Our values have long shaped how Gearset operates. They guide how we approach problems, how we work with one another, and how we do the right things for our customers so that we can win together in the market. They’re foundational to our culture, and they’re not going anywhere.
Our Leadership Principles build on that foundation. They extend our shared values into clear expectations for leading at Gearset, setting a consistent standard for how we support our people, strengthen our culture, and scale.
How we define leadership
At Gearset, leadership shows up in a few different ways: managing people, managing teams, managing projects, or being responsible for making decisions that shape how we operate.
As the business scales, we recognize that relying on informal learning and individual interpretation of what leadership is, and how we want to do it, is no longer enough on its own.
Why principles, not rules
We didn’t want to hand leaders a rigid playbook of “when X, do Y”. That kind of prescriptive guidance doesn’t scale well, and it doesn’t reflect how Gearset actually operates.
Instead, we chose principles, because they capture the why behind how we want leaders to act, not just the what. That matters when you’re facing a situation that doesn’t fit neatly into a checklist.
By focusing on underlying intent, principles equip leaders to navigate new and unfamiliar situations with judgement and confidence. They provide guidance without being arbitrary, and clarity without removing autonomy. Where helpful, we include examples to ground each principle in real situations, but the principle itself is what enables leaders to reason, adapt, and make good decisions as context changes.
So, why now?
Gearset is at a stage where getting this wrong or leaving it open to interpretation could have a negative impact on the incredible team and product we’ve worked so hard to build. Growth comes with exciting wins and milestones, but it also comes with added complexity: larger teams, a higher output of work, and more moments where a leader’s choices have a broader impact.
However, our culture continues to be rooted in trust, autonomy, and making good decisions for our customers and for each other, so we didn’t need an overly structured guidebook or policy for our leaders either.
“We wanted a shared, documented understanding of what good looks like for leaders at Gearset, so we can scale deliberately while protecting the culture that makes us successful.” Melissa, People Partner
The Leadership Principles help create alignment without adding rigidity. They set shared expectations for how leaders think, prioritise, communicate, and make decisions, while still leaving room for context and judgement.
Grounded in how Gearset actually works
The one rule we had for developing new principles is that it had to feel authentic (and not “new”) to how Gearset already operates, so we drew on examples where leadership has made a meaningful difference, and where greater clarity would have helped.
“They’re authentic because they were reverse engineered from how Gearset already operates. The way our leaders operate has had a huge impact on our success, and the principles came from distilling why that is successful. The process of creating them came about from interrogating why things work well here (and also the times when they didn’t) and distilling that down to its essence.” Ali, Development Manager
The Leadership Principles do not replace our company values. Instead, they describe how those values show up in leadership, so we’re building off something well established at Gearset, that we’ve battle-tested and feel confident applying.
“I hope leaders reach for the principles in real moments when things aren’t obvious. Leadership can be hard, and these should help make expectations clearer and support teams to experience great leadership day to day.” Melissa, People Partner
By grounding these principles with the values we believe in, we’ve created guidance that is authentic and easy to work with.
Everything we do for our team, we do with our customers in mind
The Leadership Principles aren’t just about internal culture — they’re about what we deliver to customers. Clear priorities help teams focus on solving the right problems. Thoughtful decision-making allows us to learn faster and improve continuously. And teams that feel supported and aligned are better equipped to build reliable, high-quality solutions that customers can trust.
By setting a shared standard for leadership, the Leadership Principles help ensure we continue to scale in a way that supports both our people and the customers who rely on our product.
Looking ahead
As Gearset continues to grow, the Leadership Principles give us a foundation to build on. They help leaders develop with confidence, support teams to thrive, and enable the business to scale deliberately without losing what makes it work.
You can read our Leadership Principles in depth here.