The Business Link looks to be on its last legs (Private Sector Looks To Step Into Business Link's Shoes [yesterday's FT] and Government Confirms The Business Link's Demise [BusinessZone]).
We have argued for and against the service elsewhere (BL: Should It Stay or Should It Go?, BL, Business Support and Passion, The Truth Is No-one Seems To Care About BL, Doug Richards Rips Into BL). I would argue that there is still a relative lack of interest in the subject. Meanwhile we hear the cries of woe for the current BL staff.
But what about the clients??? What about the small/medium/growing businesses in need of help and assistance?
Another re-organisation of the Business Support Industry puts any programmes/initiatives on hold. And the ones who suffer will be the poor clients.
Leaving aside the huge irony of a Government department trying to sort out entrepreneurship, there will still be a demand for some form of support/assistance for budding and growing businesses.
I will be the first to argue that naive, inexperienced business people need help and assistance of some form - DIY is not an option (What Is The Message?).
Consultants will crop up all over the place to accommodate the nascent need (Consultancy in a Recession). This will be a good thing for the high-performing consultants but it will be bad for potential clients.
People who don't know what they don't know will get lured into buying wonderful promises and 'get rich quick' schemes as unscrupulous entrepreneurs fleece them of their money (Its Free And It Can Help Your Business... Whatever!!!).
As I said before, the consultancy businesses with long track records and impeccable credentials (reputation, testimonials and track record) have nothing to fear.
So what next?
1) All BL services go into freefall - no-one knows what is going on.
2) Several hundred (ex-BL) business advisers could be about to be let loose on the market.
3) New options will appear scrabbling to fill the hole that will be left by the eventual demise of the BL.
4) The Government will create a new centralised solution to local problems. (How does that work?)
5) Something better...
The world of established/reputable business support and consultancy is really just a small village. Everyone has seen the change in the last month or so. Everyone is adjusting their offering to reflect how they think they can satisfy market needs.
Maybe the market will solve the problem before the Government has finished its consultation...
RELEVANT LINKS
- 1345 reads
- login or register to post comments
- Add to a social bookmarking site
The Pitch, our contest for small businesses, is back for its fifth year. In 2012, the competition is bigger and better than ever before! 
We've teamed up with Samsung to give readers the chance to win a one-on-one business mentoring from former Dragons' Den judge James Caan. 
Dragons' Den judges James Caan and Deborah Meaden and social entrepreneur Karen Darby are some of the successful entrepreneurs who feature in our exclusive videos. 
Join our social media discussion group and share your Twitter username with other BusinessZone members. 
We're putting together a list of business owners' must-haves.