When you’re just about to start a new business or you’re currently running your small company, you have to face the mere fact that even though you are backed up with all the capital, knowledge, and skills you need, at some point, you’re gonna need some help. Regardless of where you think you’re gonna get it, it’ll really be advantageous for you if you already realized from the start that you’ll need some expert advice and guidance.
While we understand that your top-of-mind business mentors would be friends, relatives, or former colleagues who successfully run their own companies now, we still think that it’s best for you to consider getting help from external business advisors who would be able to provide you with constructive, unbiased, rational, and detached assessments and recommendations. Yes, it’ll cost you some of your business funds; but know that it’ll all be worth it in the long run.
So if you’re already convinced and have finally decided to take a leap of faith and invest in hiring a small business consultant, the only thing you need to do now is look for the right one.
Just like other professionals, some business advisors are simply better than others. So before you go ahead and start a business relationship with the very first person that provides you small business consultancy in Singapore, read up and let us help you out.
To ensure you’ll pick the right person or people to provide you with the best small business advisory services, here are some of the qualities you need to look for:
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Small Business Background and Experience
When you’re recruiting for some staff or employees, it’s somewhat easier to gauge the depth of their work experience once you’ve read their resume and seen how many years they’re doing what they’re doing. But in the case of business advisors, it’s just not enough to know how long they’ve been a business consultant.
There are lots of Singapore business advisors you can hire – via the internet, in person, through referrals, etc. And in order for you to trim down all those consultants who have many years of experience, know that you need someone who is already an expert in: your particular industry, the size of your business, setting and achieving the kinds of goals you have, tackling challenges in your type of business environment, handling your smallest to biggest competitors, and more.
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Passion for Mentorship
Look for a business consultant who doesn’t just tell you to do this and that. Search for someone who have that deep and honest desire to help and teach you. Instead of hiring someone whose goal is to get paid by you for the longest time possible, choose the business advisor whose main objective is to help you get all the right set of knowledge, attitude, and skills necessary to keep you on the right track and help you prosper even without him or her around.
Small business consultants who simply love to teach and mentor end up having great relationships with their clients, even long after their contract has already ended. By being a teacher who wants nothing more than to help you will definitely bring in numerous benefits for your SME. You are assured that he or she will always have your best interest at heart.
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Same Values as Yours
Even if you’ve chosen a friend (a successful business owner) as your mentor or advisor, that doesn’t automatically mean that you share similar values. So, for the best fit, choose a someone who really agrees to your values, your mentality on things, and so on. You’d want one who simply agrees to how you see things.
Just to be clear, we’re not saying that hiring a consultant who has a different perspective can ruin your business. But just to make sure everything will turn out as you had hoped it would, it’ll be best if you would end up working with a business advisor who has the same heart, same mind. By doing so, it’ll be easier for you to set goals and strategize ways to reach them. You’ll also be able to minimize conflicts between you and your advisor whenever obstacles come and hard decisions need to be made.
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Backed up (and generous) with Connections
A good business mentor is someone who is willing to share all his knowledge and experiences with you. But sometimes, it’s so easy to say that you have this number of years of experience in doing something. If you want to find a great advisor, choose one who has longstanding relationships with experts, companies, and other people that can also help you. That is not someone could easily brag about without real evidence.
If you do find a business coach who really has good connections in the industry, make sure he/she is willing to share that with you. If yes, then you have indeed gotten yourself (and your company) a good catch.
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Trustworthy and Credible
Any accounting professional can easily say he or she is honest and trustworthy. And unfortunately, it can take you months or sometimes even years to actually prove if that person really is as honest and trustworthy as he/she says he/she is.
So, for you to really find out, try to speak with the business advisor’s past (or even current) clients, partners, and other references. Find out if he/she really is as good as his/her word, or even better. If you fortunately learn that the small business advisor you’re eyeing actually keeps his/her promises, then that person is truly worth investing your time and money in.
If you are lucky enough to have found or have been working with one of Singapore business advisors that possess all these qualities, then he/she is definitely a keeper.
But, if you are still in the middle of finding the right small business advisor who can help you grow your business in Singapore, then save yourself the trouble and consider working with the experts here at Enterprise Global. Speak with us today and we’ll gladly answer your concerns and help you out with your business consultancy needs.
