Swindon defence firm SDO Associates grows from one person to a team of 10

Stu Olden, the founder of Swindon defence sector firm SDO Associates, spoke about the strain of fast growth in a report published by Swindon24 on 13 April 2026. The firm, founded in 2022, had grown from one person to a team of 10, with more than 50 specialist associates.

SDO Associates supports small and medium-sized engineering firms that want to get into the defence and aerospace supply chain.

Mr Olden said moving from a one-person company to one with systems in place was "quite a scary time".

What did he do about it?

He enrolled on Help to Grow: Management, a government-backed 12-week programme delivered by the University of Bath. It combines online learning, in-person sessions and one-to-one mentoring.

"I don't know everything," he said. "It felt like the right time to step back and sense check what we were doing."

He said the first module, on strategy, "was hugely useful", and that the firm had gone on to use the programme's "strategy cascade" model with its own clients. On mentoring, he said: "Just having an hour away from the business to talk through a challenge with someone experienced was powerful".

The government subsidy made the course affordable at an important stage, he said: "For what we paid, it was huge value. A really good investment."

Why did it matter for Swindon?

The report set the firm's growth against Swindon's efforts to position itself as a centre for advanced engineering and uncrewed systems, and said thousands of jobs were expected in and around the town as defence and technology investment came forward.

"It's about being ready," Mr Olden said. "Not just for where you are now, but for where the opportunity is going."

Further cohorts of the programme were due to start on 24 September and 18 November.

Source: Swindon24.