By Stephanie Sims
5
66 ratings
The podcast currently has 66 episodes available.
*This episode is a shared episode directly from the host, Natalie Benamou.
In This Episode:
Are you looking for investors in your business and unsure where to start? Let’s take a walk with Stephanie Sims, founder of Finance-Ability®, former investment banker and finance expert. Stephanie gives her advice and strategies on moving from “shiny object syndrome” to prioritizing your growth strategies. This conversation with host Natalie Benamou and Stephanie Sims shows you how you can start leveraging your value today.
Evaluate Your Business:
1. Take a step back and understand what you want the business to be.
2. Develop your “credible milestone ask” based on what the next goal/objective is for your business.
3. Focus on your strengths and recognize your weaknesses when expanding your team. Hire people who will balance you out.
4. Think early about your path to profitability instead of only focusing on growth.
The Ask:
● Things don’t have to be perfect when asking for money for your business.
● Be open with investors about your experiments (what worked and what didn’t work).
● Watch out for “shiny object syndrome”. Is it going to add value to your business?
Know Your Worth
● Giving equity away for your business: If someone wants to invest in exchange for 5%, you need to know if that’s $50,000 or $500,000. It’s important to have a sense of the dollar value for what you’re giving away.
● Receiving equity as partial payment at a new job opportunity: What does the deal look like if the equity doesn’t materialize vs. if it does happen. Are you comfortable with the balance of risk and reward that you’ve agreed to take to make that deal work.
Thank you, Stephanie Sims, for this conversation, your expertise and helping entrepreneurs understand how to leverage their value.
Stephanie Sims has more than two decades in finance, quality & IT management and valuation of public and private entities. Stephanie’s experience with large transactions and her knowledge of how due diligence works made it easy to spot one of the key reasons that entrepreneurs face such difficulty getting financing: they don’t understand the fundamentals of evaluating risks versus rewards. Developing this knowledge base led her to see that everyone has the ability to manage their finances successfully, but they don’t always realize it. And that’s where the notion of Finance-Ability was born.
Natalie Benamou is the CEO of HerPower2 Lead and HerCsuite™ an online platform for Executive Women.
HerCsuite™ is an online membership platform transforming the way women meet, engage and thrive together. Close The Promotion Gap Inside Peer-to-Peer Curated Mentoring Circles and Level-Up Your Results.
Reach out to Natalie Benamou at HerCsuite™.
LinkedIn: Natalie Benamou HerPower2 Lead HerCsuite™
This podcast is sponsored by Aaptiv, our favorite health and wellness app with over 4,000 videos. Listeners can get your free 30-day trial here
Credits: Thanks to Julie Deem and the Business Podcast Editor for editing our podcast!
This is a shared episode by Matt Wolach. Matt starts the episode introducing Stephanie, asking where she is today and how she got there.
They kick off the show agreeing that raising capital is truly all about sales. People looking for funding need to look at what is right in front of them - creating something of value that clients and future clients will pay them for.
One of the mindsets that is super important is that of an investor. And then you ask yourself, “What is the best use of the resources I already have?”
When it comes to timing, Stephanie shares the best way to know if you’re ready to raise capital is when you know how to turn $1m inside your company to $2m. One needs to understand what makes a good investment inside your business first.
The show turns to talking about fundraising being truly a sales and marketing process. However, there are a few metrics, key numbers and KPIs to keep an eye on.
Finally, they wrap up with Stephanie sharing advice to those setting out to find funds and the right investor. And of course, ways to keep up with Stephanie.
Resources Mentioned in this episode
Sponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Andrea begins the episode introducing Stephanie, and asks her exactly what it was that drove her into owning her own business. More specifically, what drove her to Financeability.
What gave Stephanie the heart for business? It stemmed from watching her parents who owned their own business. When her parents were ready to retire, they reached out to Stephanie who helped them place value on their business so they could talk about it like the asset it was.
