by Darryl Hill, Island Savings Brentwood Bay –
As a business owner you are used to accomplishing a great deal on your own. It’s commendable and often necessary to be an expert in many things, but sometimes it puts you at a disadvantage. When it comes to running your business, having an advisory team can be much more expedient than just going it alone. You know yourself that the day-to-day operations of running a business requires near-constant attention, but how often do you take a step back and look at the bigger picture?
As a business banking advisor, my job is to take that holistic view of your business and personal finances. I have worked with hundreds of businesses and have a huge cognitive database of successes and failures that other business owners can draw from.
Even in my role, I don’t do it alone. I work as the relationship manager, but I have subject matter experts I can tap into – from investments and insurance to banking and borrowing. My role is less about helping business owners open an account (although I can do that too) and more about providing expert advice to help you optimize your business, such as safeguarding it through insurance to fueling your growth through investment solutions to making sure you have the proper legal agreements in place.
The biggest obstacle when it comes to seeking advice is time. Rest assured: you will gain time in the long run by using experts to help find efficiencies and save you from unnecessary tasks. This could be something simple such as helping your business transition from doing payroll manually to using a payroll solution.
Of course I don’t have all the answers, but I can recommend other trusted experts in your community such as lawyers and accountants if that’s what your business requires.
The COVID-19 pandemic has only strengthened the need for expert advice. In the last six months, I have worked with countless entrepreneurs who needed to pivot their strategy and make those adjustments very rapidly.
Whether you’re starting a business, growing it or looking to transition out of it, build an advisory team of trusted experts who understand your business needs from a holistic perspective and partner with you every step of the way.
Darryl Hill is a Business Banking Advisor with Island Savings, a division of First West Credit Union. In this unique role, he works with business owners and provides customized financial advice for both the owner(s) and the business itself to help them achieve their financial goals.
