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Jacqueline Richards is a business consultant, mentor and founder of Ignition Business Services.
Prior to establishing her own business, Jacqueline sat on the board of some of Australia’s leading High Technology Research and Development Companies, where she was responsible for implementing and maintaining patents in 55 countries, staffing issues, capital raising, etc. It was during a turning point in her life in 2005, Jacqueline decided to leave the corporate world behind and start her own business.
Established in early 2006, Ignition Business Services is based in Brisbane and provides a wide range of services to new and established small businesses including: bookkeeping; accounting software set-up and training; budget forecasting; payroll; filing systems; start up assistance; coaching; mentoring; and too many more to list here. “We cover everything from the day to day running of your business, through to compliance issues allowing your business to present to perspective venture capitalists”.
Jacqueline and her team run workshops for small business, privately and for the Queensland Government and have developed a comprehensive and very affordable business start up kit which you can order from the Ignition Business Services website. They also run seminars and webinars to assist small business and you can obtain more information about these and other services they provide by subscribing to the company’s newsletter or contacting Ignition Business Services via their website.
I asked Jacqueline to tell us what advice she has for women starting a new business?
“Regardless of whether your business is web based or home based, retail or a service provider the first piece of advice I always give my clients is get yourself great advisors and use them. Then buy the best equipment you can afford, your business is going to grow and it will need to meet those requirements. This is going to be the ride of your life, so hold on, acknowledge the hard times, but most of all celebrate the good times and have fun.”
In addition to her work with Ignition Business Services, Jacqueline is a mentor with the Queensland Government’s Mentoring for Growth program, a free service provided by the state government to assist business:
“Through this program businesses have access to some of Queensland’s leading business owners, which is a fantastic opportunity in itself, these people are also a wealth of information and the assistance they can provide is invaluable”.
Jacqueline also contributes her time to raising awareness and much needed funding for charity. Earlier this year, Jacqueline was part of an all women team in the Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht Race to raise money and awareness for Redkite, a foundation that supports children with cancer:
“The majority of these women were first time sailors, some were single mums, others were business owners, but all of them were looking for a challenge and that we found. After 36 hours and some pretty hairy moments we managed to finish in 1st place, we had actually won the cruising division. So to all of you ladies out there looking for a challenge, you don’t need years of experience or study, you just need determination and a great support network and you can achieve anything, including starting your own business.”
From corporate high flyer to highly respected business consultant and mentor, Jacqueline Richards is a lady who is willing to meet any challenge life throws at her with enthusiasm and a determined spirit. I would like to thank Jacqueline for sharing her story with Australian Women Online.