Experience is life’s great teacher. Invaluable insights are gained from the sheer experience of doing over a long period of time. This is particularly true for the financial world which undergoes rapid change and innovation on a recurring basis. Financial consultants are worth their weight in experience. If a financial consultant is newly minted or lacks experience, they can only be effective in part of the consulting process, usually that which involves in diagnosing the problem. When this writer is brought into companies that need financial consulting, there is usually a big problem having to do with bad numbers, lack of capital or an unhappy lender. When an action plan is designed, it is based in part on how various proposals impact different parties involved in the company.
Through experience of working as a lender and with many lenders, we advise clients on what to present and what not to present. Through experience of dealing with new mezzanine lenders, we advise clients on how to present their business model and growth plan. There are many great financial consultants out there with big degrees and slick sounding strategic and financial models. Many of them have never had experience outside of telling other people what their known problems are. They have never run a company or invested in a company, or even had to meet a payroll.
Experienced financial consultants have had to contend with the same challenges that your company is now faced with. They have had many months in the red. They have had to deal with covenant breaches. They have had to develop contingency funding plans due to weak cash flow or loss of a big contract. These are the things that try men’s souls and these are the things that differentiate the men versus the boys in the world of financial consultants. These are the things that great advisors bring to the table as financial consultants.