Stephanie shares how she helps businesses plan an exit strategy that doesn’t just include hanging their hat on the door and that’s that. Understanding the end game is crucial, and not everyone knows that.
Another major playing piece for those wanting to ask for money is knowing their ideal investor. Without knowing that, there is so much wasted time and energy.
There are two groups that Stephanie works with, and those are founders, but the second one that really excites her is working with organizations that serve groups of founders. She explains why, so make sure you listen!
The episode wraps with words of advice and sharing what she believes is her superpower and how it helps others.
Resources Mentioned in this EpisodeSponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
In this Episode . . .
Robbie gets this episode started by asking Stephanie about her leadership journey and when she realized she had a knack for leading. To Stephanie, being a leader is equal parts inspiration and risk/action taking. One must have a bold vision to share with people that will get them excited about doing something. In the same sense, one must also be willing to roll up their own sleeves, dig in and do some work as well.
Mentors were important to Stephanie, and among the top of that list are her parents. They encouraged and supported her in multiple ways during her leadership journey. No matter how crazy of an idea, they were there for her and provided the push when needed.
At the age of 12, Stephanie thought she wanted to be a doctor until the opportunity arose at summer camp to practice on cadavers. It was then her dream of being a doctor was called off. By the age of 13, she was working on spreadsheet for her parents, and with her father being an accountant, she was off and running in the world of finance.
Robbie and Stephanie talk at length about networking. Prior to the pandemic, networking was largely face-to-face. Things, events, and the mode of networking has changed drastically since March 2020, and these changes will be a permanent thing.
The episode wraps with Stephanie sharing what excites her about the future, and how she will be mentoring and reaching groups of entrepreneurs.
Resources Mentioned in this episode
Sponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
In this Episode . . .
Stephanie shares that her parents owned a business while she was in high school, but when time came to sell their business and retire, they struggled to find buyers. She realized then that the business was sellable, but they didn’t know how to talk about their business as an investment.
For Stephanie, it is fun to see people get excited, but she tries to help when they are frustrated because they see a way to grow but don’t know how to find the money to do it. Most entrepreneurs are not finance people, so don’t always understand their financial health and what pieces to put in place. They need to know their numbers in order to look and ask for capital. The numbers are very revealing!
The world changed during the pandemic. Toward the end of the year, and people adapted, there was quite a bit of money raised. The changes, including the world of Zoom, made people transition to a different way of approaching the investor. But, she did see a lot of people panic, but most turned the panic into productivity.
The biggest misconception people have, is there is this huge pool of money just looking to be spent. That isn’t how it works. They generally won’t fund 100% of the round, and sometimes they simply aren’t interested because it isn’t big enough for them. Reality is this – there are different kinds of capital for companies at different stages.
Fundraising is just like sales and marketing – you need an ideal client, and you need a message that resonates with them. You can’t stand up and simply ask, “Hey I have this thing, do you want to buy it?” Building connections is key, even though the digital world continues to advance. It’s time to pull back automation and create genuine relationships. The touch and customer service are needed.
Philosophy needs to be aligned with whomever you work with. It isn’t always prudent to get involved, and there are always going to be other opportunities.
Finally, Stephanie shares this piece of advice, “money is not your problem.” Rethink things if you feel money will get you where you want to go.
Resources Mentioned in this episode
Sponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Today, I’m excited to talk to Natalie Benamou, the Founder & CEO of Herpower2 Lead.
Natalie is a strategic thought leader with 30 years of experience creating ‘Blue Ocean’ strategies that help differentiate businesses from the competition and leading organizations.
She has served as President of HBA Chicago (Healthcare Business Women's Association) as well as A Heart For Animals, an all volunteer animal rescue that has saved over 3,000 pets.
Natalie founded HerCsuite™, an advisory & networking platform for executive women leaders, to empower female executives. She is a super connector and helps women make meaningful business relationships, gain visibility, and advance to the C-suite and beyond.
