Q1. The ‘right’ person is also the busiest at present, what should we do?
For success you need somebody passionate about business advisory and implementing the firm’s future vision. While this ‘right’ person may be busy (but who’s not busy these days?) Mindshop will work at a pace aligned with the availability of the individual and be respectful when supporting a firm driving change.

Q2. We have so much on with other priorities, there doesn’t seem to be an ideal time to start.
There is never an ideal time to start, but if this is a key part of your firm’s vision and strategy then the sooner you start the better. Mindshop works at a pace suitable to the firm.

Q3. Everybody is quite comfortable with status quo; we are worried about pushing more change.
Business advisory is a key component of a progressive firm’s value proposition. It will help attract and retain both the right team members and clients. The proportion of advisory compared to overall revenue is up to the firm. Is it 5% of what we do? 20% of what we do? Or more? There is no one right answer and it’s highly dependent on who your target clients are, your vision for the firm and the passion of the partners to move into business advisory services to support clients. 

Q4. Should we have a couple of people driving business advisory services?
If you have 10+ in the team then often investing in a couple of people as full Mindshop advisors can be beneficial to push each other along and share the experience. 

Q5. Should it be somebody very senior, a rising star in the firm or both?
Our preference is for both. Or if there’s only one, a senior person in the firm who can train others. The reason being is they can influence the advisory model, mindset and integration of the Mindshop tools into the firm. Often this is more challenging for a younger, rising star who may be passionate but if they have meagre leadership support for solid, firm-wide integration (through a lack of understanding of senior partners) this often leads to stagnation. 

Q6. What are the attributes of a great potential candidate for an ‘internal champion’ for driving business advisory growth and Mindshop?
There are a number of attributes to selecting an ideal candidate to act as an internal champion linked to Mindshop’s 5 phases of business advisory success model:

                1.            Early adopter of technology and new ideas
                2.            Contributes well in a group meeting
                3.            Open to change and learning new things
                4.            Good core values
                5.            Curious about how businesses achieve success
                6.            Strong implementation track record
                7.            Strategic thinker
                8.            Attracts and retains clients well
                9.            Demonstrates above average verbal and written communication skills
                10.          Interest in business advisory
                11.          Highly regarded by clients and prospects
                12.          Well respected by peers 

It is not essential that the ideal candidate ticks all the above attributes but having above 8 out of 12  will boost the probability of success.

Good luck, if you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of our Regional Directors.