The iGaming Leader“You’re Incorrect, Tommy” - Inside Xtremepush’s Culture of Challenge
In this episode, Leo talks with Tommy Kearns about how rugby shaped the way he runs a company: trust, loyalty, accountability, direct feedback and a role for everyone. He is clear about what he does not want around him. "I don't want yes men around me." Everything gets challenged until the team reaches alignment, and then everyone commits.
He also covers the harder parts of the story. Tommy lost his money in the property crash after selling his Mexico business. Xtremepush was bootstrapped and profitable within 13 to 14 months. It then took growth capital in 2021 and went negative for nearly 24 months. He also talks about the 2023 Thunderbite acquisition, why Xtremepush put CRM, gamification and loyalty into one platform, and why he thinks trust matters more in the AI era.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Tommy Kearns is CEO and Co-Founder of Xtremepush, a leading company now serving 230 iGaming brands around the world, including more than half of the EGR top 50.
He is a technology entrepreneur with a track record in the global internet and mobile industry. He builds businesses that solve large customer problems for large enterprises, with technology and automation where relevant.
His core skills include customer analytics and engagement, digital strategy, mobile and system application development, innovation, business planning, market entry analysis and deployment, and building commercial partnerships.
IN THIS EPISODE
00:00:00 Introducing Tommy
00:03:00 Rugby career at Connacht and the lessons that carried into business
00:08:00 Challenge and commit: no yes men and the leadership team
00:12:00 Why toxicity is viral, Leaders for Leaders and hiring for urgency
00:19:00 Lean culture: single-digit churn, pod systems and Keep Driving Hard (KDH)
00:22:00 Career path: the Caribbean, Mexico, the 2009 property crash and the origin of Xtremepush
00:28:00 Bootstrapping, growth capital in 2021 and the first acquisition
00:32:00 One platform for CRM, gamification and loyalty, 24 months in the red and the Thunderbite acquisition
00:38:00 Expert OS, agentic AI, trust and the power of saying no
QUOTES FROM TOMMY
"I don't want yes men around me. I want people to challenge my thoughts. My thoughts are directionally very good, but specifically not always correct."
"Toxicity is viral. It needs to be rooted out."
"You can't learn urgency. You either have it or you don't, and you have to test for it."
"You have to have felt failure. You have to feel it. You have to really feel it, not just see it."
"Success is not permanent, but neither is failure."
"Trust is going to become more important, relationships are gonna become more important."
IMPORTANT LINKS
Connect with Tommy Kearns on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommykearns/
Connect with Leo Judkins on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leo-judkins/
Get the iGaming Leader newsletter: https://www.igamingleader.com/signup
Join the iGaming Leader Mastermind: https://www.igamingleader.com/
This episode is brought to you by Sumsub, the full-cycle verification platform for iGaming operators. Player onboarding, AML and fraud prevention, all in one place.
Learn more: sumsub.com/gambling or https://sumsub.link/8gu
Русская Школа Управления
