • “Could you craft some kind of national government backed version of our springboard program... access to mentors, capital, online training?” (41:46)

Suggested Actionable Strategies (from Chris Hulatt)

For Leaders:

• Remove barriers to sharing ideas (no gatekeeping, sit among teams, value every suggestion) (30:23).
• De-risk entrepreneurship for employees (safe path back, offer initial funding) (33:50).
• Embed values in governance—consider B Corp status (15:25).
• Prioritize customers in every decision (53:46).

For Employees:

• Don’t wait for orders—suggest, persist, and develop new ideas (21:26–22:41).
• Seize opportunities for growth, learning from success or failure (36:41).
• Seek organizations with genuine openness and investment in staff ideas.

Key Segments & Timestamps

• [01:45] – The founding story and evolution of Octopus Group
• [04:49] – Original investment and growth of Octopus Energy
• [14:38] – B Corp commitment: what, why, and impact
• [21:22] – The “hundreds of entrepreneurs” philosophy
• [23:18] – How international expansion stemmed from junior employee’s idea
• [32:27] – Springboard Scheme for internal entrepreneurs
• [35:56] – Real case: Parent Cloud start-up story
• [46:46] – How to avoid bureaucracy and keep decision-making agile
• [50:22] – Lessons from rapid scaling of Octopus Energy
• [53:46] – On the centrality of customer-first thinking
• [54:09] – What’s next for Octopus: new markets, empowering more innovators

Tone & Takeaways

Chris Hulatt’s tone throughout is candid, practical, humble, and highly people-focused. He repeatedly attributes Octopus’ success to its willingness to listen, take risks on new ideas, and prioritize both customer and employee experience. He challenges both leaders and policymakers to subsidize risk-taking and make entrepreneurship more accessible, not just in London but across the UK.

Final advice:
“Be bold, do stuff, and don’t get paralyzed by fear or indecision.” (50:10)

For more: The episode is full of stories, specifics, and encouragement for businesses to remove barriers, bet on people, and make innovation part of daily life.