In this episode we hear from Steve Johnson, founder of Forager Funds.  Having been self-employed for over twenty years Steve shares advice on how to manage working with a business partner who is first and foremost a friend, why your stakeholders aren't just your clients and that it is critical to learn about how to do recruitment really well in order to be successful. 

About Forager:  With approximately $315 million of funds under management and a focus on long-term investing, Forager Funds is a unique Australian funds management company.  Now with a ten-year track record, Forager is a sustainable business but remains nimble enough to invest in smaller listed companies not accessible to many investment managers.  The company is majority owned by staff and Forager’s external shareholders support the desire to place performance before revenue. That means capping the size of funds before too much money becomes an impediment.  We use our small size, long experience and long-term investment approach to generate our investors above market returns.

[email protected] 
Twitter: @ForagerSteve

Steve’s advice includes:

• You don’t need a full plan in place in order to start a company. 
• Know your core values and what makes you happy in terms of working out what your business could be.
• Be flexible and open to opportunities. 
• When starting a business with a friend you’ll need to know from the start what the balance and priority is between friendship and the business.  
• Why it’s just as important to envisage how success - as well as failure - could have a bearing on your future.
• Regularly re-evaluate the structure of your business in order to ensure that you’re all getting what you want out of it.
• It’s not just your clients who are the stakeholders - it’s your staff and your shareholders as well as yourself.
• Learn what you are good at.  Be honest at what you’re not good at.  Then work out a way to compensate for those areas as that’s more efficient than trying to change yourself. 
• Always be truthful with clients as it’ll help manage long term expectations.  Work out who is the best person to run the company at its different stages; this may not always be you.
• Take the time to learn about recruitment.  Then make good recruitment decisions.  Or bring in an expert to support you on this.  

Thank you for listening.  Please do share your feedback, as well as your own start up stories, to [email protected]   

I would be delighted if you could rate, review and share this podcast with anyone else who may be starting a company in 2020. 

Hosted by Juliet Fallowfield, founder of PR for startups advisory Fallow, Field & Mason, How To Start Up hopes to bring you confidence, encouragement and reassurance that you’re on the right track. Feedback welcome: [email protected]

Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield in September 2020.
MUSIC CREDIT  Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.  Link & License

Text us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan Mail

Support the show