When to hire a business adviser (and when you shouldn't)
- The GrowthCatalyst Team
- Oct 20
- 7 min read
We’ve had many an interesting conversation with business owners who tell us they’ve worked their way through multiple external advisers, none of whom have worked out. As you might imagine, some of the language used is quite colourful!
We like to ask what they were expecting these advisers to do….what challenges they wanted help with. And we usually don’t get a clear answer.
Here's the thing about hiring an external adviser: SME owners tend to take this step without clear reasons, or at the wrong time, and usually with rather unrealistic expectations about what's going to happen next.
And then it doesn't work.
Key Takeaways
Not every business owner should hire a business adviser. As a starting point, you need to recognise a need to change
There are at least five key reasons we'd suggest you shouldn't hire an adviser
And at least four reasons you should
A good adviser won't simply validate your decisions - they'll challenge you to step outside your comfort zone
Real progress comes only when you keep an open mind and are prepared to act on what you hear
As always, please feel free to share this Insight with clients, colleagues and others in your network.
There’s no "magic bullet"
The (perhaps uncomfortable) truth is this:
If you're looking for someone to step in and solve all your challenges while you maintain complete control over everything, you're being unrealistic.
But it happens a lot – business owners who want an adviser to:
Fix their team/culture issues, without changing their leadership style
Increase sales and revenue, without clarity on their ideal client profile
Create "buy-in" from employees, without examining why people aren't engaged
Identify growth opportunities, without then prioritising them
The magic bullet mentality is understandably seductive. It draws some owners/leaders in because it suggests you can improve outcomes without making changes that might be uncomfortable. It's also, if we may be blunt, complete nonsense.
When you definitely shouldn't hire a business adviser
Before you consider getting help, let's be brutally honest about when you shouldn't.
When you're not prepared for potentially uncomfortable truths
If you’re after validation of your existing approach and confirmation that your strategy is brilliant, you shouldn’t hire an adviser.
What you really need if you’re to make real progress is someone to help you see what you currently can't (or won't) see. Someone to help identify blind spots, challenge assumptions, and suggest changes that might at first feel threatening. After all…you got your business to where it is today, so surely it makes sense to do more of the same? But as they say in the classics, what got you here won’t necessarily get you where you want to be.
We’ve had more than one potential client tell us they want someone to help them implement their plan. When we’ve asked to see that plan, it’s clear to see where the roadblocks are. Even the mere suggestion that modifications could be beneficial will result in a response like, "I'm not paying for you to change my strategy."
You don’t need external help under those circumstances. You need more focus on execution.
When you think your problems are unique
"You don't understand—my business is different."
Again to be blunt and possibly at the risk of starting an argument, no, it's not.
Of course, every business has unique elements – that’s a basic requirement for success.
But the fundamental challenges facing SMEs are remarkably consistent. Leadership issues, misaligned teams, unclear priorities—we've seen these same challenges (and a few others) enough times to know they’re the common constraints to business growth.
If you believe your situation is so different that these standard business principles don't apply, you're not ready for external help.
When you want quick fixes
Meaningful, purposeful business change takes time. Months, maybe years. If you're looking for quickfire results, you're likely to be disappointed.
It’s true that in most cases, there’s “low-hanging fruit”, but that’s not the stuff of longer-term, sustainable success.
The businesses that get the best results from advisers are those that understand change is a process, not an event.
When you're not willing to invest appropriately
You could hire a business adviser on the cheap. But that doesn’t mean you should. That would be like learning how to remove an appendix on YouTube. It's technically possible, but the results won't be pretty.
Quality advice costs money. If your budget for external help is "as little as possible," you'll get results that are worth what you paid for them.
When you want them to do the work for you
As advisers, our role is to diagnose the root cause of problems, recommend solutions, and guide implementation. You shouldn’t be expecting an adviser to become a quasi-employee.
If you're hoping to hire someone who will help you run your business you can absolutely do that. But you need an operations manager or someone similar, not an adviser.
When you absolutely should consider getting help
On the other side of the coin, here’s when bringing in external expertise makes perfect sense...
When you're ok with the idea you could be missing something
The best clients we work with have a key thing in common: they suspect they could be missing something important, and they're genuinely open to a discovery process.
