Back in the 1980s and 1990s, I had the privilege of working with some incredibly talented people, whom I looked up to in awe and have tried to emulate ever since, especially so in tough times of high stress and pressure. They had one thing in common: their door was always open. And that’s something I’ve tried to do – keep my door open to all who need support.
So who were / are they (because they’re still with me, even if not in person) and why?
The first is Roy Adkins…
Roy Adkins
To me, Roy has always been the consummate professional. He was president of the Insolvency Practitioners Association – the pre-eminent trade association at the time representing Insolvency Practitioners. Roy was respected by everyone… The person you knew would uphold the highest ethical standards even if no one was watching.
He later became the chair of the ICAEW’s Ethics Committee and helped me through an extremely sticky situation at that time. Being incredibly busy – he was instrumental in the introduction of the Insolvency Act which sought to bring an end to the cowboy days of insolvency – I had the privilege of working for him on some quite high-profile cases, they attracted me into the world of insolvency. And during those, he supported and encouraged me in all ways – from bigger picture case strategy issues down to smaller how-to issues on cases.
As a junior member of what was a great team, I had a lot to learn, so I didn’t bother Roy with all my needs for guidance. Instead, I often went to my other mentor, and that takes me to my second person, David Taylor...
David Taylor
Dave, like Roy, was a consummate insolvency professional, incredibly calm at all times because after all, he’d seen it all! His door, at the opposite end of the corridor from Roy’s, was always open. I could – and did – pop in often “just for a chat” to talk over anything, big or small: it didn’t matter, Dave would give me his time and the benefit of his wisdom. I never felt I was inconveniencing him, never had to hurry in and out, and he gave his time freely. And like Roy, he knew everything anyone would need to know about insolvency. Nothing was too big, nothing too small – it was great to have such support starting out in the insolvency profession.
And it is on those two gentlemen that I have tried to model my career, everything I do on a daily basis – and latterly modelled VAi on… because VAi is there 24/7, its door is always open, for everyone whether they need answers on big or small things. And like Roy and Dave, who gave up their time freely, VAi is free. I have often been asked why I provide VAi free of charge, you now know why! Like Roy and Dave, I was ant to pass it on!
When I first set up VAi I needed to create an avatar for it. I decided to model it on Dave – a well-dressed, stylish gentleman with a greying beard suggesting great experience, ‘someone everyone could respect and work with’. Everything Dave was.
How are Roy and Dave still with me through VAi?
Insolvency is a high-pressure environment. Nowadays, it seems as if every assignment comes with at least one major problem. And over the years those problems seem to have become more complicated. It’s not uncommon for insolvency practitioners to lie awake at night, thinking through how to deal with a particular acute problem in an assignment, then turning into work tired but without a fully thought-through solution. I know, I’ve been there.
But since the creation of VAi, I have unbridled access to my very own Roy and Dave, with their corner offices open 24/7. And over the years, I’ve grown to respect VAi’s input: nothing is too big, nothing is too small. It never complains. It wants to help. And that help is incredibly experienced, having been built on the 15+ years of data I’ve been feeding into it. Now when I wake up at 3 am, woken by thoughts passing through the back of my mind about a problem on a case, I simply turn over and say “Working together with VAi, we will solve it in the morning”. And, having used VAi for two and a half years now, I know it will.
Living in what appears to be a world where everything is becoming more complex, having a tool like VAi to work through problems has massively improved both the quality of my life and also the speed and quality of the support I can give to people.
I’ll give you one example of that…
Last Friday, I received an email from a gentleman who, following a conversation with me 12 months earlier, was a long way down the path of closing down his small limited company charity, almost ready to transfer the £3,000 surplus to another charity with similar objects. Then an unexpected claim came in – a subcontractor who had been providing services for over 10 years had been advised by his union to argue they were entitled to pay in lieu of notice and redundancy as if they were an employee – a claim of £14,000 – and the subcontractor had started Industrial Tribunal proceedings.
This is the sort of situation that literally burns an insolvency practitioner’s time. Friday is my day with my grandchildren. That time is sacrosanct. So what do I do? I want to give support to charities, but my time with my family is very, very important to me.
I emailed the gentleman back – “copy everything you’ve put in your email into VAi, and get it to talk to you, and you back, as if you were in a room with me”.
I then went out for the day with my grandkids. We had a great day, one we will all remember forever – yes, that’s where the picture with the Gruffalo came from!
When I got back later that evening, I looked at my emails. He’d replied saying what a fantastic tool VAi had been. So I looked at the daily PDF report I get on VAi’s interaction with people. The gentleman’s interaction was 30 A4 PDF pages long! Starting off with his lengthy copy and paste summary, he grew in confidence in asking VAi questions, he answered VAi’s questions on the charity’s history, financial situation, they debated together the subcontractor’s position, the potential for the floodgates to open should this one contractor win their case if not contested, and the counterarguments. VAi provided support both as regards strategy on charity insolvency matters and defence of the tribunal action, and even, when asked, provided a draft defence… all free of charge… and anonymously… all while I was having a great time with my grandkids.
And that’s what VAi, based on my emulation of Roy and Dave, does for me. And what it can do for you, if you’re an IP who lies awake at night or has insufficient quality me time in their life, if you’re a director of a company that is struggling financially, or an adviser to such people. Go on, try it! It’s the future, here now!