Growth vs Scale

From the outside looking in, you might see my career as one focused on growth. My primary calling card being the journey of leading Baker Tilly from $475 million to $1.5 billion in revenue.

Now, I serve as a transformation and growth advisor to accounting firms, tech startups, and other professional services organizations in various stages of their growth journey.

And yes, I want to help them grow. But the reality is that growth alone only tells part of the story. More than helping them grow, I want to enable them to scale.

The difference is not only significant, but understanding the difference can be the differentiator between organizations that succeed in remaining relevant and sustainable for years to come vs those that don't.

Growth ≠ Scale

I find it's common for leaders to use the terms interchangeably. They are anything but...

• Growth is a numerical thing—it's about accumulation and is measured in dollars and cents. More people, more offices, more services, and therefore more revenue. It’s linear.

• Scale is a strategic thing—it's about multiplication from building intentional systems, processes, and engines that allow growth to compound. It’s exponential.

Without scale, growth is nothing more than a number.

Every organization wants growth. The smart ones pursue scale.

I’ll put it another way: growth is about speed; scale is about endurance. If you only chase speed, you burn out. If you only chase endurance, you never move. The winning organizations are built for BOTH.

Growth for the sake of growth

Let’s take a look at something like compound annual growth rate (CAGR). A 12% CAGR looks great on paper. But you have to ask yourself: Does that number mean you're better positioned to grow in the future? Not necessarily.

I’ve seen firms chase revenue by adding scattered practices, hiring opportunistically, or spreading thin across geographies. That may look like growth (because revenue numbers are up), but it doesn’t create continuity, collaboration, or sustainability.

Revenue without alignment to strategy is just dollars. And just because the top line is moving up doesn’t mean the firm is actually stronger.

This is where leaders get fooled. They look at growth and assume it means progress. In reality, sometimes all it means is you’re digging a deeper hole—adding more complexity, more overhead, and more silos.

While better numbers may look good on spreadsheets, growth without intention leads to a firm that's more vulnerable because there isn't a shared vision and strategy that unifies the disparate parts.

Strategic growth leads to scale

Strategic growth, on the other hand, is intentional. It builds engines. It establishes systems. It enables collaboration. And when those efforts compound, scale is the result.

Scale is not an action—it’s an outcome. It's a quality measure, a.k.a. the proof that your growth is disciplined, strategic, and repeatable.

Scale means you have intentional structure, built-in strategic synergies, and defined systems and processes (engines) that fuel your growth.

So while we grew Baker Tilly significantly from 2015 to 2023, that success was a result of building scale. We built engines for client service, talent development, and M&A. Engines that could run consistently, regardless of who was sitting in a particular seat.

That’s why the firm continued to grow at a rapid rate—both organically and inorganically—during that 8-year period, and (I'd argue) why Baker Tilly ultimately was well positioned to combine with Moss Adams to catapult itself into being a top 6 firm.

Why scale matters

Organizations that achieve scale have distinct advantages:

1. Resilience in downturns.​
   Downturns are inevitable. Firms that have systems, collaboration, and deep market presence built in are like bigger ships—able to ride out bigger waves and overcome strong winds that try to push them off course. Small boats—ones that are built from an accumulation of revenue without a strategic intention behind it—are vulnerable and likely to capsize when storms inevitably come.

2. Synergies and continuity.​
   Scattered offices led by lone operators collapse when one leader falters. Concentrated practices with depth and quality create synergies that feed continuity—and continuity creates scale. When you connect the dots across teams, geographies, and service lines, the organization becomes more valuable than the sum of its parts.

3. Increased valuations.​
   Do you know what investors value most? Organizations that are built to last. So while random revenue generation signals temporary results, engines and systems that compound over time are worth a premium. Firms that can show repeatable, strategic growth that leads to scale will always command higher valuations because they’ve proven they can keep growing in the future.

Key takeaways

Here’s what I hope you take this week:

• Growth is simply a number. How you grow matters more.

• The ultimate goal is scale. Scale is achieved through synergies, collaboration, and engines that predict strategic growth into the future.

• Growth without scale is vulnerable. Scale without growth is stagnant. You need BOTH.

Our success at Baker Tilly wasn't simply about growth—it was about scale. That’s why the growth was sustainable. And that’s why today, when I advise firms like Aprio, Propense.ai, Schellman, HKA, Hubsync, Tanner, Bully Pulpit International, and others, the conversation isn’t just about growth. It’s about scale.

Because at the end of the day, scale is what separates firms that thrive in the long run from those that simply get bigger.

Numerous organizations have welcomed me into their boardrooms and leadership meetings to facilitate conversations about what it will take to build scale to enable sustainable growth. If you'd like to discuss something similar for your firm, use the links below to schedule time on my calendar or send a reply to this email.

I look forward to speaking with those who are willing to take action to redefine their future state.

With intention,
Alan D. Whitman