They say things like:
"I think our problem is X, but even if I’m right, I need to know what’s causing it"
"We've tried a few things that haven't worked—maybe we're solving the wrong problem"
"I feel like we're working harder but not getting better results"
“I know we can’t solve what we can’t see”
This is the mindset you need to make change happen and to make progress towards achieving the aspirations you have for your business.
When you recognise patterns you struggle to change
Do the same problems keep recurring in your business? Do you find yourself having the same conversations, dealing with the same issues, implementing the same types of "solutions" that don't produce the expected results?
That's when an external perspective is really useful. Someone who can work with you and help “crack the code” by taking a totally objective look at what’s going on.
When you're ready to scale but don't know how
Growing from $500K to $1M in revenue requires different skills than growing from $1M to $3M or more. Many business owners hit growth roadblocks not because they lack the will, but because they need help to refocus on what they’re great at, what needs to change if they’re to scale effectively, and to prioritise the multiple growth opportunities that can make it all happen.
A good adviser can help you work through the “what got you here versus what will get you there” challenge.
When your people are telling you there's a problem
If you’re hearing similar comments from multiple people in your business—about direction, priorities, culture, or other matters—that's not a coincidence. That's data.
Sometimes you're too close to the situation to see what your team sees clearly. You can read more about this in this previous Insight.
An external perspective can help take that data and turn it into actions to create change.
The "compatibility test"
There's something else most people don't consider but we think is hugely important: if you’re hiring an external adviser, there has to be a good “fit”. This is not a one-size-fits-all, cookie-cutter exercise. Personality, communication style, and approach all matter enormously.
Before you hire anyone, ask yourself:
Do they understand you and your business?
Are they prepared to spend the time to really appreciate what your business aspirations are? Do they understand the fundamentals of how your business operates? Have they taken the time to get to know you personally? Do you feel like you can work comfortably with them?
Do they challenge you appropriately?
Some advisers can be a bit aggressive in their approach, which may put you on the defensive. On the other hand, if they’re too “gentle”, they’ll appear to be less than fully committed to any recommendations they make and you won't change anything.
The “right” adviser knows how to push you without shoving you over the edge.
Do they explain things clearly?
If they can't make their recommendations understandable, how will you implement them? Always remember it’s your business and you need to be totally comfortable that what your adviser is recommending is reasonable, and workable, in the context of your business.
Do they ask good questions?
Have you ever been in a meeting with someone who talks too much? Who appears more interested in what they have to offer than in what you need? The best advisers spend way more time asking than telling. If someone shows up with solutions before understanding your problems, they’re not for you.
What good advice looks like
Real business advice isn't a list of things to do. It's about taking the time to understand the root causes of roadblocks in your business, developing insights into why things aren't working as effectively as possible, and creating a roadmap for making them work better.
Good advisers:
Help you understand root causes, not just symptoms
Facilitate the creation of frameworks for making decisions
Transfer knowledge so you become less dependent on them, not more
Challenge your thinking while respecting your judgment
Focus on sustainable solutions, not quick fixes
Making the decision
With all of this in mind, how do you know if you're really ready to hire a business adviser?
Start by asking yourself these questions:
Am I genuinely open to change in my business?
Are my expectations about timelines and investment required realistic?
Am I looking for insight and guidance, or do I just want someone to execute my existing plan?
Am I willing to work through difficult issues that might create some discomfort?
Obviously, if you answered yes to all of these, you're probably ready.
If you hedged on any of them, maybe give it some more thought.
The bottom line
The most successful engagements with advisers happen when business owners acknowledge they need help and are genuinely prepared to act on what they learn. The least successful happen when owners want external validation for decisions they've already made.
Getting good business advice isn't about finding someone who will tell you what you want to hear. It's about finding someone who will help you see what you need to see. Someone who’ll challenge you to step outside your comfort zone and embrace change.
The question that cuts through everything
There's one final question that will tell you whether you're ready to hire a business adviser:
If someone could show you exactly what's holding your business back—even if it meant admitting you've been wrong about something important—would you want to know?
If the answer is yes, you're ready.
If you're not sure, you're not.
Does this Insight make you think?
Want to create a framework for growth that's sustainable?
A conversation with a GrowthCatalyst adviser could be just what you need.
Contact us to arrange a face-to-face or virtual conversation.
Alternatively, you can book a time for an initial discussion here.
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