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Who’s on your team of committed advisors?

Being a business owner can be a solitary job. Sure you’ve probably got people around you – perhaps managers, employees etc. but you’re still the one in the hot seat.

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Being a business owner can be a solitary job. Sure you’ve probably got people around you – perhaps managers, employees etc. but you’re still the one in the hot seat.

You have to make the decisions and are accountable for those decisions – at the end of the day, the buck stops with you. This kind of responsibility can leave you feeling lonely, tired and harrassed – and often scared and confused as well.

As a business owner, it’s really important to have someone on your team that you can trust. Someone who’s on your side, looking out for your best interests and that of your business. Better still, a TEAM of committed and competent advisors – people you can draw on for their individual talents and expertise

Make sure your advisors measure up

If you pride yourself on your business, and provide first class services or products, don’t surround yourselves with second-class advisors. You don’t want to be paying top rate dollars for second rate work. Make sure your advisors aren’t still on your payroll merely by virtue of length of service – consider what you’re sacrificing for the comfort of using someone familiar.

What kind of advisor do you want – one whose input is positive and creative, or one who’s happy to maintain the status quo?

It’s a great idea to take a good hard look at all your professional advisors from time to time. Make sure you still need them and that they are making a good contribution to your business. Are they solving current problems? Are they avoiding potential problems? Make sure they are committed to your success, and the success of your business.

A word of warning: Sometimes the perceived non-performance of advisors is merely because you don’t know the right questions to ask, or don’t know how to interpret their advice. It’s important to ensure this is not the case. If it is, changing advisors is unlikely to make any difference. It pays to make sure you are clear on how to get the very best out your advisors.

Specialist Expertise

It’s not unusual for businesses to develop problems that are outside the specific domain of a specialist advisor such as an accountant or solicitor. This is particularly relevant for a family/private business – a whole other raft of things come into play here that never feature in a large publicly owned company.

This is where it’s important to make sure one of your advisors is a specialist in family/private businesses. The kind of expertise and guidance this person can offer is unlikely to be found anywhere else!

If you’re not sure whether you’ve got the right people on your team of advisors, whether you’re asking the right questions, or are confused by the answers … just click here.

HubSpot