Nick is usually retained as a Non Executive Director to support the development of start-ups and high growth companies.

Both of these types of organisation benefit from the experience and insights of a seasoned and entrepreneurial business person.

Investors: PE; VC

Safeguard your investment

When you are investing in an enterprise you need to be sure that your funds are being used as you intended – to fund the growth of the business. 

There will come a time when you want to sell your stake. Typically the buyer will conduct some due diligence and the price you negotiate will be reduced. It seldom increases!

When you come to sell, the buyer will conduct due diligence. The price you had negotiated will be reduced.
It seldom increases!

HOWEVER, with proper board level support, all the necessary safeguards should be in place to avoid any discount between negotiation and completion of a sale.

Nick will bring security to investors by ensuring:

  • Costs are under control
  • Revenue (if there is any yet) is under reasonable trade terms which are transferrable
  • Assets are suitably protected (trademarks; legal contracts; etc)
  • Liabilities are known and managed
  • Management Team is supported and skills developed with succession planning in mind (to avoid a vacuum in the event of a key departure)
  • PEST analysis identifies and prepares for the more likely risks

He will also support the Founders, Directors, CEO, MD, Management Team in developing the business with awareness of the 7 key areas that lead to higher equity value:

  • Design the business operations for appropriate levels of profitability/profit
  • Manage the talent and culture in the organisation
  • Ensure systems & processes are robust and developed in parallel with the growth plans
  • Product development and product extension is planned
  • Additional and innovative channels to market are explored
  • Brand is managed and protected if appropriate
  • Scaleability is incorporated into the business where possible

All of this will support the investor to maximise their return, minimise their risk and add value to the enterprise.

Business Owners

Funded Start-ups
High Growth Companies

Good ideas you had never thought about

When you are building your business you will have many ideas.

You have too much to do and too little time in which to do it.

Often you will also have a vision for a product, a system, or a new solution to a market problem. And often you may be a team with one of you being ‘customer facing’ specialist and the other will be the ‘product’ or ‘technical’ specialist.

What will often be missing from the equation is a ‘business’ specialist. There is the assumption that if the ‘product’ is good enough and the sales/marketing is good then profit will flow.

While that may be true for a while there are many traps for the unwary and uninitiated.

It is only after a problem has emerged that it becomes obvious. 

That will be too late.

So many businesses have been destroyed by the apparently ‘unexpected’.

 
It is only after a problem has emerged that it becomes obvious.
That will be too late!

Rather than think that you are different, try speaking to someone about your situation.

Call Nick.

He’d love to hear about your business.