Investing in a board in a bootstrapped business

In today's episode, Mattias talks about why he chose to start working with a professional board and how he knew that the timing was right.

Investing in a board

In January 2021, Mattias started to work with a professional board. Back then, he and his business partner Erik felt like they needed an external chairman to come in and help them balance out their discussions. They hoped this would enable them to really focus on the strategically important topics instead of getting caught up with operational things whenever they had their board meetings.

Another reason why Mattias wanted to get an external chairman to the board was that he was looking for a person with lots of experience that could be beneficial for iGoMoon's further growth.

Making the decision

However, wanting a chairman and having a chairman are two separate things. Mattias had been thinking about a professional board for multiple years prior, but he wasn't able to prioritize it at the time. Bootstrapping a company also means smaller financial resources, and getting a chairman means investing quite a bit of money.

The right time to invest in a board

When iGoMoon reached about 15 employees and 15 Million SEK in revenue, Mattias faced a bottleneck he knew he couldn't solve himself. It was the right timing to get someone on board who had all the necessary experience.

For Mattias, it was very important that this person was not just any person. He emphasized how important it is to find someone you have a personal relationship with and whom you can trust. In Mattias' case, that person was Ulf, a former customer who turned into a friend over the years.

Results of having a board

Throughout the past year they have been working together, a lot has changed within the company:

1. the financial follow up became a lot better
2. lots of work around the go-to-market process has been done
3. the communication has been improved

💡 EPISODE TAKE AWAY
Make sure that you have a personal and trustful relationship with the person you're getting onto your company's board.

Have you started working with a professional board?