Natalie is also the host of HerCsuite™ Radio, a podcast for women leaders on the move.
In this episode…As they start, Natalie shares the scariest ask has ever been when asking for herself. It is getting others to see the vision she has and join in the vision she has. She leads with empathy, and asks “what does success look like to you” in hopes they are aligned and can work together.
Natalie and Stephanie have a lengthy discussion on failures, the fear of rejection and how to rejoice with getting “no” knowing it leads to bigger and better things.
In addition to failures, they talk about resilience and flexibility. Without those, success will not be easily achieved.
Lastly, Natalie shares she loves to say “yes” to the asks she gets but now asks herself if she can make a difference, can she help people, and still live her purpose. If she can confidently say yes to these three questions, she can say yes.
Resources Mentioned in this EpisodeSponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Today, I’m excited to talk to Tara Spalding, the Managing Director of BoomStartup Accelerator.
BoomStartup is an accelerator and mentorship-driven angel-stage investment program for startups, which operates as an online technology-driven accelerator, providing entrepreneurs a custom business plan including business maturity guidance, investment preparation, and capital structuring relevant to growth, and investment strategies as well as a curated marketplace for services.
Tara is also the founder of Hen House Ventures, an early stage incubator that helps tech companies rapidly scale when entering massive markets, and is also on the board of trustees for VentureCapital.org.
Tara is the recipient of the 2020 Utah Business 30 Women to Watch award.
Tara began her high-tech career in Silicon Valley when she taught herself to code software and became the first employee, and eventually VP of marketing at industry leader, SugarCRM.
Her Silicon Valley experience included roles as CMO at GroundWork Open Source, VP marketing at Magnet Systems, and co-founder and CPO at BenchPick. Tara received her bachelors from University of Colorado, Boulder.
In this episode…
Tara starts with the speed round and answering Stephanie’s questions including her favorite junk food, vacation spots, and music.
For Tara, there were thousands of asks that she didn’t not even know she had the courage to do until she did it. The first time she became a cofounder with another person and needed to find outside investments. When she did it or helped other people, it came much easier than when it was her own. Looking back, she realizes she worried about the most goofy things, such as the color she was wearing.
The relationship she has now with their investor was built along with trust and credibility over time. When you find the right investor fit, there is no better relationship because they are on your side in multiple ways and offer beneficial suggestions and ideas.
Tara suggests to entrepreneurs: Look at it from the investor’s point of view, not the entrepreneur’s or their own.
What is important is getting a sense of adventure in how they want to spend their money and see the returns. For those looking for money, it needs to fit into their investment portfolio as a person. Everyone has a different risk/reward appetite and that needs to be aligned.
You may want to know how you get an indication about the risk appetite they might have or how involved they want to be, and according to Tara, it is really tricky. Asking the question, three different times over a period of time to see if answers are consistent, is one method. Over time, relying on the network is important as well.
Tara’s company offers everything online at the moment but is piloting their first face-to-face soon. It is amazing how adaptive our brains are, no matter what the platform or venue. Right now, investors, and others, are more accessible with technology.
How does one refine their ask? Tara actually pulls from Stephanie’s play book and suggests coming up with two options that people can help you with. People can be successful making the smaller asks and building relationships.
How does Tara decide who to say yes to when it comes to sharing her time? Always looking for meaningful engagement with more than one person at a time.
When coming up with your ask, make sure to think of a couple of asks. If you get an answer, advice or introduction you need to follow up by explaining the conclusion!
Where can people find Stephanie? Join the Boom Start Up Community! It’s fun and easy! Come on in and have some fun!
Resources Mentioned in this episodeSponsor for this episode...
Finance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Today, I’m excited to talk to Ari Palmer Salafia, who’s the Co-Founder & CEO of TaxTaker, a female-founded tax and technology savings company focused on helping put money back into growing companies pockets.
