15 Oct Working With Going Public Advisors: Part VIII – Solid References

If you are working with a company that is offering to help you go public, hopefully you will insist on a variety of references. In prior posts we talked about meeting the last three CEOs that this advisor helped. This gives you a sense of whether they can show that they really achieve the things they claim that they can.

Equally important is assessing the advisor’s reputation in the business and finance community. To that end you should ask for at least 3-4 non-client business references such as attorneys or accountants the advisor has worked with. Hopefully the references themselves have solid reputations and are from well-known firms.

Any advisor who resists providing references or seems to stall in getting you the information should raise your antennae.  Depending on the situation, you may also request a background check on the individuals to make sure there are no problems in their background for you to be concerned about. Some online services are as cheap as $70, though they provide only limited information. Others can be $500 or more, or even thousands. Decide what you think you need. At a minimum, do a thorough Internet search on the advisor and the companies he or she has worked with and for.  Also check at www.sec.gov to see if there are any securities issues in their background. Hopefully not and you are able to move forward confidently!