Support For Entrepreneurs

This webpage is designed for two types of entrepreneurs:

Ambitious Entrepreneurs - who already have their dream and vision in place.

Aspiring Entrepreneurs - who have a strong desire to create something unique but don't yet have a clear vision.

Ambitious Entrepreneurs

These are exciting times.

You have an idea for a new product or service or an innovative solution to an existing problem. You are sure that it will succeed as there seems to be a strong need for the product and it could make such a difference to people's ideas. You're full of passion and fire and your business could grow very quickly if the idea takes off.

You may have tried to get your old company to develop it but perhaps they were too staid and traditional to see the potential. Or perhaps it’s such a great idea that it was too good to share. You just had to take it up yourself. This has the potential to be even better than a big lottery win and in your personal dream, it’s only a matter of time before your yacht is moored next to Roman Abramovitch and Bill Gates.

It feels so real, you have such a strong vision, you can taste your future success, see the positive effect it has on people and hear the plaudits as customers express their delight. It’s just amazing nobody has thought of it before.

But the trouble is someone else might get the idea, they might beat you to market so there’s pressure to get started, to get moving and make some real money that can be re-invested and allow your dream to grow even faster.

Wow. You’ve really been bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. You won’t be satisfied with a little company turning over a £1 million or so a year. That might be OK for year 1 but this is going to be huge provided you put all the stepping stones in place.

You’re enthusiastic and passionate about the idea and you are prepared to work 80 to 100 hours per week (or even more) to make it happen and we’d like to help.

Our role

Our role in these situations is to be the Finance Cornerstone (in Beermat terms). It’s to add balance to your entrepreneurial vision. To play the devil’s advocate role. To stop you trying to run before you can walk. To do our best to make sure that you achieve your dreams by building a business that works steadily and progressively.

Most great entrepreneurs have a reliable number 2. A finance man. Someone with their feet on the ground who’ll make sure that all the nuts and bolts are tightened while you’re free to push against the frontiers of the market.

Will we have differences of opinion? You bet we will but it doesn’t matter provided we have your respect, you understand that we share your vision and you’ll stop and listen to our views. This is your business and your dream so in the end it’s your decisions that count.

Our business is based on three primary areas:
• Financial management and performance measurement

• Business strategy and marketing

• Process improvement and getting the best from any staff.

Our purpose is simple – to help you develop a profitable business that can change the world (or at least a small part of it).

The principal services we would combine in a Finance Cornerstone role are:

Monthly financial monitoring because you need to make financial progress.

Most businesses that introduce a “new to the market” product will lose money at the start as they educate their potential customers.

• We’ll closely monitor the finances and make sure that things are progressing as they should.
  
• We’ll explain the financial implications of what is going on, how the Profit & Loss Account is developing, how the cash is faring and how any financial backers will view the business.
  
• We’ll institute control systems that provide information on a daily or weekly basis so that you know what’s going on.

Decision support

Our role is to help you make good decisions and avoid making bad ones and we’ll do that by encouraging you to consider:

• Is it consistent with your personal and business goals.
  
• Have all the viable alternatives been identified? Is there a better or cheaper way of solving the problem?
  
• What are the likely consequences (good and bad) of the alternatives?
  
• What is the likelihood of success. Business is about taking calculated risks and not taking a punt on an outsider in the 3 O’clock at Haydock Park.
  

Business strategy and planning

You have a clear vision of the future, the product, who the customers will be, why they will buy it, how it will affect their lives but there’s a big gap between today and the future.

Our business strategy and planning service will help close that gap. Together we’ll look at how the dream can be turned into reality. What team do you need to put in place? Is there really pent up demand for the product or will the market have to be created? Can the technical issues be met? What happens if things don’t turn out as expected?

Is there enough cash? A big vision often needs large amounts of cash and that means dealing with banks, venture capitalists and business angels if you and your team can’t raise the start-up cash personally. Any financial backers will need a convincing business plan but you’ll find that they think very differently. They won’t get caught up in the dream. It’s all got to be there in black and white and backed up with figures. Your financial cornerstone is the bridge into this strange world.

Process improvement and “systems" development

Systems and processes sound pretty boring but in a small fast growing company it’s essential that they are developed.

The only way that work gets done is through systems and processes. It’s what will make your business special and deliver a good quality product or service that your customers can rely on.

All the time people need to be working ON your business while working IN your business. You work out how something should be done, record it, try it, measure the results and decide whether it worked satisfactorily or you start improving.

The Future

Sadly from our point of view, if everything is successful you will outgrow our services.

In time you’ll need to find someone to work full time and match your commitment but that’s probably some way down the road. In the meantime why not give Paul Simister a call on 0121 554 4057.

We strongly recommend that you read a couple of books:

• the “E-Myth Revisited” by Michael Gerber. The author explains why most small businesses don’t work and what to do about it. The book is recognised as an outstanding influence on small business.

• The “Beermat Entrepreneur” by Mike Southon & Chris West who introduce the concept and explain the importance of the finance cornerstone which was expanded on in the follow up “Finance On A Beermat”..