Everything you need to know about working with Matt, keynote speaking, leadership workshops, and mentoring for owner-managed businesses.
Matt is an unconventional leadership speaker. Unlike traditional motivational speakers who rely on feel-good stories, Matt draws on real-world experience — rowing the Atlantic Ocean, building and exiting businesses, and coaching leadership teams through PE transactions — to deliver talks that are honest, practical, and genuinely thought-provoking.
His sessions challenge audiences to rethink how they lead, how their teams perform under pressure, and whether their business is truly built to last beyond them.
Matt's keynote topics fall into three broad areas:
Each talk is tailored to the audience — whether that's a room of CEOs, a corporate leadership team, or an emerging talent cohort.
Not in the traditional sense. Matt doesn't do hype, platitudes, or manufactured inspiration. His talks leave audiences thinking rather than simply feeling good — which tends to produce more lasting behavioural change.
That said, his sessions are energetic, engaging, and frequently described as "the most honest leadership talk I've ever heard." Delegates leave motivated — but motivated because they've genuinely understood something new, not because someone told them they were amazing.
Three things set Matt apart:
Matt is equally comfortable in an intimate boardroom setting of 10–20 senior leaders as he is on a main stage in front of 500+ delegates. His delivery adapts naturally to the room — more conversational and interactive in smaller groups, broader and more narrative-driven in large conference settings.
He has spoken for Vistage, peer advisory groups, corporate away-days, PE portfolio events, and national conferences. If you're not sure whether the format suits, just ask — Matt is happy to discuss what will work best for your event.
Matt consistently receives outstanding feedback. Helm (formerly The Supper Club) reported "100% positive feedback from all delegates." The Big Business Breakfast Club described him as "truly inspirational, he took us on a journey and delivered with humour, intellect and humility." Brufords/Rolex said Matt "hit the spot perfectly with our guests." Matt has spoken to audiences at the Amex Stadium in Brighton, at Vistage groups, corporate conferences, and industry events across the UK.
Yes. Matt is a trusted speaker for Vistage groups and similar peer advisory organisations. His content on building commercially-focused leadership teams and preparing for exit resonates strongly with the owner-managed business audience that these groups serve. His style, direct, honest, commercially grounded, and backed by real stories, works particularly well in intimate peer group settings where members expect substance over showmanship.
Matt's workshops are working sessions, not passive training days. Delegates engage with real challenges facing their business or their team, not hypothetical case studies. The format typically includes a short keynote to frame the topic, structured small-group exercises, open discussion, and individual reflection with clear action planning.
Most workshops run for half a day or a full day, and can be designed as standalone events or as part of a longer development programme.
Absolutely. Matt's workshops are designed for leadership teams of 8–25 people and are tailored to your specific business context. Whether you're preparing for an exit, trying to reduce founder dependency, or building commercial capability across your team, the workshop is adapted to your starting point and objectives. Many clients book a keynote for a wider event and follow it with a focused workshop for their leadership team.
Your team will leave with a clear map of their commercial gaps, where founder dependency is highest, where commercial thinking is weakest, and where the biggest risks lie for exit or growth. They'll also have a practical action plan built around The Uncharted Framework™'s four stages (Dream, Plan, Execute, Evolve). The workshop isn't a motivational exercise, it produces tangible outputs your team can act on immediately.
Yes — though Matt's mentoring is more accurately described as working with business owners and their leadership teams, rather than traditional one-to-one coaching. The focus is on leadership capability at a whole-business level.
Engagements typically run for 6–12 months and combine individual conversations with the business owner, observation of and input to team dynamics, and structured development work designed around The Uncharted Framework™.
Matt's mentoring is specifically focused on building commercially-focused leadership teams, not general business coaching. He doesn't work on marketing strategy, operational efficiency, or personal productivity. His focus is narrow and deep: helping owners build teams that think commercially, act independently, and make the business worth more. The mentoring is built around The Uncharted Framework™ and draws directly from Matt's experience of building and selling his own business to private equity.
Matt works with owner-managed businesses with £2m–£50m revenue who are preparing for a PE or trade exit within 2–5 years, scaling beyond the founder's personal capacity, building a leadership team that can operate independently, or wanting to increase business valuation through team capability. He is not the right fit for startups, solopreneurs, or businesses looking for generic motivational support.
