Advisors, Business

Whitepaper: Delivering strategic value with the help of boards of directors and advisors.

By on

April 17, 2021

- Advisors, Business

The need for independent or “outside” board members in a public corporation is well understood; its importance for small to mid-size, privately held business, not as much.

In this whitepaper, we make the case that a well-curated board of directors and/or board of advisors can be as important and useful to profitably growing a small to mid-size business.

In fact, a #BDC study suggests that independent boards could help increase revenue growth by 3X and productivity by 18%.

The paper also covers key actionable insights on how founders and CEOs of a small to mid-size business can leverage expertise of independent board members and how to go about setting up their boards.

Click here to download the full whitepaper.

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Advisors, Strategy

Got an advisor? Listen to their advice.

By on

June 24, 2020

- Advisors, Strategy

👉 What good is an advisor if you don’t listen to their advice?

 

Advisors are experts that an entrepreneur can use as sounding boards or to fill gaps in expertise and contacts.

 

They bring new perspectives on business that are easy to be overlooked by the entrepreneur, sometimes due to internal bias.

 

Seven months before COVID-19 pandemic, I advised a CEO not to renew their office lease.

 

A fancy office in downtown TO was nice but wasn’t necessary for their business. Clients hardly came to visit, the team was technically savvy and could operate remotely, and on top of that the office was much larger than their headcount warranted.

 

The CEO went ahead with renewing the multi-year lease because (a) “the office exudes our company image” and (b) “the team cannot work remotely”.

 

The pandemic proved both beliefs were misplaced.

 

They are now looking for ways to get out of the lease.

 

According to a BDC study, only 6% of Canadian entrepreneurs have an advisory board for their business. However, 86% of entrepreneurs who have an advisory board say it’s had a significant impact on their business.

 

If you are an entrepreneur, consider having a formal advisory board or informal external advisors.

 

And more importantly, listen to their advice.

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