Meet Michael Gould: The visionary behind Kaleidoscope

At Kaleidoscope, we’re on a mission to empower small and growing businesses with the clarity and confidence they need to plan smarter, move faster, and grow stronger. Behind this mission is Michael Gould — a seasoned tech entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience building powerful software solutions that help businesses thrive.

From Oxford mathematician to tech pioneer

Michael’s journey started with a strong foundation in mathematics and computation, earning both a degree and a Master’s from Oxford University. Over the past four decades, he’s combined his deep technical expertise with a passion for solving real-world business challenges — most recently as founder and CTO of Anaplan, a global leader in connected planning.

Now based in North Yorkshire with his wife, their large family, and a remarkable story of fostering young refugees for seven years, Michael’s commitment to making a positive impact both professionally and personally.

The spark behind kaleidoscope

After selling Anaplan, Michael only took two weeks off before diving headfirst into his next venture: Kaleidoscope. Why? Because he saw a problem that still wasn’t solved.

“Businesses are complex and ever-changing,” Michael explains. “With Anaplan, we made progress connecting logical data models with real-world business operations, but often companies had to fit their processes into rigid tools, which didn’t always suit them. That’s frustrating and inefficient.”

Kaleidoscope is Michael’s answer to that challenge — a fresh approach to business planning that’s designed from the ground up to be natural, flexible, and easy to use.

Planning made simple — for small and growing businesses

Many small and mid-sized companies don’t have the budget for expensive enterprise software or costly consultants. That’s why Kaleidoscope focuses on delivering powerful, affordable planning tools tailored specifically for these businesses.

From deciding what products to sell, planning stock levels, to understanding costs and managing cash flow — Kaleidoscope gives planning teams the clarity they need to make confident, informed choices. It’s about cutting through complexity so you can focus on what really matters: growing your business.

As Michael says, “We’re building a system that fits naturally with how businesses actually operate. It’s simpler to get started and more adaptable to the unique challenges small companies face.”

About Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope Solutions™ is a financial modelling platform that builds a true structural representation of a business — from existing spreadsheets, in minutes. Powered by AI you can rely on, it creates a model businesses can interrogate, defend, and evolve with confidence, rather than a formula-based approximation. Built for finance today, with the same foundation designed to support every team that models — sales, operations, and planning — as it moves towards commercial launch.