PE buyers and trade acquirers scrutinise leadership teams as a core part of due diligence. A business with strong, independent leadership commands a higher multiple and transacts more smoothly than one where everything runs through the founder.
Matt works with owners 12–24 months before a planned exit to assess the real capability and depth of the leadership team, identify the gaps that would concern an acquirer, and build the structures, behaviours, and evidence base that makes the team demonstrably investable.
This includes helping individual leaders develop, improving collective team functioning, and ensuring there is a compelling narrative around the leadership team that can be articulated clearly during the exit process.
Typically 6–18 months, depending on the starting point. The biggest variable is how embedded the founder is in day-to-day commercial decisions. If the founder is involved in every client relationship and every key decision, the work takes longer. If there's already some leadership structure in place, the timeline shortens. Matt recommends starting at least 2 years before a planned exit to allow enough time for the team to demonstrate independent capability to buyers.
Because buyers price in founder dependency as risk. A business that can't operate without the owner is worth significantly less than one with a leadership team that can run and grow independently. PE firms and trade buyers look for businesses where the management team can execute the strategy, maintain client relationships, and make commercial decisions without the founder in the room. Matt's work directly addresses this, building the team capability that gives buyers confidence and increases valuation.
The Uncharted Framework™ is a leadership development model Matt developed through his own experience of building and exiting businesses, and through rowing the Atlantic — one of the most physically and mentally demanding challenges on earth.
It describes four stages of leadership development: Dream (setting a compelling direction), Plan (building the capability and structure to get there), Execute (delivering under pressure), and Evolve (learning, adapting, and preparing for the next challenge). These stages sit across four interconnected layers — Vision, People, Process, and Management.
It was built from two converging experiences. The PE exit: Matt built and sold a technology business to a PE-backed company. The exit taught him that buyers don't buy businesses, they buy leadership teams. The Atlantic row: Leading a 3-person team across 3,000 miles of ocean, Matt faced the same question every business owner faces: can this team perform without me holding it together? Those two experiences, one commercial, one extreme, produced the same insight: leadership readiness is what separates businesses that sell well from businesses that don't.
The framework is designed specifically for owner-managed businesses with £2m–£50m revenue. Below £2m, the business usually doesn't have enough team structure to work with. Above £50m, the dynamics change and specialist PE advisors are more appropriate. Within that range, the framework applies across sectors — Matt has worked with businesses in technology, professional services, manufacturing, creative industries, and more.
The easiest way is to use the contact form on this site. Tell Matt a little about your event — the date, format, audience size, and what you're hoping to achieve — and he'll get back to you within one working day to discuss whether there's a good fit and what's involved.
You can also reach Matt directly at matt@mattgarman.com.
Yes — in fact, Matt insists on it. He does not deliver an off-the-shelf talk. Before every engagement, Matt takes time to understand the event context, the specific audience, the challenges they're facing, and what a successful outcome looks like for the organiser.
This means the talk will always feel relevant and will land with greater impact than a generic keynote. It also means there is a brief pre-event call or written brief required before he confirms a booking.
Matt is based in Brighton, UK. He speaks at events across the UK and is available for international engagements. He regularly works with businesses and speaks at events in London, the South East, and throughout England, with frequent engagements further afield.
Yes. Matt delivers keynote addresses at conferences, corporate events, leadership summits, Vistage groups, and industry gatherings across the UK and internationally. His keynotes typically run 30–45 minutes and can be tailored to your event theme. He is particularly effective at events focused on business growth, exit planning, leadership development, and commercial performance. Contact matt@mattgarman.com to discuss availability.
Matt left school at 16 with no qualifications and worked on a commercial fishing trawler in the English Channel. From there he moved into commission-only sales, 200 cold calls a day. He went on to build and sell technology businesses, with his last growing to 42 people, reaching £3.8m revenue, and being sold to a private equity-backed company. He has also rowed 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the World's Toughest Row, swum the English Channel, and completed an Ironman triathlon. These experiences, both commercial and extreme, are the foundation of The Uncharted Framework™ and everything he teaches about leadership.
Matt has written three books:
All are available on Amazon. You can find them on the Author page of this site.
All three books are available on Amazon. You can find them on the Author page of this site.