Over the course of her career, Ari has helped hundreds of companies save tens of millions of dollars on taxes through R&D tax credits and other specialty government programs.
Originally from California, Ari graduated and holds a bachelor degree in Political Science from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.
Ari moved to Austin, Texas in 2016 and is steadfast in providing support to the incredible companies being built in the United States.
In her free time, Ari enjoys running the trails with her husband and fur babies and finding any waterway she can get to in Texas.
Welcome Ari!
In this episode:Ari starts with the speed round and answering Stephanie’s questions including her favorite junk food, vacation spots, and music.
After the speed round, the conversation begins with Ari sharing her biggest ask, which happened a mere year and a half ago when she began to raise capital for TaxTaker. She approached this as if she were in sales, but asking for money was very foreign to her. You will hear how she gained confidence to continue on.
As she grew the number of conversations held with investors, so did her confidence level, and she became more secure with each. She had a healthy mix amongst the investors she met with and realized there is no perfect recipe.
Ari’s whole story and messaging held true over time, and the numbers were growing, interest in her product was growing and trending upward. Even when the pandemic hit, they were running lean, getting more customer accounts, and building traction.
When it came to mindset, Ari admits that the Imposter Syndrome is very real and big headlines with huge raises do not help. It was not reality and the fact is, there are so many out there grinding to make something a reality. Those people are the ones who get overlooked. Self doubts do creep in, and you have to fake it while you make it. Truthfully speaking, comparison is the thief of joy, so avoiding comparing oneself to others is helpful.
Ari is a big believer in abundance, but you have to set your own path. The power of storytelling can get people hooked by sharing what the end of the book may look like.
She has this very important piece of advice to share, “Remember exactly what you tell an investor. They share deals. Make sure your messaging is consistent.”
Having financial literacy, or not having it, can break a company. One can’t only focus on customers, they also need to focus on where their money is going and how much is left. When an individual is disorganized, there is a good chance the company is as well.
Although it pains her to say “no” to people asking for her time, she is getting better at saying “yes” when she feels it will be beneficial to both sides.
For those who are listening, please visit her website and see if you qualify to work with her. There are tax incentives and dollars on the table.
Resources Mentioned in this episodeFinance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Today, I’m excited to talk to Zachary Eikenberry, a CoFounder, Director and CEO of Hook Security, which uses Psychological Security, or PsySec™, to teach employees how to spot and avoid phishing attacks and create a healthy security-aware culture company wide.
Before Hook, Zach was a Founder and the CEO of The NEXT Schools in Greenville, SC. These schools provided entrepreneurial experiences for over 900 students between 2 high schools and a middle school.
Zach has over 14 years of startup experience since graduating from Purdue University with degrees in Philosophy and Economics, including the successful launch of a SaaS company in addition to his ongoing consulting practice.
He has been recognized as a Top Ten most Innovative Educator, a TEDx Speaker, and a conference speaker on the nature of innovation and education.
Welcome Zach!
In this episode…In this episode you will hear why Zach likes the summer olympics over the winter olympics, and the curious reason why.
Also, Zach recalls a story in relation to an offer that was too good to refuse, but it all came down to a personal guarantee. So, this offer? Ultimately it was turned down.
When it comes down to sharing, describing and showing data of the pipeline, authenticity is key and of ultra importance. Oftentimes as things gain traction, people get worried they are missing out and that should not be the case. But, on the flip side, putting yourself in the investor’s shoes may help you see more clearly as to why they feel this way.
Relationships that align with investors make an almost-perfect relationship. Most founders feel they need to be perfect and not show weakness when in front of them but in reality, most investors are skeptical of perfection as they wonder why they’re at the table if everything is all “unicorns and rainbows.” Now, some investors do want to hear perfection and a pretty picture without negativity, but not all.
Let’s talk home runs! Institutional investors have to hit home runs. However, hitting the moon isn’t always reality, and one hopes to never crash into the oceans. Hitting projections is the true objective, and that is all investors really need to hear.
