About

Empower Business Solutions was created by Dr Greg Chapman in 2004 after returning from overseas. He has lived and worked for eight years in the US and UK. He wanted an opportunity to pass on the international best practice business management expertise he had acquired throughout his 25 year career, to businesses who would otherwise have had no access to experience at this level.

Dr Greg Chapman is a leading advisor of Micro and Small Emerging Business. Regualrly quoted in the media, his expertise in small business and marketing strategy is widely recognised.

	Dr Chapman's first book: The Five Pillars of Guaranteed Business Success was a finalist in the International Indie Business Book Awards. As a result of this book, now a best seller, Dr Chapman has been called the Australian Michael Gerber. He has also been called the Business Brain Surgeon.
	Dr Chapman's latest book is: Price: How You Can Charge More Without Losing Sales.  As a result of this book, he has been dubbed Dr Price!  Find out more at www.IncreaseYourPrices.com.au He is also the publisher of the Small Business Achiever. Apart from coaching private clients, he is the director of the Australian Business Coaching Club, which provides a low cost alternative to private coaching.

Greg also teaches business at the University of Melbourne where his first book is on the prescribed reading list. He was selected for this role because of his extensive practical experience with small business operators, something with which few business academics have experience. He has also presented for such organisations as the Housing Industry Association, the Royal Australian Institute of Architects, Engineers Australia, the CPA Australia as well as at industry events around the world.

His qualifications and memberships include:

• Ph.D. from Melbourne University
• M.B.A. from Deakin University
• Certified Master Coach from Behavioral Coaching Institute
• Diploma Australian Institute of Company Directors
• Council of Small Business of Australia
• International Coaching Council

Dr Greg Chapman is also the creator and editor of the Australian Small Business Blog. He is also a Telstra Business Awards and Marketing Communications Executives International Awards judge.

This year, Empower Business Solutions is the proud sponser of the MCEI Micro-Business Awards.

Greg's business experience has involved assignments in seven countries. He has been responsible for the management of businesses and projects ranging from the micro scale to billion dollar businesses. Greg lives and breathes a wide range of business solutions "from experience".

As a result of his direct knowledge & experience in running businesses, Greg’s approach is not like that of an accountant, a sales person, or a bank manager. He thinks and acts like a business owner. The advice he gives is based on his own knowledge- not from a manual written by someone else. So he is able to tailor his programs for the needs of individual business owners.

Greg’s successes include the doubling of the return of capital from one business for which he was personally responsible, increasing sales by 400% for one of his clients, and increasing productivity by 30% for another.

Empower Business Solutions is dedicated to assisting Australian business owners with the 'Right Kind of Help' in maximising their investment and in realising their goals through ongoing training that addresses the need for acquiring knowledge and then support while taking action to achieve goals in taking their business to the next level. The approach in all programs is extremely practical, meeting the needs of owners of micro and small business.

In Greg's words "my personal objective is to see business owners realising the dreams they had when they first went into business; dreams that may have been buried in the day-to-day pressures of running their business."

To find out more about Dr Greg Chapman or Empower Business Solutions or to request a Complimentary Business Evaluation contact us now.

The Right Kind of Help

When working with new clients, Empower believes it is essential to understand the lifestyle goals that they wish to achieve from their business. The goal may be retirement at a certain age, or to be able to take more time off to be with the family, to work fewer hours, more (or even some) vacation time, or it may be a financial goal. This is the starting point for Empower’s Business Coaching.

The advantage of owning a business is that the owner gets to design the business around their own personal needs. When you work for someone else, you have to work around your boss’ needs. So although Empower’s coaching focus is on business outcomes, it starts with the owner’s life choices. Unlike many ‘business coaches’ who are actually life coaches, Empower is strictly bottom line focused – our slogan is:

Multiply Your Profit and Make Your Business Run Without You

but our solutions are tailored to suit YOUR lifestyle choices, not what we think they should be. Once these personal goals which may define the direction and priority of the advice are understood, these are translated into hard business goals which define targets and reveal the underlying gaps and root causes of the issues in the current business performance.

Only with this approach, can the coaching program be focussed with the right priorities in addressing the underlying issues (often not the obvious ones) and achieving the desired business outcomes.

Husband and Wife (and other couple) Business Owners

Empower regularly works with husband and wife business owners (and other owners in a personal relationship), and finds it highly enjoyable and rewarding to see their development as a team.

