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Years ago, when
Spunlogic was a
nascent Atlanta company, it had success. So much success, in fact, that its founders, including
Jeff Hilimire, considered expanding the interactive marketing company's market,
possibly to North Carolina.
Luckily, they were stopped. "You don't want to do that," Hilimire heard. "You'll have to take
key people, move them away from Atlanta and then your office here won't be as good. You'll be too
distracted." Hilimire even recalls the story of one entrepreneur who had expanded to another city
and it caused the downfall of the entire company. So Spunlogic stayed here, and tripled the
business right in Atlanta instead.
All thanks to a handful of experienced, successful entrepreneurs gathering for dinner in
Spunlogic's offices – the board of advisors.
"It was incredibly powerful to have those people who cared about our business and wanted to
see us succeed," says Hilimire. "They were very vocal with their suggestions. They shared their
thoughts and helped guide us down the right path. We would not be where we are today if we had not
listened to their advice. I'm quite confident of that."
Hilimire's board of advisors counseled him correctly – last month Spunlogic was sold to
Engauge, a Columbus, Ohio-based marketing firm, for an undisclosed price.
A board of advisors can
really play a variety of roles for an entrepreneur, says Ashish Mistry, president of the
Atlanta CEO Council and vice president of
RCMS Group. Mistry has
been on both sides of an advisory board; as a three-time entrepreneur he used his advisors and
allowed them to help shape his companies. He's also no stranger to advising early stage companies.
He served as Entrepreneur-in-Residence at
Georgia Tech's Advanced Technology Development
Center (ATDC) where he advised various early-stage technology businesses. "An advisory board is
a set of resources you can look to for input and pretty quick feedback for a variety of business
challenges."
A board of advisors is not a board of directors. Directors are typically a more formal role,
with the ability to vote and make binding decisions for a company. Directors also usually have
fiduciary responsibility for a company. Advisors, on the other hand, volunteer their time to share
their expertise and lend credibility to a company. They can also make introductions to other
executives in the business community and possibly refer business to you.
"Relationships are very important to an early-stage business' success. An advisor promotes
the credibility that you've brought to your business," says Mistry.
The goal is to surround yourself with people you trust, hopefully experts from complementary
areas that can help you to shape and grow your business. When Spunlogic went looking for its
advisors, they were diligent about collecting a group with distinct skill sets: one expert each in
technology, marketing, finance and sales. Each of the advisors had experience with a start-up
company, and also with large companies.
"Find people that understand what your business is but may not be looking at it from the same
perspective that you are," says Mistry. For example, if your business is software for the airline
industry, it may be helpful to collect a technology guy who has built software for that industry
before; and possibly a CFO from an airline to show how they buy software. Your goal is
complementary perspectives. "Your business is the nugget – what you're all trying to understand and
shape. You ask questions and get advice. And based on that advice you shape your offering and take
it back to the marketplace," says Mistry.
Atlanta has a reputation of being friendly to entrepreneurs, and experienced executives are
usually willing to help out. When Hilimire established his board of advisors, he asked people that
he knew or, in one case, someone he didn't know. He recommends asking the people you feel are best
qualified, even if it's a high ranking individual. "If there's someone who you think would be a
tremendous asset, it can't hurt to ask. You'll get in front of them. Even in the worst case
scenario they'll refer someone to you. You should shoot for the fences. When we first asked our
advisors, I wasn't sure what they would say, but they were very flattered and happy to give advice.
We were very pleasantly surprised that they were each wiling and interested to do this.
"There are a lot of fantastic people in town, and it's been my experience that they're
willing to help. Usually, the only time they would say no is if they already have too many
commitments. They want to help you out," says Hilimire.
If you go to the trouble of selecting the right people, by all means listen to their advice;
don't merely list them on your Web site. Advisors can see the problems your business faces, and can
offer solutions with a clear and different perspective. While you're down in the weeds, they're
typically standing on higher ground. And truthfully, people pay a lot of money for their level of
consulting, and most advisors work for free and genuinely want you to succeed.
It's advice worth taking.
