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Access to big business expertise is so important 

Colin Glass sits at his desk looking towards the camera
Colin Glass’ career spans almost half a century, and he has the stories to prove it

Having helped countless British SMEs navigate a myriad of challenges and opportunities, Colin Glass is turning his attention to better connecting leaders with business support. 

Colin Glass has been working with SMEs and startups for almost all of his 45-year career. “That’s been my life,” he explained. “When I started out, I was inspired by Jim Slater, the investment banking guru who was one of several people at the time deemed to be the unacceptable face of capitalism. He would get involved in sleepy public companies and create shareholder value by reorganising and revamping them – and it fascinated me.” 

Keen to emulate the success of his then-hero, but lacking the funds to buy his way in, Colin tried something rather revolutionary for the time – to some of his startup clients he offered to “roll up” the fees for his accountancy and business services in exchange for a small amount of equity. “Fortunately,” he said, “enough of them came off to keep us going alongside the accountancy practice.” 

Unsurprisingly, Colin has a long list of investment stories. There was the radio ham (also known as amateur radio) from Leeds who Colin backed – together they ended up supplying to the MoD and were later bought by Hambros Bank. 

Then there was the surgeon who needed help in getting a new keyhole surgery instrument off the ground, and a man with a passion for recycling whose business went on to float on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM). 

“I could write a book,” added Colin. “I’m very fortunate to be able to mix in some interesting circles.” 

In many ways, it is Colin’s vast web of contacts that makes him such a useful addition to the Be the Business Fellows programme. His experience, too, is invaluable. “Since I started out, MBAs [a Master of Business Administration] have become very popular, but when you’ve been in the trenches it’s a bit different,” he believes. 

“I also think that because of my accountancy training, I’m good at explaining why financial control in any business is absolutely vital,” Colin commented. “Many people don’t respect that when starting up, and I think I can get that across in an understandable way.” 

Today’s UK business landscape, he sees it, would benefit from a significant investment in trainingVenture capitalists and angels could help too, he added, by loosening up their attitude to risk. “They need to take bigger risks on companies on the basis that some of their investments will come off and some won’t – from experience, the few that do succeed generally pay for those that don’t. 

“Since we started getting involved with SMEs, we’ve worked with businesses that have employed literally hundreds of people. If investors can multiply that, then eventually we’ll get out of the mess we’re currently in.” 

Other concerns of Colin’s include overseas markets – not enough UK SMEs have their eye on a bigger, global prize, he said – and the country’s much-maligned government procurement process, which he says needs simplifying dramatically. 

As has been the case in his own career, it is Be the Business connections, that will prove to be one the organisation’s greatest assets. “You have some terrific connections, and that always helps 

“Being able to phone someone up in a large corporation – someone with clout – and say, ‘will you be able to help so and so?’ – Be the Business can do that. And that’s really important.” 

Colin is a chartered accountant who started his own practice, Winburn Glass Norfolk (WGN) in 1975. The business merged with Murray Harcourt in 2019. He has been a non-executive director of several companies, and acts as a mentor to earlystage SMEs with highgrowth potential. Colin has won multiple awards and was a judge in the 2016 Virgin Media VOOM competition for startups. 

Quick-fire questions

Who is your business inspiration? 

It was Jim Slater, but more recently, you have to say people like Lord Sugar – love him or hate him, he has shown what you can do from being a market trader to running multimillion pound organisation. That said, I’ve been inspired by a lot of people I’ve worked with who have started businesses from scratch.  

Do you have a personal productivity tip? 

No, because I’m a bit of a workaholic! But I think it’s different for different businesses. How you plan each part of the business – whether it’s production, sales, or even innovation – you need to plan it in a way to get more out of it. And it’s not just immediate planning, but looking to the future as well. 

What things do SMEs need to be aware of on the horizon?  

We don’t know how it will pan out yet, but the effect of Brexit. Certain markets are going to be affected and because of this some businesses will have to create new markets, and that’s going to take time. Also, it may be harder for smaller companies to work in the markets that they’ve been used to working in. We’re going to have to build new relationships and that can be quite disruptive along the way. 

What’s the best piece of advice that you’ve ever received? 

It was from Ajaz Ahmed who came up with the idea of Freeserve in the 1990s, and it’s about being able to say no, which I find very hard to do. When somebody comes to me I will do my best to help them, and I get involved very quickly, but there’s only so many hours in the day. Sometimes you have to say, I’m really sorry, I haven’t got the time. But I don’t do that! 

If you hadn’t taken the career path you took, what would you like to have been? 

I think I’d like to have been a sportsman. I’m a keen a runner and I have done a few marathons, and I think that would have been an enjoyable career.  

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