Their business relationship is quite different from the relationships of other joint owners due to their personal relationship, the joint lifestyle goals that they want to achieve and the importance they place on the personal needs of their partner. Dr Chapman has written about such a relationship as a case study in this internationally recognised, top selling book: The Five Pillars of Guaranteed Business Success. One business owner wife told Dr Chapman:

"When I read your book, I thought you were writing about us. At some points I laughed, pointing out to my husband - this is what you do, and other times, I felt like crying. I finally understood what was happening in our business and what we needed to do"

Each of the partners bring something different to the business. Often one is more the technician in the business; that is he/she has a particular skill or may be more creative, and the other will have the business/financial focus. This is not a male/female split in a particular stereotype as Empower has observed these preferences shared in just about every way imaginable.

The complimentary sharing of skills seems to be more pronounced with business owners in a personal relationship perhaps because ‘opposites attract’ where in strictly business relationships, owners may be more alike in their preferences and too often try to share roles. An understanding of these differences is critical in business coaching.

To find out more about Dr Greg Chapman or Empower Business Solutions or to request a Complimentary Business Evaluation contact us now.

So why Empower Business Solutions?

The key is getting the right kind of help. So, what should you look for from a business coach or consultant? Well, when you talk to one, you need to ask them four things.

• First, what's so good about your programs?
  
  Empower Business Solutions Answer: Our programs are based on the principles of Dr Greg Chapman's internationally recognised, top selling book: The Five Pillars of Guaranteed Business Success. The coaching programs are designed to show business owners how to implement the Five Pillars - Planning, Marketing, Systems, Staff Motivation and Discipline into their business with customised, structured advice that produces the business results owners seek.
  
  Empower avoids the mistake of jumping to a solution, such as a new website, or an expensive marketing campaign without analysing the underlying strategy. Without that analysis, expensive mistakes can be made, such as campaigns that produce no results or websites that generate the wrong kind of enquiries. In fact, there are many strategies we recommend that cost very little to implement. The most successful tactics are fully aligned with business strategy and are linked to provide maximum leverage.
  
  Our programs are designed to take into account all parts of your business whether the focus is on Business Strategy, Business Systems or Marketing. By taking the time to understand the fundamentals of your business we can ensure that our advice not only connects directly to all your business drivers, but it also leverages them for maximum impact. Empower Business Solutions has provided advice to hundreds of businesses in Australia. (See our Testimonials)
  
  
• Second, will I get support for this program, or am I just going to get a box of manuals?
  
  Empower Business Solutions Answer: All our coaching programs come with support- some with 12 months of support! This support includes:
  
  
  • One-on-one workshops tailored to meet your individual needs
  • Monthly progress reviews to ensure you achieve your goals
  • On-call phone/fax/email support for the program duration
  
  Many Business Coaches, particularly from franchises, are really just selling someone else's manuals with a bit of their time thrown in to call it coaching. While we will supplement our coaching with materials developed exclusively by Dr Greg Chapman, as appropriate, the real value we add to every business we work with is through the advice and education we directly provide, based on a deep understanding of the issues in your business.
  
  We don’t rely on a formula solution which is necessarily the franchise approach. (A Big Mac always tastes the same, whichever McDonalds franchise you go to- great for hamburgers, but not so great for business coaching.)
  
  
• Third, who is going to support me - am I going to get someone who has actually successfully run businesses themselves, or am I going to just get a salesman?
  
  Empower Business Solutions Answer: All support is from someone with extensive business experience. Someone who has actually run businesses. Someone who is not only highly qualified, but has faced many of the same problems that you have faced, and dealt with them personally. We are not a member of any franchise. We don't need to be. The advice we give is built on our own experience, not someone else's.
  
   
• Fourth, how objective are your solutions?
  
  Empower Business Solutions Answer: Unlike many marketing companies who provide inhouse implementation solutions for such things as branding, advertising, website design and other marketing collateral, we are independent. We may recommend such solutions if they are appropriate, but do not provide them ourselves so we can be objective about your needs in this area. Our focus will be on those solutions that will provide the biggest bang for your buck. It is like having an accountant you can rely on to determine which type of finance is right for you, rather than receiving advice from someone who may try to steer you towards implementation solutions that make them most money.
  
  
• And finally, do you guarantee your program?
  
  Empower Business Solutions Answer: When you select a Business Coach, they may look great on paper. But the only way you can be certain they are right for you is to see them in action- with You! That's why all of our programs come with a trial period. Within the trial period- not only are our programs on trial- but we are too! If, for any reason, you are unhappy with the program support within our trial period, you can cancel our agreement and obtain a full refund of your investment. Of course, any bonuses you have received are yours to keep.
  
  In addition to the trial period, all our longer term programs come with performance guarantees. This ensures that you can have full confidence with our products and services.

To find out more about Dr Greg Chapman or Empower Business Solutions or to request a Complimentary Business Evaluation contact us now.