Debbi Olley
It’s always a good time to take stock of your resources and build community so that you have help when you need support. One thing I love about prospect development folks is that we are an incredibly generous and helpful bunch, eager to share resources, techniques, and valuable advice from experience. This week we’re so pleased to share words of wisdom from HBG’s Debbi Olley who gives great advice on building your own brain trust. ~Helen
Here at the Helen Brown Group, I’m beyond fortunate to have a team of experienced, responsive fellow researchers who are always open to questions. We have a chat group where we’re able to pose all sorts of questions, ranging from valuing real estate to assessing business ownership and everything in between. Because the brain trust is my go-to when I may feel stuck, I’ve become somewhat spoiled. And so, while thinking about a good topic for a blog post, I realized that focusing on ways to create your very own brain trust could be helpful. I have the following suggestions for making sure you have some go-tos of your own if you need help with your own questions:
Professional organizations
I hesitate to lead with this, because it seems so obvious, but a great place to start is with your own community of researchers. This is especially true if you’re in a solo shop (as I have been in the past), and need some feedback on a question or issue. So, if you’re not already a member of Apra and/or one of its chapters, now is the perfect time to join! By the time this piece is published, Prospect Development 2024 will have come and gone, but you can still take advantage of everything the group has to offer via membership, including opportunities for networking, education, and resources. When you join a chapter, you’ll also be able to attend programs and learn more about a host of relevant topics. And one of Apra’s longest-running resources, PRSPCT-L, is a fabulous place to ask (and answer!) pressing questions in our field.
Subject-specific Sources
When I have my own questions as a researcher, it can be tempting to just “google it,” like the rest of the world. That can work, of course, but when you’re building your own brain trust, it also makes sense to have your own subject-specific sources on hand, especially if you want to go deeper and educate yourself.
When it comes to finance, for example, I have a few favorites myself. Investopedia has a thorough dictionary of financial terms and also gives you an opportunity to subscribe to its term-of-the-day newsletter. Those newsletters may be a bit distracting when you’re in the middle of a time-sensitive project, but even a cursory look may teach you something you never knew. Even a basic overview, like this beginner’s guide on the SEC website, can be a helpful introduction or refresher, depending on your level of expertise. Thanks to HBG, I learned about Mergers & Acquisitions, a great resource for financial information, after I came on board. Again, it’s a great opportunity to educate yourself on all sorts of financial topics. I’m choosing to focus on financial information simply because it can stymie me, but for a good overview of subject-specific sources, check out this March 2024 blog post from my HBG colleague, Kelly Labrecque.
Related to finance is compensation information. I’m going to refer to yet another incredibly helpful blog post from my HBG colleague, Tara McMullen-King, who covered this topic just about a year ago. When I feel a brain trust question coming on about private equity, for example, I try to check a compensation survey first before reaching out to our crew. I know I keep a list of compensation resources bookmarked, and I assume you probably do, too. Financial information and compensation are just two examples of subject-specific sources; other subjects for gathering information include due diligence, international research, and prospect management.
Mentorship
Let’s face it: when you’re trying to build your own brain trust, a list of sources and resources is an obvious good start. But in referring back to the start of this article, other people truly are your best bet. And yes, it won’t surprise you to recall that my colleague Anne Melton covered this topic in her blog post. Here at HBG, new hires are paired up with a buddy who can answer questions about the organization, workflow, and, of course, their own thoughts on go-to resources for getting answers. I would have been lost without my own mentor in the field when I first became a prospect researcher, and we’re still very good friends today.
The Brain Trust: Just Ask!
One thing that’s become abundantly clear to me over my time in this field is that other people who do what we do are almost unfailingly eager to help others. And so, when you build your own brain trust, know that you can always reach out and ask for help! That’s one reason it’s always a good practice to introduce yourself to presenters at conferences, or even plan to set up informal gatherings in your field of interest before you arrive. We all seem to have an abundance of curiosity in our field, so keep your focus on always learning and picking up tips along the way. I’ve been spoiled by HBG’s brain trust for sure, but I hope this serves as a guide to creating your own. Have fun and if you can bear my referring to still another HBG blog post, keep your focus on learning something new! As we know, lifelong learning is an important aspect of keeping our own brains healthy and active.
