The Founder Who Lost Control of His Company | Bharat Thakrar

What happens when the founder who built the company is no longer in charge? In this episode, Bharat Thakrar reflects on one of the most important questions in entrepreneurship, corporate governance, and capital markets: How do you scale a business without losing the vision that made it successful in the first place? Bharat shares the journey of building Scanad from a one-man agency in 1982 into what became WPP Scangroup, one of Africa’s largest marketing and communications firms. He discusses the decisions that led to listing the company, partnering with WPP, and expanding across Africa. We explore: • The risks founders face when bringing in external investors • Why founder control matters • The relationship between ownership and governance • The role of boards in protecting shareholder value • Minority shareholder activism in Kenya • Why some companies lose their best talent • The challenges facing listed companies today • How capital markets can better support entrepreneurs Bharat argues that great businesses are built by great people and when those people leave, the consequences can be severe. He also shares lessons for founders who dream of scaling beyond their home markets: Growth requires partnership. Partnership requires structure. Structure must protect both investors and founders. This is a candid conversation about entrepreneurship, public markets, governance, leadership, and the difficult decisions that come with building something bigger than yourself.