How Decode Dev's founders Found a New Sense of Purpose with Metavolve
Use Case
Decode Dev, founded by Brett Ausmeier and Trevor Gowing in 2019, is a specialist software development company that helps purpose-driven businesses turn ideas into reality through high-quality, custom-built software solutions. While they had successfully established themselves as trusted development partners, their biggest challenge was not technical—it was strategic.
As their business grew, Trevor and Brett struggled with defining a clear direction for scaling. They had the skills, the clients, and the projects, but lacked a structured plan to move from being a project-based development team to a scalable business with long-term strategic growth. They turned to Metavolve’s Scaling Masterplan Programme to gain clarity on their vision, align their leadership, and build a strategic execution plan.
After one quarter of executing the strategy, the Decode Dev team had secured double their previous years revenue in contracted projects for the upcoming year.
The challenge
Navigating Growth without a Clear Strategic Direction
Despite their strong technical capabilities and a growing client base, Decode Dev faced several strategic roadblocks:
- Lack of a Clear Growth Plan – They were operating reactively, without a structured strategy for long-term expansion.
- Market Positioning Uncertainty – They were unsure which customer segments to prioritise and how to differentiate themselves in a competitive market.
- Scaling Challenges – Moving beyond a founder-led service delivery model required new structures and decision-making frameworks.
- Client Fit & Business Focus – They needed a method for evaluating opportunities and ensuring they worked with the right clients.
Brett and Trevor knew that in order to scale Decode Dev sustainably, they needed a structured approach to defining their vision, aligning their leadership, and executing a clear strategy.
Trevor Gowing
Co-Founder & Managing Director
We wanted to change our perception of our own business from being a vehicle for us to do the work we love to do to wanting it to be something greater than ourselves. But we had no idea how to do that. We worked with different providers like brand designers, marketing agencies, and lead generation agencies, but none of those exercises delivered the results we wanted. We just couldn’t give them the direction they needed to be effective.
Brett Ausmeier
Co-Founder & Technical Director
Neither of us had much experience in setting strategic direction for a business or trying to grow a business or run our own thing before. We weren't making much headway and didn't have a clear plan for how to take this to the next stage from just being the two of us doing some projects here and there to something we could actually scale up. We needed input and guidance on how to go through the process of growing our business, and identifying the right help was a challenge.
The Approach
Building a Structured Growth Plan
Through Metavolve’s Scaling Masterplan Programme, Decode Dev worked through a structured, facilitated process to develop a clear market position, strategic roadmap, and execution framework. This process allowed them to move from uncertainty to clarity, ensuring they could scale their business with confidence and direction.
The Outcomes
Clear, Confident, and Scalable Growth
Metavolve's Scaling Masterplan had a profound impact on Decode Dev, resulting in significant improvements across various aspects of their business. Just one quarter into execution, they secured double their previous year’s revenue in contracted projects and have a long-term plan in place to sustain growth. Here are the otherkey outcomes:
Trevor Gowing
Co-founder, Decode Dev
I’m very happy with where we got to with Metavolve. The Strategy Development Programme helped us move from fuzzy ideas to a clear vision and purpose for our business. I think the most impactful part of the journey has been refining our thoughts into something simple and actionable.
Metavolve resonated with where we are and the battles we go through daily. They helped us break down our vision into actionable steps, making the process manageable and less daunting. Now it's about clearly communicating that and involving the whole team; then I’m confident the business results will follow.
Brett Ausmeier
Co-founder, Decode Dev
We've been afraid to start this direction before because we didn't know what to do or where to start. The programme helped us realise that just taking small steps and chipping away at it is the best way to tackle it.
I'm so happy we've done all of this thinking and refinement of our thoughts into something that's that simple. And now we're going to see if that's something we can actually clearly communicate and get people on board with and figure out how we can start involving the whole team in this.
In Short
By working with Metavolve, Decode Dev shifted from uncertainty to clarity, transforming their approach to strategy and growth. With a structured plan, defined market positioning, and an actionable roadmap, Trevor and Brett now have the confidence to scale Decode Dev sustainably and strategically.
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