Growth
Spencer Gallagher
Founding Partner at bluhalo
Scale · Build value · M&A · Exit planning
Complimentary 30-minute advisory consultation, offering practical, experience-led guidance shaped by working with thousands of agencies around the world.
Spencer is a Growth Strategist, M&A adviser and agency industry veteran with 27 years of hands-on experience building, scaling, and exiting agencies. Having completed six successful exits of his own and helped more than 1,000 agencies over the past 15 years, Spencer brings a rare combination of founder credibility and strategic depth to every engagement. He is the founder of Bluhalo, a boutique advisory firm that helps agency owners break through each stage of growth, build valuable, sellable businesses and work towards a successful exit through board advisory, M&A and earnout support.
Spencer is also the author of three books: Agencynomics, Bouncebackability, and the forthcoming Agency 3.0 (2026), which collectively chart his thinking on agency growth, resilience, and the future of the industry. Spencer has a comprehensive understanding of how AI will and won’t impact the now, next, and future of agencies. He lives with his family on the banks of Loch Fyne in Argyll, Scotland.
“As an advocate for the now, next and future of the independent agency sector, I am proud to serve as a trusted adviser to the Alliance of Independent Founders, helping founders navigate growth, build more valuable businesses and create more choices for their future.”
HR
Lydia Billinghurst
HR Director at JourneyHR
Navigate people challenges · Build a stronger culture · Support your team · Manage change · Grow with confidence
30 minutes of complimentary HR advice every month
Get practical, expert support with the people challenges that come with running and growing an agency — from tricky team situations to culture, performance and change.
Plus, Indie Founders receive exclusive discounts across JourneyHR’s services:
Retained HR support · Pay-as-you-go advice · Client Collective · Bulk hours · Project work · Fractional HR Director support
JourneyHR provides people and HR support built specifically for the creative industry.
Led by experienced HR specialists, the team works closely with agency founders and leaders to tackle everything from day-to-day people challenges to bigger questions around culture, performance and organisational change.
Their approach combines commercial thinking with a genuinely human perspective, helping founders build stronger teams while making confident decisions as their agency grows.
“People are at the heart of every agency, but managing a growing team isn’t always straightforward. We’re here to give founders a trusted sounding board, practical advice and the confidence to handle people challenges well — while building a culture where great people can thrive.”
Finance
Alfie Wenegieme
Founder of Profit Sprout Consultancy
Improve profitability · Strengthen cash flow · Get pricing right · Manage costs · Plan for growth
Complimentary 30-minute finance consultation offering guidance on improving profitability, budgeting, cash flow management, pricing strategy, staff cost management, and financial planning.
Most agencies are brilliant at delivering client work. Where things get challenging is achieving meaningful profitability and having the commercial infrastructure to sustain it.
Profit Sprout Consultancy exists to fix that. We work with ambitious independents and established mid-sized firms on the financial and commercial challenges that hold them back. Pricing, financial visibility, cost management, margin optimisation, and team capability. We measure success the same way you should, i.e., in margin, not just revenue.
“Independent agencies are full of talented people building brilliant businesses but from experience, commercial clarity is still one of the most underleveraged advantages available to them. I joined the Alliance because it brings together exactly the kind of agency owners who are serious about profitable growth, and I want to be a resource they can actually use to achieve this.”
Legal
Ryan Lisk
Founder of Hybrid Legal
Protect your agency · Strengthen your contracts · Navigate client disputes · Safeguard your IP · Manage legal risk
Complimentary 30-minute legal consultation
Get practical advice on a legal challenge facing your agency — from contracts and client disputes to IP, commercial agreements and managing risk.
Plus, Indie Founders receive preferential pricing on Hybrid Legal’s ongoing Legal Plus support, starting from £490 + VAT per month.
Ryan is the Founder of Hybrid Legal, a specialist law firm providing practical, commercially focused legal support to creative agencies and growing businesses.
With extensive experience advising founders, Ryan understands the realities of running an independent agency and the legal challenges that come with growth. From contracts and commercial agreements to IP, disputes and business sales, he helps founders understand their options, manage risk and make confident decisions.
Hybrid Legal’s approach is straightforward and jargon-free, giving agency leaders access to experienced legal support without the complexity of a traditional law firm.
Through Hybrid Legal’s growing network and relationship with The Alliance, the firm is passionate about supporting Indie Founders and helping them scale sustainably.
“Running an independent agency comes with plenty of legal questions, but getting the right support shouldn’t feel complicated. We help founders understand their options, protect what they’ve built and make confident decisions. Our aim is always to make legal advice practical, straightforward and genuinely useful.”
New Business
Adam Graham
Founder and Managing Director, Gray Matters
Build a stronger pipeline · Sharpen your positioning · Improve your sales process · Win more of the right clients · Create more predictable growth
Complimentary one-hour growth assessment.
Get practical advice on your biggest new business challenge, from positioning and pipeline to sales strategy and converting more opportunities.
Plus, Indie Founders receive access to The Masters training platform.
Gray Matters helps founder-led agencies build more effective, predictable approaches to new business and growth.
Led by Adam Graham, the team combines Story + System: helping agencies find the positioning and proposition that sets them apart, then building the new business engine that turns it into consistent growth.
That means strengthening everything from pipeline and go-to-market strategy to sales process, technology and conversion, creating a joined-up new business system that works for the agency rather than relying on sporadic outreach or the next big pitch.
“New business shouldn’t feel like starting from scratch every month. We help founders build the positioning, habits and systems that create a more consistent pipeline, so growth becomes something you can plan for, not just hope for.”