I wanted to continue on my post from yesterday on the subject of having a good team of advisors. Also called a ‘Board of Advisors,’ this team of experts has evolved from the traditional Board of Directors; a form of corporate governance that is nowadays highly associated with liability.  Because of this liability, most companies are now opting for a Board of Advisors.

What are the differences? This is another topic all in itself. I did find a great guide in the July issue of Inc. Magazine on how to assemble and manage your Board of Advisors.  Inc. Magazine has these nifty, monthly guides that highlight topics related to policies, procedures, and practices. This guide is simply called, the Inc. Guidebook.

Check it out for a very simple checklist on how to assemble and manage a Board of Advisors. It also offers alternatives to a Board of Advisors including:

• A Board of Professional Advisors
• The ad hoc board
• The task-specific board

More important, is something I mentioned in my post from yesterday about the broker replacing the banker on the present day Board of Advisors.  By broker I mean an individual that has access to both traditional and niche money sources and also has the flexibility to creatively structure deals that are outside the box.

The author of the guide in Inc. Magazine continually refers to the banker as one of the essential team members so I wanted to reference this guide again today and pose the question. Is the banker being replaced by the ‘money’ broker in today’s credit market? Would anyone else like to comment on this or answer this question?