Enter the dragon

Ex-dragon, Doug Richards, was the key note speaker at today’s B2B Hub conference in Coventry. He talked through his checklist of what makes for a successful entrepreneurial business. People were at the top of the list. Interestingly he said that most successful business had a group of people at the helm running the show. Three functional types were needed: a salesman, someone who can deliver the product and a third who does the numbers. Secondly there is the product. In every pitch he receives he is thinking about what the product benefits are and how strong they are. Finally the market. Go for markets that are recent, new and uncertain. You’ll make the most progress in niche sectors.

Doug spoke with the confidence of someone who has been at the top of his game for some time and made a few quid too. He also highlighted his failures in business – two out of his five companies went under. You learn and you get up and start again he said. Questioned about how to motivate staff his reply was that transparency in business was paramount. Be open with the figures and when you hit difficult times people are more likely to pull together.

He finished by suggesting we continually ask ourselves: what is the potential return here and what is the cost? Is it worth it? If so put everything you’ve got into making it work.