Issue 025: The Mangrove Newsletter

News & Expert Views, Reports, Insights, Thoughts, and Perspectives on Global Resilience and Business Continuity.

Welcome to Issue 025 of the Mangrove Newsletter! We hope you enjoy reading this as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you.

1. Resilience Case Study

This month’s case study will be deep diving into the recent Oracle Outage in Europe. It is a huge reminder that even the biggest players are susceptible to systemic vulnerabilities. More importantly, this incident, coupled with Oracle's past communication faux pars, genuinely highlights a pervasive and dangerous trend in the corporate world… the inclination to conceal, gaslight, and downplay internal failures.

The Elephant in the Room

The recent Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) identity platform outage in Europe, which left users in Germany Central (Frankfurt) unable to failover to Amsterdam and persisted for approximately six hours according to Downdetector, was notably absent from Oracle's official status page. This silence is deafening, particularly in light of Chairman Larry Ellison's past declaration:

"Oracle clouds never go down."

This isn't an isolated incident for Big Red. Just last month, Oracle initially denied, then belatedly admitted, a cloud security compromise – albeit pedantically arguing it was Oracle Cloud Classic and not OCI, despite the US government's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issuing an alert. This pattern of denial, deflection, and repetition has become a masterclass in breach comms, but one that prioritises image over integrity.

The reasons companies hide outages are often rooted in a desire to protect their reputation, maintain investor confidence, and avoid financial penalties or customer churn.

However, the consequences of such concealment are far more damaging in the long run. When the truth inevitably surfaces, the initial cover-up exacerbates reputational harm, erodes trust, and can lead to significant financial losses from regulatory fines, lost revenue, and even diminished shareholder value.

Fabricated status pages and downplayed post-mortems aren't just misleading; they are a form of gaslighting that leaves clients and internal teams struggling to troubleshoot issues they believe are their own, while the root cause is systematically denied.

When PR and Branding Mask Operational Flaws

Something we have learned here at Mangrove, is the dazzling facade of strong PR and branding. Social media has not only affected how we as humans project ourselves, but it is a common flaw of many investment firms, startups and businesses.

PR and branding can often blind both internal stakeholders and external observers to fundamental operational weaknesses. Companies pour resources into crafting an image of seamless reliability and innovation, sometimes to the detriment of rigorous internal scrutiny. The Oracle incident serves as a prime example: a company with a powerful brand, yet a history of operational issues and questionable transparency.

Consider other high-profile cases where operational cracks were obscured by, or severely highlighted by, PR:

• Wells Fargo: A culture of aggressive sales targets led to millions of fraudulent accounts, yet initial PR tried to blame low-level employees, failing to address systemic operational governance failures.

• Silicon Valley Bank (SVB): The sudden collapse in March 2023 was primarily due to operational missteps in managing interest rate risk and an over concentration of uninsured deposits. However, its initial communication strategy was a jargon filled, technical press release and a private Zoom call where the CEO reportedly told clients "don't panic" and took no questions. This exacerbated the situation, fuelling a rapid bank run on not only the US operations but the UK entity too which was not even related. This was a catastrophic failure in empathetic and transparent crisis communication.

• Facebook (Cambridge Analytica): A massive data privacy breach was met with a slow, opaque response from leadership, further damaging public perception of their data security operations.

In contrast, companies like KFC’s who faced their chicken shortage with humour or Johnson & Johnson swift recall of Tylenol after cyanide tampering demonstrated that transparency and decisive action, even in the face of severe operational crises, can rebuild trust and reputation.

The lesson here is pretty clear, PR should be a mirror, not a mask. When image takes precedence over honest operational assessment, the groundwork for future, more damaging failures is perfectly laid.

Beyond the Surface-Level Investor Metrics

For investors, the Oracle outage and its broader context offer critical lessons in due diligence. Relying solely on polished reports and optimistic founder statements is no longer sufficient. Operational resilience must become a core component of investment analysis.

Here are some considerations for investors to scrutinize when wanting to understand early warning signs and for ongoing due diligence:

• Transparency in Crisis Communication
  How quickly and openly does a company acknowledge and communicate about runway, operational mishaps, outages, security incidents, or service degradations? A lack of acknowledgement on official channels, or a history of denying then admitting issues, is a major 🚩.

• Vendor Due Diligence
  For those heavily reliant on third-party cloud providers or other critical vendors (like Oracle is for its customers), strategic partnerships (for FinTech’s), investors should question the portfolio company's own vendor risk management framework. Do they have robust SLAs, and critically, do they actually enforce them? What are the backup and disaster recovery plans for these third-party dependencies? If they don’t have this! You guessed it 🚩.

• Historical Incident Track Record
  Dig deeper than current status pages and quarterly dashboard or reports. One must put in the research and ask questions to really understand past outages, security breaches, and what their resolutions. Was the response timely, transparent, and documented? Most of all was it proportionate and effective? Look for patterns of recurring issues or consistent communication failures. I think you know what that is … 🚩.

• Operational Metrics vs. Reality:
  It's easy to get caught up on dashboards showing all green, but are those operational metrics truly reflecting the customer's experience? For startups, this is crucial. You might see 99.9% uptime on your internal monitors, but if your early adopters are constantly complaining on social media, in your Slack community, or on review sites about glitches or slow service, you can’t just mute the comments section. You've got a major disconnect! Don't just trust your internal numbers; actively seek out and listen to real-world feedback. User experience is the ultimate metric, and ignoring it means you're missing early warning signs of much bigger problems down the road. So, yes, this = a 🚩.

