How to Work as a Startup Advisor
You probably have heard the word startup advisor and know that this is one of the new professions that has attracted a lot of attention from several people, but do you really know who this professional is?
A startup advisor is the professional who has mastery in the area of how to set up a business in a legal and profitable ways and uses his knowledge to help other people. If every company has a problem, the startup advisor is there to solve it, and he has all the necessary skills to help people and companies achieve their goals. Theoretically speaking, he is an expert in his field.
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Today, there are several types of startup advisor on the market and the demand for these professionals is increasing.
So, stay with me, if you are interested in working as a startup advisor, these tips will help you to see if you have the ideal profile.
In this complete guide, you will learn:
- What is the Role of a Startup Advisor?
- Profile of a Good Startup Advisor
- Types of Startup Advisor
- Conclusion
What is the Role of a Startup Advisor?
The role of a startup advisor, regardless of the area of activity , is to assist the customer in a matter that he does not have enough knowledge to resolve on his own.
That customer can be a company or an individual. What defines your role is the customer’s search for someone with authority in that niche to meet their needs.
The process can be done by a professional or by a team composed of several startup advisors specialized in the field, which is common to find in large companies that provide startup advice.
The startup advisor’s role is broad, but these are some of his main functions:
- Diagnose problems or aspects that can be optimized;
- Define the solutions and improvements that must be made;
- Establish goals;
- Chart ways to achieve results.
Profile of a Startup Advisor
If you plan to work as a startup advisor, you need to develop competency in certain areas. Having the understanding of the roles which you need to be playing will help you in developing yourself in that areas so that you are able to work effectively.
The startup advisor needs to have some characteristics to be able to work and do a good job. Without them, it is difficult to respond to the demands of the job and become a reference professional in the area.
However, not everyone is born with all these skills, but most of them can be developed and perfected with a lot of study, practice and experience.
Here are 10 characteristics you need to have or develop to work as a startup advisor:
- Knowing how to articulate
The startup advisor deals with people on a daily basis, so he needs to have great communication to transmit his knowledge and guide customers in the best possible way. If the job is for companies, he may have to deal with divergences between the organization’s objectives and employee complaints, which demands even more articulation. The startup advisor must have this ability to win people over, exhibit professionalism and understand exactly what he needs to do to deliver good results.
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- Have a macro and systemic view
Often, a startup advisor is hired to take care of a specific problem. However, when starting the work, he is faced with several other issues that interfere with the customer’s final goal. If he does not have a broad view, he risks working superficially, ignoring important aspects.
A good startup advisor is one who sees his customer or the company as a whole, considering all the ramifications of the problem identified and everyone involved in that situation.
- Involve everyone in a project
In the case of advising with more than one customer, the startup advisor needs to have the sensitivity to include everyone involved in the process.
In a company, for example, it may be that the hiring took place to implement a new project. Then, the startup advisor must carefully evaluate the entire organizational functioning, to understand which areas will be affected by the change. After this diagnosis, he needs to make everyone participate in the process so that there are no failures when carrying out the defined actions.
All people related to the area in question need to feel valued and listened to, as this is the only way they will be motivated to contribute to business growth.
- Know your limits
In my opinion, startup advising could be called a partnership. After all, it works like a marriage: collaboration must happen between the two parties involved.
And as such, when difficulties arise, they must not be hidden, but clarified.
What I mean by that is that every startup advisor, even though he is an expert in his field, does not know everything. So, the difference is that a good startup advisor is transparent: he takes over when in doubt. He knows very well his own limits and when it is time to ask for help or say “I don’t know”.
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- Know how to adapt to the determined time
One of the things that the customer usually gives more value is the time duration. Those who hire this type of service are usually in a hurry to see their need met.
Of course, the startup advisor is not always able to work within the period the customer expects. After all, whoever hires does not know what should be done in that situation and, therefore, is not aware of the time it takes to reach the final result.
However, what is certain is that the startup advisor is clear with the customer about the time that will be spent to complete the process and, more importantly, to meet the deadlines .
- Have specific knowledge
The professional who wants to stand out in the market needs to seek private knowledge, which is exactly the solution that his niche seeks.
Knowing broader subjects is interesting to have and to be able to serve different customers. However, specializing in an area increases the chances of becoming a reference and gaining visibility. It is important that you obtain relevant professional certification in your field.
