Business advisors

Business advisors

Introduction

	The Institute for Independent Business offer Independent external advice to organisations in all industry sectors.
	Their advice focuses on several key issues, 1) Strategy - where the business is going, and 2) The organisation and running of the business.
	A wide range of services are available, namely advising on small and large businesses and how efficiently to run these businesses and meet the needs of customers.
	Companies can seek advice from a generalist consultant, or alternatively a specialist.
	There are all sorts of specialists available, marketing strategists, personnel management strategists, manufacturing specialists etc. Basically there is an advisor available for every problem a company can have.

Benefits of employing an outside advisor

	In the SME market it is usually the business owners and managers who become aware of problems and if in assessing the problems they don't have the internal skills to assess that problem that's when they should speak to a advisor.
	An SME may find that they are too close to the problem and need some outside external advice to combat it
	The early years are difficult for an SME and a external advisor can be beneficial in making sure you not only survive but also prosper in the first few years of trading.
	In the long term if you want to avoid mistakes and target opportunities then the IIB can help you achieve the profits and objectives you want.
	Long term benefits of having an outside advisor also include enabling a firm to develop to its full potential, allowing it to be better focused and better managed. Also it allows them to look externally to new markets and opportunities.

Choosing the right advisor for a business

	Reasons why you shouldn't employ an outside advisor are to pass the buck or advocate responsibility
	You should employ a firm with a clear vision of what they want and what you want. The working relationship should be a genuine partnership.
	If you are a company facing issues you are unsure of and can't handle then you should consider bringing someone in to seek further advice.
	There are many different sources of information about what sort of advisor you should employ. The Institute for Independent Business has a free service to help you.
	It's often difficult for a SME to work out what type of advise is needed. It's good to go to the advisors, though beware of expecting real business advice from those you would most naturally go to, ie. Your accountant, solicitor, friend or business associate. Each of those will be limited to their own area of understanding and expertise. Talk to a mature business executive from the Institute for Independent Business about what issues and problems you are facing and consider any recommendations they may offer.
	Talking through issues with people you know already can often help anyway.

Preparing for the appointment of a consultant

	The first thing to do is write down what you want to get out of your free initial appointment.
	A list of what specifically you want to cover and in what format and what time frame should be drawn up.
	An organisation seeking help from an outsider has to realise it will be a joint project. The organisation has to be working with the company to find a solution.
	Once the advisor has been appointed they will want to sit down with key people in the organisation, who are at the front of the project.
	Most importantly there has to be a clearly defined deliverable. The company has to know what it will get out of the project.
	There are several clear things that need to be done by the company employing the advisor. 1) They should draw up a clear brief of why they've appointed the advisor, and 2) they should appoint a project director to take control of the day to day running of the project, 3) The company assigning the advisor should make sure that everyone within the organisation knows why and at what date the advisor starts.

Ways your business will need to adapt when using a consultant

	People sometimes think that the employment of a advisor means redundancies and the reorganisation of the company structure. This is sometimes true but as a general rule it is a misconception.
	Generally the employment of a advisor helps a business be more confident and this does not necessarily mean a change in structure (although sometimes it does).
	Mostly a consultant results in more positive changes than often are reflected. They inject new ideas into the business and look at ways of taking the business further: looking at new developing markets for the business to move into and finding new investors for the company.
	In the case of restructuring it may mean the reassigning of people to new areas to improve efficiency.
	Having outside help is about change but sometimes this could mean rather than redundancies, the taking on of new staff.
	The most important thing is however, that having decided to assign an advisor, the company listens to the suggestions that they do come up with, otherwise their employment is a wasted project.

Further help and advice

	Make sure that any advisor you may use is a mature senior executive themselves with a broad business background in senior management, either having been an executive director or Managing Director / CEO themselves.
	It is also often beneficial to use the advice of a non-executive director - someone retired from the city for example - who can bring outside insights into a company.
	The Institute for Independent Business has the largest business resource in Europe
	Finally, if you seek advice on specific areas of specialisation it is worthwhile to contact professional institutes who specialise in areas you need information from. I.e. The Chartered Institute of Marketing or the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development and many others.