Victor Tan enjoys working in the start-up sector. His passion is to help SMEs and start-ups grow.
What’s your story?
I was born in Singapore. I moved to Australia for the majority of my life and I have now been back in Singapore for the past 6 years. Currently I am the CFO of Unity Group, which is a boutique merger and acquisition advisory firm. I have been in the big corporate world for the about two thirds of my career and for the past 5 years I have been involved in the start up and SME space.
What is your involvement with Investment?
My biggest investment is my time and positioning my career to focus on the start-up and SME sectors.
How did that come about?
A couple of reasons:
- I loved the big corporate world and the skills I Iearnt in that world. However I felt that I was wanting more and I wanted to really contribute and impact on the success of a business. In the SME space, every staff member is important and every contribution impacts the business in many ways. In the corporate world, sometimes you just feel like one of the many cogs in the wheel.
- SMEs are typically the forgotten businesses in the world. Everything is up against them even though SMEs contribute the highest % of their profits in taxes in all developed countries in the world. However, they are undervalued, lack the ability to grow and raise funds.
What are some of the key things you have learnt about Investing?
Establish your strategy and stick to it.
What mistakes do you see less experienced investors making?
Speculative trading or getting rich quick. There are no quick wins. It all comes down to believing in your objective or strategy, working hard, sticking with it and being adaptable to change.
What mistakes do you see Entrepreneurs making?
Surrounding themselves with advisors that are “yes“ people who do not add value. Typically entrepreneurs are full of passion and sometimes that passion and emotion clouds their ability to make good decisions. Advisors around entrepreneurs, whether they are the GM, CFO or legal counsel, need to assist the founder of the business to stay on the same path but at the same time give the founder room to breathe and be creative.
What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?
You have to work hard and smart.
What advice would you give to those seeking funding?
Product and data, data, data! Product or goals need to be defined, broken down and measured from the outset. That’s the only way of defining success (whether its based on revenue, profit, number of customers, etc) and it sets a performance-driven culture. The qualitative component of the product or goal is equally critical to ensure business performance and correct culture. Once these are defined and measured, it demonstrates your ability to define and measure the performance. This directly applies to seeking funding for your business. Without any quality data, investors are unable to assess the progress or viability of the product and also the future potential growth of your company.
Who inspires you?
My dad. His ability to rise to the top of his profession and give it all up for us kids.
What have you just learnt recently that blew you away?
A quote from Malcolm X, “There is nothing better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss contains its own seed and its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time.”
What business book do you recommend the most?
Unfortunately I don’t read books.
Shameless plug for your business/organisation:
The team at Unity really believes in supporting the SME sector and changing the landscape for small businesses around the world to enable small businesses to compete with the big boys, win bigger contracts and reward those that are creating the most value in the world.
How can people connect with you?
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/victor-tan-22880535
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This article is part of the World Business Angel Forum media partnership with AsianEntrepreneur.org
If you would like more information about WBAF, please contact Callum Laing WBAF High Commissioner for Singapore. [email protected]