• Investment in Resilience
  For startups, sustainable growth means actively building continuity into your services. Do you know your critical assets? Are you committing resources to continuity, recovery and redundancy? This isn't just about big budgets; it's about smart cloud setups, automated backups, and clear playbooks. Crucially, do you learn from every hiccup? Not just calling it another pivot… Regular reviews and analysis are how you embed resilience, ensuring your startup is adaptable. So investors if you ask your startup any of these questions. And the response is new phone, who dis? We unfortunately, have yet another 🚩.

• Regulatory Scrutiny:
  Do your portfolio companies truly understand the regulatory touchpoints of their operations. We’re not asking who regulates you, we want to know do you fully understand which technologies, third-parties, teams and processes have requirements. Have any of your portfolio been the subject of regulator interest (as Oracle was with CISA, Flutterwave with CBN)? This indicates a systemic issue that warrants deeper inquiry. This my friend is a 🚩🚩🚩.

Investors are financial experts, driven by returns. However, operational viability and resilience are increasingly fundamental to sustainable financial performance. As McKinsey's research shows, operationally resilient companies delivered a 10% EBITDA increase during the 2008 global recession, compared to a 15% reduction for their peers. Equipping themselves with tools to assess operational health beyond traditional financial metrics can mitigate risk and enhance portfolio performance.

How Entrepreneurs Build Resilience from the Ground Up

The challenges faced by giants like Oracle underscore the non-negotiable need for operational resilience for businesses of all sizes, especially agile startups and growing scaleups. Entrepreneurs have the unique opportunity to embed resilience into their DNA from day one.

Here are practical steps to incorporate into your own practices:

1. Build the 6-step resilience framework. Complete breakdown with EdTech example, here.

   

Resilience is the Ultimate Partner in Crime

In today's interconnected and volatile world, operational resilience is no longer a luxury addition. It is the ultimate partner in crime for sustained business success. It's the strategic framework that enables businesses to not just survive disruptions but to emerge stronger, more adaptable, and intimately trustworthy. The benefits of embracing this comprehensive approach are profound:

• Companies that demonstrate transparency and reliable service, even in challenging times, build invaluable customer and stakeholder trust.

• Many industries, especially financial services, now mandate robust operational resilience frameworks, making it a legal and ethical imperative.

• The ability to make informed pivots, execute quickly, whilst maintaining operations, and even innovate amidst disruption sets resilient businesses apart in the marketplace.

• Proactive planning and faster recovery significantly reduce the financial impact of outages, including lost revenue, regulatory fines, and reputational damage.

• By anticipating and adapting to change, operational resilience enables businesses to navigate uncertainty, seize new learning opportunities, and achieve long-term, stable growth.

So as investors and entrepreneurs, building tomorrow, how are you building this fundamental pillar of modern business?

2. What We're Working On

Thrive, Not Just Survive

Feeling resource-constrained and confused about how to scale your startup? You're not alone. Many founders struggle to scale due to limited budgets and expensive tools. No wahala, this bootcamp is for you.

The Scale Smart Bootcamp equips pre-seed to Series A founders with the tools to thrive, not just survive. We combine operational resilience with human resilience to address the challenges you face:

• Inefficient operations draining your resources

• Burnout hindering growth

• Difficulty building a sustainable and scalable business model

Our unique program offers a comprehensive learning experience, including expert-led workshops and materials on operational and human resilience, valuable peer learning opportunities with other founders facing similar challenges, hands-on exercises to apply learnings directly to your business, and personalised coaching from experienced mentors.

Key Modules:

1. Foundations of Resilience: Define success for your business and build the capacity to adapt.

2. Lean Operations & Resource Optimisation: Streamline processes, leverage free tools, and build a data-driven culture.

3. Human Resilience & Well-being: Manage stress, build high-performing teams, and prioritise self-care.

4. Scaling Sustainably: Identify risks, develop a scalable model, and build a strong foundation for long-term growth.

Benefits:

• Enhanced operational efficiency to free up resources and boost productivity.

• Increased resilience to navigate challenges and adapt to change.

• Improved team dynamics for a high-performing and supportive culture.

• Sustainable growth to build a business that lasts.

• Access to a valuable network of founders facing similar challenges.

Limited Spots Available! Apply now and don't let resource constraints hold you back. Scale your business smarter with the Scale Smart Bootcamp.

What is Whitespace?

We are already preparing to launch our third pilot program. We already have eight sclaeups on the cohort waitlist for July 2025, but are always happy to share the love and expertise with a few more spots. Could this be you? 👀

Whitespace is our innovative approach to unlocking a business’s full potential with resilience education.

The Whitespace Pilot Program: Join the Journey

The pilot program is a three-stage journey, kicking off in June 25. Here's what you can expect:

• Stage 1: Onboarding to Mangrove Foundation. We'll work with you to build your company's digital twin.

• Stage 2: Includes Mangrove Analytics. We'll enhance your digital twin with powerful analytics and generate even deeper insights.

• Stage 3: Get ready for the Mangrove + (Co-Pilot). This stage leverages the insights from the digital twin and analytics to empower the implementation of necessary changes and business optimisation.

Are you ready to build a more resilient startup? We are!

Applications for the Whitespace pilot program are now active. To apply, please submit a form to register your interest. If selected, we will share the next steps. 

3. Work with Us

Global business, SMB, or a Startup? We understand that technology is essential for modern businesses, and we've built replicable processes for businesses that guarantee long-term scalability and sustainability.

Let’s work with you to build better and scale faster. Schedule a Demo with us here. We can’t wait to connect.