- Identify opportunities
Startup advisor cannot wait for customers to knock on their door. You have to be ambitious and look for the best job opportunities. The startup advisor must invest in networking and travel through events, forums and groups on the subject to make himself known, publicize his work and win over potential customers.
In addition, you need to be aware of the trends and demands of your audience to adapt and get ahead of the competition.
The identification of opportunities depends on a lot of study and dedication, as the market prioritizes up-to-date professionals, who are willing to change whatever is necessary to always offer the best.
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- Be creative
Those who work in advising are faced with several different situations that, consequently, need unique and personalized approaches. To be able to deal with this diversity, the startup advisor has to know how to use his creativity and create different and engaging strategic plans.
Remember that we talked about how important the participation of everyone involved is? With a professional who strives to bring new perspectives, practices and tools into the process, everything is easier. So people see more advantages in collaborating with change.
The startup advisor must also be creative in order to introduce himself and publicize his service. Professionals who do not deliver anything innovative to customers become outdated and end up losing space in the market.
- be independent and proactive
Being independent and proactive means not waiting to be sought out by the customer to solve problems or propose solutions. When he sees new opportunities, the good startup advisor exposes his suggestions and brings new ideas for planning. He has proactivity almost as part of his DNA.
- Have the ability to negotiate
In addition to knowing deeply the business in question, you must have the ability to negotiate. That is, be careful when making a proposal that catches the customer’s attention. Being able to show that you can add value from the first contact with you.
Types of Startup Advisor
Professionals from various fields can work with startup advisor, just choose a topic they master and find an audience interested in what you have to offer.
However, there are some branches in which it is more common to find startup advisor and people interested in this service, which are the examples that we will present below. I list the main ones below.
- Sales advisor
This type of startup advisor is usually hired to help increase sales and optimize the sales processes of a company or enterprise. The hiring can happen because the team is not achieving the expected results, the company wants to implement a new way of approaching the customers or because it needs to reap more expressive fruits in a short period of time.
There is also the possibility for an entrepreneur to hire a sales advisor to assist in the process of understanding the market, prospecting customers and promoting products.
At the beginning of your own business , it can be difficult to hire an in-house person just for this role. Hiring a startup advisor ends up being an advantageous option for those who undertake this.
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- Marketing advisor
If it is already difficult for users to keep up with so many technological innovations, imagine for companies, who need to plan in detail each marketing action carried out.
The marketing advisor is the one who can help his customer to better identify the profile of his audience, outline the best strategies to stand out in the market and leverage sales.
He works on building plans to increase audience reach, studying competition, suggestions for content and ideal communication channels for each action.
If a company is not achieving the results it expected with its marketing team or needs guidance to know where to start, this is the right professional to turn to.
- Financial advisor
The financial advisor is the professional prepared to help the customer to deal with money in a healthier way, be it an individual or a company.
He works helping the customer in controlling finances , choosing and making investments, recovering from financial problems, among other issues that involve money management.
The reason for a business to go bankrupt or for people to go into debt is not always the lack of money. Often, what happens is the lack of knowledge on the subject, difficulty in adjusting revenue / income to expenses or misunderstanding of market fluctuations, in the case of companies.
- Business management advisor
Many companies turn to a third-party startup advisor to help improve their internal processes. This happens not because of a lack of confidence in their own team, but because of the need for an outside look, which is able to deal with a typical and specific situation.
A good business management advisor can see what is not always seen by employees, as they are very involved in the routine and other demands of the job.
- Human resources advisor
The human resources area has gained increasing visibility within the business world. However, not all companies have the necessary knowledge to implement the best training, development and people management processes.
In such cases, the startup advisor assumes the responsibility of contributing to the achievement of organizational objectives.
This type of advisor should help in the implementation of more assertive procedures, so that professionals are properly trained and motivated to deliver the results expected by the organization.
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Conclusion
If you have identified yourself with some of the characteristics that we present, you can start using all your knowledge to work as a startup advisor. And the best thing is that you do not need to work in person if you do not want to or cannot, as it is possible to give advice online.
The most important thing when you plan to work as a startup advisor is for you to ensure that you have something specific that you are bringing to the table.