Professional Advice – Who is Important?

An Overview of Various Professional Counselors for Small Business

Owners

Professional CounselorsWho Are they?

AccountantsInsurance

LegalConsultants

Lenders

Professional Counselors – Legal

• Seek local bar acceptable lists• Self Educate about Legal Process• Interview several; discuss fees• Choose one with start-up business experience• Choose one with fund-raising experience• Contracts review experience• Investigate track record, experience, & reputation• Remember: attorneys main raison d’tre is to keep

owner out of liability

Professional Counselors - Accountants

• Three kinds: managerial, tax, and financial• Managerial: predictive• Tax: avoid penalties and minimize taxes• Financial: good for outsiders like bankers and

investors• REMEMBER: Accountants best for telling

you as owner where you have been. Few are also good at business advice in general sense.

Professional Counselors: Insurance• Dealing with “risk”: how to minimize• Kinds of “risk” – financial, collections,

technology, sickness & injury, property protection, product & service liability, legal violations, and loss of key employees.

• Interview several: examine & compare rate quotes, experience, satisfied customers, recommendations, & resources for in-house training

Professional Counselors – Management Consultants

• For profit ($$$) and not-for-profit ($). • Non-for-profit: local SCORE chapters, SBDCs, and

WBCs. Check local chambers of commerce, and local university business schools. HR services now commonly done by hired consultants.

• Frequent uses? Recruiting, HR duties, market experience, social media training & use, investor relations, sales experience, connections.

Professional Counselors: Lenders• Provide useful guidance on financials and

recruitment of key employees• Provides legitimacy to public• Sounding board• Can help recruit customers• Identify business partners if necessary• Secured lenders will have little time; equity

investors MUCH time.

Professional Counselors: Board of Advisors

• Recruit Successful types (#? Maybe 5-15)• Diversify competencies• Meet 2-4 times a year (online?)• Give meaningful roles (not window-dressing)• Gives entrepreneurs inexpensive advice and

benefit of others’ experience.• Local reputation gives legitimacy