STRATEGIC BUSINESS ADVICE
Are you looking for the right person to be your sounding board, to help you with day to day decisions, to mentor you through growth or to help you with an exit strategy?
Current assignments
Faber Design & Architects
March 2017 and ongoing
Faber is a young, dynamic Design company, specialising in the full design scope of the F&B environments across Restaurants, Bars and Hotels - for the new generation of exciting Chefs and Hospitality entrepreneurs.
Working as Commercial Director 2 days per month (or more as required), assisting the owner with all aspects of the Strategic & Commercial direction of the business.
I also assist with some Sales approaches, either direct or through Social media.
Faber’s turnover growth has been impressive. The owner has to take the credit. My role is just to support and to guide where appropriate. We work well together, and I thoroughly enjoy working with such a young and vibrant team in the energetic environment that is “The Custard Factory” in Digbeth in Birmingham.
Fri Projects, Joinery Manufactures
September 2018 and ongoing
I was approached directly by the owner of Fri who knew of my work at AMS International. At the age of 36, he was able to demonstrate a strong work ethic and good business sense, but he was going through a period where he recognised he needed some guidance and extra stimulation.
Within a few months of my joining up with him, we had set a new strategy, recruited a very necessary No.2, and we had re-stimulated the owner’s energy and desire.
This business has every opportunity to really grow and succeed. However, it is going to go through some very challenging “growth pains”, and the owner wants to be able to call on my experience, in so many different areas of activity, to ensure he makes as smooth as possible growth transition.
With this owner, we work on a “meet when we can” basis and “talk on the telephone” almost every other day.
The areas we will be concentrating on are:-
- Managing growth HR issues –
- Discussing client relationship issues
- Setting client service standards
- Mentoring
- Managing sales v overhead setting, keeping it in balance
- Setting up Sales & Production practices
- Factory set up and growth challenges
It is an absolute pleasure to work with this owner, he never fails to surprise me how resourceful and competent he is at such a young age.
EXPERTISE
- Mentoring
- Strategic thinking & planning
- Supporting the owner in difficult decisions
- Tackling HR issues that owners sometimes avoid
- Assisting with Sales if required
- Playing “devil’s advocate” when required
- Monitoring and driving “actions” that have been agreed, but small businesses sometimes struggle to implement
- Pushing the owner
- Just being “there” when the owner finds it lonely at the top
Previous corporate experience (1990 – 2016)
Ex Owner - AMS International - Delivering Consumer Environments > Click to find out more
Multi National, £40m business providing shopfittings to multi national chains such as Tesco, Debenhams, M&S, JLP and Primark
"I've been working with Jim since March 2017. In this time, we have seen many challenges as a business; having Jim to call on has been crucial to our ongoing growth and sanity! To describe Jim as a business coach does not do him justice; he has become a trusted advisor, a mentor and a partner in what can sometimes be the lonely journey of running your own business."
Tony Matters (Faber Design)
COMPLETED assignments 2018
Open Range Ltd
January 2018 to January 2019
Open Range Ltd are specialists in delivering Quality Product Content for Web Stores. The business has incredible expertise in this highly innovative market.
The owner’s husband passed away 2 years before I was introduced to the business, and the business had struggled to regain momentum ever since.
I met the business owner (Jane Howarth) in December 2017.
Open Range had a few key challenges ahead of it:
- HR issues within the Senior Team
- A disruptive potential alliance with a complimentary “partner company/product”
- Two years of very little Sales development
- The initial relationship with the “partner” company, was promoted to us as a significant opportunity for growth and a real step change for Open Range.
- However, the actual outcome was to absolutely to the contrary, due to the following reasons:-
- Clash of personalities and styles between Senior people at O.R. and the partner company
- The inability of the partner to actually provide what they were promoting
- A lead Manager of the partner company was caught in a political tug of war between O.R and the partner company
In addition to the above challenges, O.R.’s own Salesperson, who should have been concentrating on all other Sales avenues, had a severe Motorbike accident in January and didn’t return until after the Summer. No replacement appointed and when he came back, he was not the same person.
I ended up having to support the MD / Owner far more than was anticipated, in what was a tough time for her. I can honestly say that we spent more time on unravelling the tangled web than we did on growing sales.
By September, the company was in danger of failing. So we took the step of finding someone who would be interested in taking the company on (without the partner) and allowing the Owner of O.R to release herself from all of the day to day pressures of running a business.
The sale was completed on 22nd January 2019, and I am delighted to say that we:-
- Saved the business from failing
- Resolved the issues with the partner and managed to back O.R. out of the relationship
- Resolved 3 key HR issues, resulting in being able to hand over a much “tidier” workforce to the new owners
- Affected a downsizing that made the future secure, even if the purchase hadn’t gone through, the business would now have a viable future
All in all, an exciting and challenging Consultancy and I am proud of the outcome, especially for the owner and the new purchaser.
JLM Hygiene
Total time involved - approx 5 to 6 months
JLM Hygiene (were) specialist suppliers of Commercial Hygiene Solutions, primarily for Washrooms – Soap & Towel dispensers and Hand Dryers – in all Commercial Environments. E.g. Hospitals, Schools, Offices, Hotels, Restaurants etc.
I was introduced to the Owners by their Company Accountants, who were very concerned about the direction the business was going in.
The owners were a Husband and Wife team. The husband had suffered a Stroke a few years earlier and just could not work in the business. As a result, they passed the Day to Day responsibility to their Senior Sales Manager and his wife, who became MD and Internal Office Manager.
Unfortunately, turnover and profitability were falling Year on Year.
Upon investigation, we decided that I would work alongside the MD, (1 day per week, more as required), to support the strategic redirection and re-energising of the business.
After an initial bit of restructuring and then several months of patient encouragement and guidance, it became clear that the business just wasn’t going to grow. It could survive if myself and the owners took very dramatic actions, but the end result would be a requirement for further personal investment from the owners and the recruitment of a brand-new team.
So, the decision was taken to reduce all liabilities and to sell the business to an interested party.
The sale went through seamlessly. The owners are now “worry-free”, and the Husband’s stroke symptoms are improving.
I wish we had been able to turn the business around, but actually, there was not the time, nor the money to make the necessary changes.
We had some tough times on the HR front, but I am proud of the final outcome we achieved for the owners.
"This was a difficult time for us, but Jim was there to offer advice and support. He was always very professional and friendly. We were able to secure a sale of the business assets and goodwill and hand over our business to new owners and drawing a line under our situation."
Angelina and Stuart (JLM)
COMPLETED assignments
Sperling Retail Ltd
May 2017 – Dec 2017
Project finished! Sperling are Manufacturers and installers of Shop Fittings. I was asked to assist the management with their Strategic Growth plans and all aspects of Sales & Marketing. The contract was four days per month.
I thoroughly enjoyed being involved with this developing company; however the distance from Stratford Upon Avon to Haverhill (usually 3 hours each way) proved prohibitive, with diaries often not allowing quality time for real support.
Oakland International
May 2017 – Sep 2017
Project finished!
Exciting family business providing Multi Temperature Supply Chain Solutions.
Supported the management team in the development of their Customer Service strategy.
Again, the role was more “hands on” day to day management, rather than Strategic.
I was grateful for the opportunity and the experience.
m: 07715 212384