As 2026 winds down, I have been reflecting on what we have learned from the founders and leadership teams involved in ScaleUP.
Over the past year, ScaleUP engaged 2,245 business leaders through 21 events across four Western Canadian cities. Across those conversations, one thing has become clear: scaling is not simply about selling more. It requires leaders to continually redesign the business as it grows.
Here are four questions every business owner should be asking.
- Is your business becoming more scalable as it grows?
Revenue growth can hide growing complexity. Evidence featured in this year’s ScaleUP Drivers report distinguishes growth from scalability: can you increase output, customers or reach without costs, coordination demands and fragility increasing at the same rate?
The practical question is not simply: How fast are we growing? It is: What are we building today that will make the next stage easier rather than harder?
- Are you still doing work your team should own?
Calgary-based Inspired Go offers a great example. Co-founder Derek Rucki has helped grow the company from a small startup to delivering over 15 million salads across North America. His role has changed accordingly. He describes scaling as moving from wearing every hat to finding better people for each function, putting them in the right seats and then allowing them to lead.
For owners, that may mean asking: Where am I still the bottleneck?
- Are you adapting to new markets, or simply replicating what worked before?
Inspired Go’s expansion into the U.S. taught Derek that international growth is not copy-and-paste. Consumer tastes, acquisition costs and channel economics differed significantly from Canada, forcing the company to adjust its proposition.
Before entering a new geography, customer segment or channel, ask: What assumptions are we carrying with us that may no longer be true?
- Are you deliberately building the relationships your next stage will require?
As information becomes easier to access, trusted relationships become more valuable. Derek identified some of ScaleUP’s greatest value in connections that led to a partnership with another Finalist, a potential new B2B channel and introductions supporting U.S. retail expansion.
Scaling rarely happens alone. The question is: Who do you need around the business now that you did not need two years ago?
On November 24, we will close the ScaleUP year in Calgary with a fireside conversation with Derek Rucki, exploring Inspired Go’s journey from Calgary startup to serving customers across Canada and the U.S., and what comes next. It is a remarkable Western Canadian growth story, and one with plenty still to come as Inspired Go looks toward its next phase of growth.
Join us!
Catalyze What’s Next.
Register for the ScaleUP Social on November 24: https://www.scaleupcommunity.ca/public/clubs/calgary-g6x92/events/scaleup-social-calgary-2026
Download the ScaleUP Drivers 2026 Report: https://www.scaleupweek.ca/research