Remote Business Advisor

Virgin is entrepreneurial at its heart, having spent the last 50 years starting and scaling businesses around the world. 

In 2013, Virgin StartUp was founded by Sir Richard Branson to support the next generation of founders who are looking to do the same.

Since then, we have helped tens of thousands of founders to start and scale… and we’re just getting started.

We’re an entrepreneurially minded, not-for-profit organisation, that exists to empower founders to start up and thrive. 

We know there’s a lot that goes into starting a business, so we’re here to help on all fronts - advice, access to funding, mentoring, training and sometimes just a friendly shoulder to lean on.

We provide straight talk and useful advice to make the entrepreneurial road less bumpy and access to a supportive and dynamic community to help founders have some fun along the way.

A diverse team that has recently grown to 15 members, helping founders from idea stage right through to scaleup stage and are supported by expert Brand, Legal, People, Finance, IT and External Relations teams from the Virgin Group.

Found out more about Virgin StartUp here and here.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We’re looking for Remote Business Advisors who have a passion for helping start-ups thrive. This is an ideal position for someone who is interested in helping a broad range of founders across a variety of different industries. Someone who can manage multiple applications at various stages and support founders as required. You will need to be a strong team player, be highly organised and be willing to positively represent Virgin StartUp. 

Business Advisors work with the Founder Support Team and our Funding Managers to support founders through the Start Up Loan Programme’s application process. Each business advisor works 1:1 with an applicant / founder to get a better understanding of each applicant and their business, prior to evaluating an application's suitability for Start Up Loan funding.  

THE ROLE INVOLVES

• Conducting an initial assessment of the viability of a business idea, determine what support is needed, agree action plans and provide feedback. 
• Review applicant’s Business Plan and assist them to further develop and improve their underlying proposition and ensure Cash Flow Forecasts are accurate and financially sound, until they are ready to submit to the Loan Panel for a second review. 
• Evaluate the application, providing a written assessment to support your decision to approve or decline, and present this to our in-house Loan Panel for a final decision to be made.   
• Ensure that the support provided conforms to the Start Up Loans Company’s Minimum Standards and Lending Standards and any additional policies set out by Virgin StartUp. 
• Motivate founders and manage caseload effectively to ensure founders are supported through their start up journey in a reasonable time frame. 
• Keep our Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform updated with interactions and documentation received. 
• Work with the Founder Support Team to ensure a smooth and consistent applicant journey.  
• Maintain all quality procedures relating to client files and records, in line with our requirements.  
• Ensure work, at all times, conforms to our procedures and standards. 

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE

• A passion for entrepreneurship and supporting others. 
• Strong interpersonal skills, a real people person. 
• Some direct experience in assessing Business Plans and Cash Flow Forecasts and the Start Up Loans Scheme is desirable, although training will be provided. 
• An understanding of commercial businesses gained through either SME management, studies or experience of running own business. 
• Reasonable knowledge of key aspects of business that affect the success of start-ups. 
• Well-developed analytical skills, including the ability to assimilate complex information, identify and prioritise key issues and assist an applicant to identify practical solutions. 
• Solid business acumen.  
• Well-developed or keen to learn coaching, mentoring and motivational skills. 
• Solid IT skills, proficient in Microsoft Office, especially in MS Excel. 

SKILLS

• Excellent planning, organisational and communication skills, both written and verbal.  
• Ability to multi-task and prioritise and manage a high volume of applicants.  
• Accustomed to delivering excellent results against targets and meeting deadlines. 
• Self-motivated, empathetic and good communicator.  
• Flexible, adaptable, resourceful and resilient. 

BONUS

• Well-connected in the UK’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and businesses that support it.  
• Experience of using Salesforce / equivalent CRM. Training will be provided if not.

PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Our Culture Pact sets out the attributes we look for in our Virgin people:

Purpose driven – You are values driven, striving to be human, brave and visionary in how you work. You are committed to doing the right thing and relish doing your bit to help us change business for good. 

Inclusive team player - You are a curious, perceptive collaborative and responsive team player. Keen to learn and understand, you recognise the strength in diversity and seek to behave inclusively always. You are thoughtful and supportive and consistently value the ideas and contribution of others. 

Flexible and future focused - You are flexible but remain focused, and always balance the needs of the company and team with your own priorities. You willingly adapt to the evolving needs of the business, are receptive to new ways of working and keen to play your part in driving positive change in our culture. 

Always accountable - You embrace responsibility and take pride in doing your best work, with full ownership for quality and results. You are solutions-orientated and work hard to get the job done - with passion, determination and resilience to succeed. You own your continuous development and are always seeking to improve and upskill. 

Pioneering - You are innovative, explore all possibilities and create new opportunities. You push boundaries and challenge the status quo, taking calculated risks where appropriate, acting always with integrity yet with a sense of fun and creativity. 

Some of the attributes that define a ‘Virgin person’ just can’t be quantified in words. We pride ourselves on welcoming people from all walks of life, with all sorts of skill sets. Most recently, Virgin successfully campaigned to add ‘Dyslexic Thinking’ as a skill on LinkedIn. Any uniqueness is a strength and will be considered an asset to our team. 

SALARY & BENEFITS

• £38,000 - £40,000 (+10% discretionary bonus)
• Unlimited holiday
• 2 return flights per year, to any Virgin Atlantic destinations worldwide
• Private Medical Insurance
• Access to digital GP service
• Comprehensive health assessments – available every 2 years (after 2 years employment)
• Bupa Dental Insurance
• Workplace Pension with Aviva
• Free lunch every day (when working from the office)
• Access to Virgin Pulse – stay active and earn wellbeing points, which can be converted into rewards each quarter
• Access to an online platform that provides discount on a host of Virgin Companies and a range of other 3rd parties and brands
• A host of other things - e.g. Cycle to Work scheme, Payroll giving, Employee Assistance programme, Access to Nudge - a financial wellness platform started with a Start Up Loan from Virgin StartUp as it happens :)

This role is accepting applications on a rolling basis, so be quick! In your covering message, please outline / indicate:

1. Why you are passionate about supporting UK-wide founders and working for Virgin.
2. Your experience and approach to supporting founders with business advice.
3. If you have worked on the Start Up Loans Programme, please outline your experience with it and typical amount of founders you helped support to a funding decision each month.
4. Your preference for a full-time or part-time role, see below, and your potential notice period.

We expect to be hiring 3.2 Full-time equivalent (FTE) Business Advisors -> 2 x full time + 2 x 3 days per week on 2-year fixed term contracts as part of this recruitment, with the role starting as soon as possible / in June.