Challenging Business Mentor Assistance for Business Leaders

04th Mar , 2022

Your business is unique, with its own strategic, market and operational challenges run by you and your leadership team. To support you in your business, or members of your senior leadership team or other key people, you must have a well-matched business mentor or business coach who is a good fit with your strategic profile and specific needs.

At International Business Mentors, we routinely analyse business mentoring requirements. We then recommend a close match with a suitable business mentor or coach.

Business leaders effectively benefit from a business mentor in deep and broad ways:

• As a sounding board
• Challenge your thinking
• Frameworks for business thinking based on practical business experience
• Fresh approaches to opportunities and solving problems
• Help you analyse critical aspects of your business
• Help you to improve your competitive edge
• Provide needed individual confidential support
• Wealth of experience to draw on

A business mentor or coach guides you as a business leader to draw your own conclusions for decision making. They will challenge you on your purpose and ambitions and the business’s performance in delivering these in terms of your strategy, customers and operations, financial performance and returns.

• Business growing fast enough?
• Right markets? Right products, services and customers?
• Profitable enough?
• Good net cash flow and returns?
• Optimal organisational structure?
• Good well-motivated and performing people?
• Appropriate leadership?
• Good governance and policies?

Should You Get a Business Mentor & Be Challenged?

Although your business may be successful, you might need a challenge to deliver on its greater potential and to fill in any knowledge or skill gaps.

To challenge yourself with confidential support, you should get your own business mentor or coach who can confidentially and constructively question all relevant areas of your business’ strategy and performance, including customers, competition, marketing, sales, finances, funding, shareholders, people, operations and supply chain.

Other areas for discussion might include developing strategy, clarifying risk appetite, business purpose, values, mission, corporate governance, business and marketing plans, management, administration, diversity of products and services, and future business and succession plans.

Example Questions

Here are some examples of questions a business mentor or coach from International Business Mentors may ask to assess and approach some of these disciplines:

• Are the profitability, returns and cash flow at a good level?
• Does the business routinely forecast cash flow to track business performance?
• Are profitable customers loyal to the business and love its products, services and relationship?
• Have you got great management and financial control systems, audit and company policies?
• Does the business’s culture reflect and enforce the purpose of the organisation?
• Have you managed your supply chain to get good cost prices, sufficient credit and reliable supply?
• Is there a marketing plan supporting the current situation and future expectations?
• What are your points of difference and unique selling points?
• Do you have a sustainable competitive advantage? How are you defending this?
• Are prices with customers, products and services correct?
• How will you grow the business? How will you fund the growth?
• Do you conduct analysis of major customers for profitability and potential?
• Have you evaluated the effectiveness of promotional activities, including online and social media?
• Does your IT set up work well? Is it cost-effective and secure?
• Have you got the right people for the business?
• Is your organisation well-trained, operating efficiently and motivated to deliver performance?

Above are only a few of the questions your business mentor or business coach might throw your way. Call International Business Mentors today to learn more about business mentoring and find your own specifically matched business mentor or coach.