The Idea I Couldn't Ignore

Joe Woodward had what most people would call a dream job. Chief Marketing Officer for the Rajasthan Royals in Mumbai. Ten years building things in sport, music and entertainment. Then the pandemic hit, the rug came out from under him, and he moved home. He sat down to update his CV. He immediately got frustrated. That frustration became Vizzy — a platform built to replace the 500-year-old document Leonardo da Vinci invented, and give people a genuinely human way to show who they are. Not bullet points and PDFs. Not job titles and logos. Who they actually are. In this episode of Screw It Just DO It, Joe tells the full story. The flip chart moment with his sister Jess and her husband Chris. The investor conversation with Robert Dodds, Simon Fuller's business partner, that ended with four words: 'That's the idea. I'll back it tomorrow.' The cold start launch. The Instagram DM from a stranger who said Vizzy had just landed them their dream job. And the lesson from Burberry, Louis Vuitton, EY and Tiffany that the future of hiring is not about getting more applicants — it's about getting fewer, better ones. Key Takeaways Why the flip chart moment changed everything — and what that looked like in practice How Joe went from zero to Burberry and Louis Vuitton without a hiring background Why the best founders are still personally obsessed with hiring at £2 billion What Vizzy taught Joe about the difference between instinct and overthinking 🎧 This episode is powered by WorldFirst, specialists in international business payments. If your business pays overseas suppliers or receives payments from abroad, those transaction fees can quickly add up. As a Screw It Just DO It listener, you can get 50 international transactions completely fee free for 60 days. 👉 Create a free account and claim the offer at worldfirst.com/screwit 🎧 Listen to the full episode of Screw It Just DO It 🎟️ Join us at the Festival of Entrepreneurs, November 3-4 at NEC Birmingham 👉 www.festivalofentrepreneurs.co.uk CHAPTERS: 00:00 The Idea Worth Backing 03:13 Pandemic Reset & The Birth of Vizzy 08:22 Industry Scepticism & First Customer Wins 17:14 Mindset, Action & Lessons From His Dad 22:58 Why The CV Is Broken & The Future of Hiring 31:22 Helping People Escape Career Labels 33:58 Building Great Teams & Hiring Challenges 40:28 Validation, Founder Advice & Quickfire Round ---------------------------- Connect with me: 👉🏼 https://www.festivalofentrepreneurs.c... 👉🏼 Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... 👉🏼 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6zGHXSl... 👉🏼 Linkedin -   / alex-chisnall   👉🏼 Instagram -   / alexchisnall_   👉🏼 Facebook -   / alex.chisnall   👉🏼 X -   / alexchisnall   👉🏼 Threads - https://www.threads.net/@alexchisnall_ 👉🏼 TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@alex_chisnall... 👉🏼 YouTube -    / @alexchisnall