Sunday, November 08, 2026
Vistage, EO and YPO each decide who may join. Here are the entry rules, who each suits, and when a one-on-one coach is the better fit.
If you run a business with a handful of people to a few dozen, and you are weighing Scaling Up against a coach, you are really choosing between two different kinds of help: a structured growth framework delivered by a certified partner, or a coach who finds your single biggest constraint and fixes it first. Both can work. This guide sets out what Scaling Up says it costs, who it tends to suit, and where Simple-Growth fits, so you can choose without second-guessing it.
Last updated 10 November 2026.
Disclosure. Simple-Growth is Kevin D'Ambros-Smith's coaching business, so it is not a neutral party. Every Scaling Up figure below comes from Scaling Up's own pricing page, opened on 9 November 2026 and re-checked on 10 November 2026. Simple-Growth has not used or been paid by Scaling Up, and results vary for every business.
Scaling Up's pricing page says companies have spent "anywhere from a mere $20 to $200,000 per year on an ongoing basis," depending on how much support they want. It sets out four tiers.
| Tier | What the page says | Price shown |
|---|---|---|
| Self-guided | The Scaling Up book and open-source one-page tools | About $20 for the paperback |
| One-time investment | Public workshop, online Master Course, or private workshop | $295-$495 per executive for a public workshop; $5,990 for three people for the 13-week online Master Course; $6,000-$16,000 for a private workshop |
| Annual investment | Certified coach retainer, software, and the Scaling Up Master's Program | $40,000-$120,000 a year for a coach retainer; Scoreboard software $10-$15 per user per month; $60,000 a year for the Master's Program |
| Outsourced leadership | A coach acting as an outsourced executive leader | $15,000 a month |
Three other details matter for a buyer. The page says full implementation takes 18 to 36 months and that the average coaching engagement is about three years. It offers a Short Pay promise: if a client feels value was not delivered, it may pay what it considers the services were worth. And it offers a free 30-minute call with a certified coach and a free 4 Decisions Assessment debrief.
Scaling Up is organized around four decisions: People, Strategy, Execution and Cash. That is a clear, well-known structure, and the page backs it with a long track record (it says 30 years, over 12,000 companies coached directly). Those are Scaling Up's own claims.
Simple-Growth starts from one question: what is the real constraint stopping you from getting the income, time or freedom you want? It finds that constraint first, then fixes it, before you spend another dollar. The Simple-Growth System covers four pillars: business strategy, marketing and communications, sales, and productivity and implementation.
Kevin has coached 200+ businesses one-on-one across 30+ industries since 2017, after more than 30 years in business. You can start with a free 30-minute call, or with one of three self-paced programs with published prices: Quick Wins ($97), Making It Happen ($297) and Know Your Future ($497), each with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
| If this sounds like you | Scaling Up may suit | A coach or program may suit |
|---|---|---|
| You have an executive team and want a full operating rhythm (daily huddles, quarterly planning, scoreboards) | Yes, that is its core design | Possible, but you would want a coach to support a framework, not replace it |
| Your budget is under $10,000 this year | The book, tools, a public workshop or the free assessment call | A $97-$497 program, or one-on-one coaching scoped to one problem |
| You are the bottleneck and need one clear priority this quarter | It will surface priorities, over an 18-36 month horizon | A diagnostic-first coach is built for this |
| You want to test fit before committing | Free 30-minute call; public workshop | Free 30-minute call; low-priced program with a 30-day guarantee |
| You want a long-term retained coach | Annual retainers are the model | Yes, if the coach is the right fit; ask for scope and exit terms |
If you are not sure which side of this table you are on, start small. Book the free 30-minute call, or work through Quick Wins ($97) and see what moves in 30 days. If your business already has a strong team and the pain is coordination, a framework like Scaling Up may be the better fit, and Simple-Growth will tell you so.
Quick answers
Is Scaling Up worth it for a small business? It depends on size, budget and appetite for a multi-year program. Scaling Up's own page shows entry points from about $20, with coach retainers from $40,000 a year.
Can I use a coach and a framework together? Yes. Many owners use a framework for structure and a coach for accountability and judgment.
What does Simple-Growth cost? The three programs are $97, $297 and $497. One-on-one coaching is scoped to the business; the free call is the place to ask.
Does Simple-Growth guarantee results? No. Results vary. The programs carry a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Sources: Scaling Up pricing packages (USA, opened 9 November 2026, re-checked 10 November 2026). Programs: Quick Wins, Making It Happen, Know Your Future.
Friday, November 06, 2026
Some customers drain you, some fund you, and you can't always tell which. A one-hour grading exercise shows SME owners exactly where their real revenue sits.
Friday, November 06, 2026
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Friday, November 06, 2026
Scared of a big decision you've sat on for weeks? Porter's Five Forces gives SME owners a five-question test built for strategists, simplified for you.
Friday, November 06, 2026
If sales only happen when you are in the room, you own a job, not a system. Five parts and a five-day plan to build a sales process your team can run without you.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
You do not need a big budget to position like a big brand. You need a big brand's discipline. Here is the five-question brief NZ owners can write in an afternoon.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Flat revenue usually has one cause, not five. Five checks, each with one number, help you find which link is holding your business back before you hire, advertise or discount.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
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BNI's referral network generated over 4 million referrals in a single quarter, and its model rests on depth over breadth. Here is the Dream 100 method SME owners can use to make referrals a system, not a hope.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
A group programme and one-on-one coaching solve different problems. Here is who each suits, what The Icehouse publishes, and six questions that settle it.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
An Auckland physiotherapy clinic wanted to stand apart from every other clinic. Here is the positioning, the work behind it, what we can and cannot say, and four steps to copy this month.
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A rival undercutting you doesn't mean 'grow harder' is the answer. Igor Ansoff's growth matrix shows SME owners the four real routes, and how to pick one on purpose.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Still at the kitchen table at 9pm telling yourself this is temporary? The isolation of owning a business is common, measurable, and fixable — here's how.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Still polishing a plan that's been 80% finished for three months? Toyota's Lean ECRS method and Kevin's own 'ship at 70%' rule, for recovering perfectionists.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Busy one month, silent the next, and no idea which deals were ever real? Neil Rackham's SPIN questions surface the truth weeks before a quiet month does.
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Revenue's climbing and the bank balance still isn't. The real fix usually isn't your price — it's that your marketing never said who you're actually for.