Finally, it comes down to this, investors need entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs need investors. They go hand-in-hand. One cannot go on without the other.
Resources Mentioned in this episodeFinance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
Today, I’m excited to talk to Amy & Adam Fazackerley, Co-Founders of Lay-n-Go, a company that designs and manufactures innovative organizational solutions for life, play, and travel.
I’ve interviewed them both individually, so if you haven’t listened to those episodes, add them to your playlist!
But today we’re doing something different - and talking to them about what it’s like to work with your spouse day in, day out.
Welcome, Adam & Amy!
In this episode…Instead of the speed round, they start out with a few either / or questions. Both Amy and Adam both feel it is easier to work with their spouse than anyone else in the family! They have very distinct strengths and weaknesses, which, perhaps is part of the secret. Adam laughs as he shared his weakness is he is always in trouble and Amy’s strength is she is forgiving. Amy shared a true benefit in being founders together is the ability to work things together versus another founder who hops in his or her car and drives away.
Together, they run their business a different way. They are lifestyle based, work hard, and always want what is best for their family. However, it isn’t always smooth, and days do not always start out with having breakfast casually. What is really important is really understanding the other person. For Amy, balance is really important to each of them.
Stephanie wanted to know if they feel as though they are working more than an average person because they work together. Both, Amy and Adam, stated yes and that is the nature of the base. They both agree their kids have been a pretty cool part of the journey. Making best use of their time, such as in the car, it very important. They’re very focused and intentional on what they want their business to be.
After ten years in business, the number one question is where do they want to be in five years or ten years and what do they want it to look like? What they do fall back on is the trust they have in each other.
One of the other things they like to do is give back by teaching the next generation about the things they went through in starting and running their business. Together they are very active in extracurricular entrepreneurship things. Working with other people is what makes them tick.
Other than a shared vision, there are other parts of working together that have contributed to their success. They include communication, trust, and really looking at going back to the strengths. Adam feels understanding those hot spots is ultra-important. For instance, if there is friction, Amy does not want any part of that. It isn’t always as easy as a line down the middle.
When it comes to other founders, there are certain things they should look for, but there are also those they should avoid. Adam shares that a lot of times the teams that come to them are paired up, but if they’re not, just remember you are picking a partner so find someone who has the strengths where you may lack. If there are issues between partners, they like to push for resolutions that are fair.
Amy shares that it is important to stick with what you love, what will get you out of bed every day and stick with that. It shouldn’t feel like work. Just look at what drives and motivates you.
Before involving a family member in your business, there are some questions that need to be asked of yourself. Such as, “What do you want out of this?” In fact, that should be a mutual question. If everyone wants success and progression, it’s a pretty good start. If you are going to involve family, figure out ways they will help build the business but also do it in the family role. They do consider their friends as their family as well. For them, their friends also started as their first focus groups.
On the flip side, everyone needs to make sure it is working for those involved. Keeping open lines of communication are so important, family or not.
They close with one piece of advice for others who are going to work with family, and that is to just have fun and move on. Also, give one another enough slack to make mistakes, forgive and learn.
Resources Mentioned in this EpisodeFinance-Ability is a boutique consulting firm dedicated to helping business owners and startups find their best options for growth funding. Founded by financial strategist and transaction expert Stephanie Sims, Finance-Ability can help any business owner identify the right funding partners and get through fundraising as painlessly as possible.
Visit their website to take their online assessment test to help you find out which kind of funding is the best fit for your business right now. They also have a ton of resources to help you understand business processes and financial decision-making that can help you start and build your own empire so be sure to check them out.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience having worked with companies like Goldman Sachs and CSFB. If there’s anyone with their heart in the right place when it comes to championing the dreams of small business owners and startup companies, Stephanie is that person. Let Finance-Ability help you get the funding you need and deserve to get your dreams soaring high towards your own brand of success.
The podcast currently has 66 episodes available.