How to find an adviser who will help you grow

Finding the right adviser is like dating – everyone looks good on paper, but the real test comes when you’re sitting across from them, trying to figure out if they get you. The wrong choice can cost you frustration, missed opportunities, and the nagging feeling that you’re speaking different languages.

The challenge is that most advisers have mastered the art of the initial pitch. They’ll nod ‘yes’ at your plans, throw around impressive credentials, and promise the world. But scratch beneath the surface, and you might discover they’re operating from a completely different playbook than yours.

Here are three common scenarios that reveal how an adviser really thinks about your business. Each one shows subtle warning signs that suggest they might not be the right fit for your growth ambitions.

Scenario 1: Financials without strategy

You’re explaining your business model – perhaps you’re a tech startup with subscription revenue and equity partnerships, or a mature company pivoting into a new market.

The adviser immediately zeroes in on forecasts, bookkeeping, and regular reporting cycles. This happens because they are attracted to regular annuity fees earned from a templated process, often delegated to junior staff. What you hear sounds like a helpful cadence of financial updates. You receive timely and accurate monthly reports. These may be well-prepared and easy to explain, but not necessarily aligned with your business’s needs.

Without a deep understanding of your industry, growth strategy, and key risks, the reports lack the context needed to identify critical performance indicators or trigger timely corrective action.

What’s missing: If you’re not meeting your financial objectives, you’ll have the data, but little guidance. Worse, if your goals were flawed to begin with, no one will challenge or refine them.

Why this matters: This happens because there’s been no real effort to understand your growth plans, challenge your assumptions, assess your market risks, or work with you to develop meaningful KPIs (both financial and non-financial). The advisor remains focused on compliance, not performance or strategic insight.

Scenario 2: The experience bias

You’re explaining your business model, ownership structure, and growth strategy.

The advisor shares numerous stories of past clients and seemingly similar situations. Their experience sounds valuable, but be cautious about being ‘pigeonholed.’ Your business may differ significantly from those examples, whether in team dynamics, market environment, or growth strategy.

A good advisor will recognise these nuances and demonstrate understanding by asking thoughtful, probing questions. They should adapt their thinking to your context, not force-fit you into a recycled solution.

Scenario 3: Shutting down new ideas

You propose an innovative profit-sharing model or creative financing structure.

The adviser responds that it’s interesting, but there are significant risks with that approach. They recommend sticking with more traditional methods that they know work. What you hear is that they’re looking out for you by warning against risky decisions.

The concern: Risk warnings are valid, but only when made after an effort to understand your proposal. Dismissing new ideas prematurely signals a lack of fit.

What to look for instead: If you’re an innovative and creative business, look for signs that your adviser shares this mindset, or at least appreciates it. They should be open-minded while operating within ethical and legal boundaries, and capable of engaging with your ideas constructively.

These scenarios show that the red flags often aren’t about what the adviser says; it’s how they engage with your thinking.

Finding the right fit – engagement is key

There are many rules bandied around on body language signs that signal good engagement, communication and fit. However, everybody is different, and it is important that the fit is right for you. Some people are buzzed by high-energy conversations, which may be interpreted as ‘talking over’ each other. Others may prefer someone who truly listens and understands prior to responding. Some like ‘note takers,’ and others feel like this is a distraction to effective communication.

Whatever your preference, you need to ensure you are comfortable with the communication styles and engagement of your advisor.

Whatever the style, one quality of effective communication is key to a successful advisory relationship, and that is the ability to challenge and be challenged in discussions. This should work in both directions, because while an advisor has specific experience and skills, nobody knows everything.

Questions to ask your adviser

If these sound like traps, they’re not. These questions are conversation starters. You’re trying to understand how they think, solve problems, and relate to your vision.

“Tell me about a client situation where you had to think outside the box.”
Listen for specifics. A good adviser has stories as well as theory.

“What’s the most interesting business challenge you’ve encountered recently?”
This reveals what excites them. Do they light up about strategy or compliance?

“What would you need to know about my business to give the best possible advice?”
A strong adviser will ask about your goals, market, team, and challenges – not just your numbers.

“Can you walk me through how you’d approach our first few months together?”
Look for a discovery mindset. They should want to understand before they advise.

The culture fit test

Technical skills matter – but so do shared values, communication styles, and approaches to problem-solving.

“Tell me about a time you and a client disagreed on an approach.”
This shows how they handle conflict. Are they collaborative, defensive, rigid?

“What’s your philosophy on risk in business?”
Do they lean cautious or bold? Their risk profile should match yours – or at least respect it.

“What do you see as the biggest opportunities in business right now?”
Are they excited by innovation, disruption, and change? Or stability and control?

Trust your instincts

Technical competence is table stakes.

The adviser you choose will influence big decisions and gain deep access to your business. More than anything, you need someone who understands your goals, challenges your assumptions, and shares your excitement about what’s possible.

The right adviser feels like a collaborator, not a contractor. They offer insight, not just information. They ask good questions. They leave you thinking more clearly, not more confused.

Don’t settle for someone who sees you as a revenue stream or who tries to fit you into their existing model.

Your business is unique. Your adviser should be too.