When Riccardo Iannucci-Dawson became CEO of Alto, he took the helm of the UK’s largest estate agency CRM provider at a critical juncture.

In this interview [which you can also watch on Property Podcast Today], Ric reflects on the shift from founder to scale-CEO, the lessons in discipline and culture, and why execution clarity is powering Alto’s next phase of growth.

A few months in, how would you describe the changes at Alto under your leadership?

One of the most important steps has been building an elite SaaS leadership team. Alto has always had scale — we’re the UK’s largest CRM provider — but scale only matters when you unlock it with the right expertise.

We’ve brought in new heads across marketing, partnerships, revenue and operations, and what excites me is that they don’t just operate as specialists in their own lanes. They bring proven playbooks from across the SaaS world and they work together with total alignment on strategy and priorities. That unity is our unfair advantage.

Culturally, we’ve introduced a common language across the company, rooted in the jobs of work we’re helping agents complete. It sounds simple, but it makes strategy tangible. Instead of abstract goals, people connect their daily work directly to customer outcomes. That shift has given us real momentum.

Embedding a strategy deeply takes discipline — but that’s exactly what separates companies that scale from those that stall. When you hear the strategy echoed back from the ground up, you know you’re really ready to accelerate.

What surprised you most about stepping from founder into the CEO role?

The scale of the difference. As a founder, you live on adrenaline — pivoting constantly, pushing the business forward by sheer force of will. At CEO level, you need different muscles: structure, discipline, and patience.

The job is about creating clarity, discipline, and momentum at scale — that’s how you unlock execution at enterprise level. My focus is on clarity: where are we going, why are we going there, and how will we measure progress? Then you trust your team to execute.

A huge part of that is what we call the say–do ratio – the percentage of promises you actually deliver on. If you consistently deliver, trust compounds. That’s what customers, employees and investors are really looking for.

Alto recently confirmed Jupix will remain within the group. Why was that important?

Jupix has a loyal customer base, particularly in Scotland where regulatory workflows are more complex. We’ve doubled down on Jupix because it plays a critical role in that market. Our investment ensures it will remain the benchmark for compliance and reliability.

The focus now is stability and integration. Customers value its simplicity, so we’re strengthening its foundations and opening up more integrations with best-in-class partners. Agents don’t want ten disconnected systems; they want one platform that fits seamlessly into their workflow.

Alto has reported a record breaking H1. What’s driving that?

Alto delivered 22% growth in Monthly Recurring Revenue in the first half of 2025 — the strongest performance in our history. That growth is the direct result of clarity on strategy, discipline in execution, and a leadership team built for scale.

Retention is always the engine. If customers see faster workflows, better service and more stability, they stay longer and grow with you. Alongside that, we’ve invested in AI and data engineering to build the next generation of automation and insight features.

The impact is already visible. Agencies using our new reporting suite are saving hours a week on compliance workflows, and one customer told us Alto cut their lettings onboarding time in half. These are tangible results, not just promises — and they’re fuelling growth.

For many agents, Alto isn’t just the last CRM they’ll ever need — it’s the first one that truly feels built around them.

How do you keep that momentum going into the second half of the year?

Momentum comes from consistency. You can’t sprint for six months and then collapse. It’s about embedding the strategy so deeply that people can make confident, fast decisions within clear guardrails.

Practically, that means doubling down on our core priorities: improving job workflows, releasing new AI functionality, strengthening partnerships, and using our transaction data to give agents smarter insights.

And we keep our say–do ratio high. When people see you delivering on promises, belief builds — and belief sustains momentum.

Finally, what’s on Alto’s roadmap that will excite agents most?

Three things stand out.

First, deep AI and automation. Not surface-level add-ons, but properly integrated tools that reduce admin and allow agents to interact with Alto conversationally, the way you’d use ChatGPT. Conversational AI reporting isn’t just a nice-to-have. It redefines how agents interact with data.

Second, world-class reporting. We’re rolling out a brand-new suite that’s configurable and powered by natural language search. Imagine asking: “How many lettings instructions did I win in Berkshire in the last six years between X and Y value?” — and getting an instant, tailored report.

And third, a completely rebuilt lettings platform. With the Renters’ Rights Bill and other regulatory changes, lettings is becoming ever more complex. Our rebuilt platform is designed to take that complexity out of compliance and turn regulatory pressure into competitive advantage..

Ready to see the difference Alto can make?

Book a demo today and discover how Alto’s next-generation CRM can help your agency grow with confidence. As the team says – it’s the last CRM you’ll ever need.