As your accountant, we won't just look after the financial side of your business, we can also advise you on the strategic side of your company, including the importance of business development as vital part of your growth plan. Business development (BD) is what helps your company move from slow, organic growth to fast-paced, hypergrowth. And it’s only by putting the right drive and expertise behind your BD that you can turn your strategic ideas into real success stories. So, how can we help you achieve this? Talk to you about your strategic goals The starting point for any kind of BD activity is to pin down your goals and aims as a business. When you know what you want to achieve over the coming months, it’s far easier to define a strategy for success. And that’s easier to do when you talk to an objective adviser, like us. We can sit in on your board meetings, talk to your executive team and get a real handle on what makes the business tick. And, armed with this knowledge, we’ll work with you to drive the direction of your BD and find the best opportunities for you to focus on. Help you create a clear BD strategy and plan Having a defined set of BD goals is a good starting point. But to put this all into action in a productive way, you’re going to need a comprehensive plan for your BD projects. Our years of experience advising business leaders and their teams really comes into play here. We know the best routes to take, the budgets that will be needed and the right tactics for bringing in more contracts, sales and partnerships. By putting these strategies into a clear plan, and linking this to agreed timescales, you have a BD route map to follow and action. Introduce you to a broader network of business partners We work with a wide range of businesses across many different sectors, industries and niches. By introducing you to our network of clients, we welcome you into a supportive community of like-minded business owners. And that’s excellent news when looking for new partnerships. Whether it’s attending a local conference, an online webinar or one of our in-house client events, you’re going to meet new people, share new ideas and make the right connections. This is a great way to build alliances and work together with other local businesses. And when you’re well-connected, you set the very best foundations for your future BD activity. Provide better routes to funding and investment Whatever goals you’ve set for your BD projects, it’s likely that you’re going to need additional funding to finance this activity. Investing in your expansion, or new partnerships, is vital to getting a good return on your BD, so great access to finance is a definite bonus. We’ll advise you on the most appropriate funding channels and how you can use these facilities to finance your BD plans. And we can also link you up with banks, lenders and business finance specialists – so you get the advice and finance you need to bring your BD to life. Help you track and measure your BD performance Meeting your BD targets takes time – and a whole lot of dedication. Measuring your BD performance over time, helps you stay on track and gives you a good indication of how well you’re tracking against your planned progress. We’ll help you create the reporting and metrics you need, so you have clear data to track your progress over time. You can log your activity in your project management system, or your client relationship management (CRM) software, and keep clear notes on contacts made, relationships built and targets converted etc. If you want to get more from your BD, please get in touch on 01904 787 973 or book a discovery call with Donald Inglis . We’ll partner with you to put some real drive, experience and impetus behind your BD strategies.

What’s the main thing that holds you and your business back? Chances are it’s the unavoidable manual tasks and low-level administrative responsibilities that eat into your time. But in 2025, these are tasks that artificial intelligence (AI) is more than capable of taking on. With a growing number of AI agents and assistants out there in the market, the smart business owners are the ones investing in, and learning, the potential of AI. Using AI to liberate you from the admin workload AI has developed to a point where it’s now a standard part of a modern business software suite. AI can match your transactions in your accounting software. It can write you a marketing brochure. Or it can answer your business phone and answer FAQs. For small businesses, there’s a reduced need to take on more staff. By getting your business up and running with the latest AI agents, you can quickly extend your capabilities and reduce costs. In short, AI allows you to do more with less – and in business, that’s a significant bonus! The benefits of putting AI at the heart of your business AI agents and assistants are not something that’s the sole preserve of large corporate organisations. In fact, small businesses, with their simple structures and increased ability to change and flex, are ideal candidates for AI transformation. Let’s look at a few key ways that AI benefits your business: 1. Increased efficiency in the business AI agents can easily automate your repetitive tasks, freeing up you and your team for more strategic and creative work. Forget about data entry, scheduling and planning tasks etc. 2. A better customer experience AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants can provide 24/7 customer support, answer FAQs, and have personalised interactions with your customers – keeping your customers happy. 3. Informed and improved decision-making AI-powered analytics tools can analyse your business and financial data to identify trends, predict future outcomes and provide valuable insights for better decision-making. 4. More productive operations AI agents will automate your routine tasks, speed up your work rate and give better access to data insights. This gives a significant boost to your overall business productivity. 5. A clear competitive advantage When the advantages of automation, efficiency and improved productivity kick in, this gives you a tangible competitive advantage in the market. The early AI adopters are the companies that will be leading the pack and setting more solid foundations for the future. Talk to us about introducing AI into your business If you don’t know your AI from your elbow, don’t worry! In this series, we’ll run you through the basics of AI, the main terms and the AI agents that can transform your business. And if you’re hungry to know more, why not talk to our team about the AI agents and AI-driven apps that would be most appropriate for your industry, niche or business type. To find out more, call us on 01904 787 973 or book a discovery call with Donald Inglis .