What are we celebrating most one year after merging with Antony Batty & Company?
It was on 1 June 2024 that Nitin Joshi and his business partner, Insolvency Practitioner Jeff Brenner, merged their firm, B&C Associates with Antony Batty & Co (ABc), Insolvency Practitioners and business turnaround specialists. In this article, Nitin, Jeff and Antony Batty reflect on what really matters most when it comes to the success of any business, and what should be celebrated most – its people.
What were Nitin’s first impressions of the merger?
“After nearly 25 years running our own show, I initially thought merging with Antony Batty & Company was going to require a lot of detailed hard work as we integrated the processes and cultures of the two companies. At its height, at B&C we had four partners and nearly 20 staff, whilst ABc was roughly twice that size, so there was a lot to do. However, all these fears quickly evaporated. Concern about how much work we had to do turned into excitement!”
How did Antony’s team approach the merger?
“The approach from Antony and the ABc team to their new colleagues was utterly joyful. There was empathy and a strong desire to synergise our skillsets and extend what was already an impressive offering to businesses. It’s the same approach to those people (usually directors of businesses that are struggling) who need our advice – people whose confidence has reached its lowest ebb. In other words, people help people and that’s where the results come from.”
Why do people and professionalism matter most?
“I’ve always considered what we do as being akin to business therapy for stressed and worried directors. Unless we truly connect then we’re short selling the people who very often desperately need our advice.”
“Professionalism is the byword at Antony Batty & Company, characterised by its flexibility, the experience of its people and its speed of response to stressed directors. All this is enhanced by easy access to a wide-ranging and impressive contact base which can be called upon at short notice, including, lawyers, accountants, entrepreneurs, corporate finance boutiques and many others.”
What really sets this new, merged company apart?
“I think what sets our merged company apart from so many sausage machine-operated practices is that we have talented people, from the leadership team to senior managers to highly motivated insolvency administrators. It’s a collegiate ethos: we all learn from each other. But the focus is delivery and getting the work done. That’s what our clients need and expect from us.”
How do we show clients that we’re not just another faceless firm?
“We are not a faceless presence on Google searches. We all have names and we all actually exist. True, we have a powerful digital presence, but in the end, we like to think we achieve results by doing what in many quarters is a lost art, which is listening and talking.”
Has the merger lived up to what was hoped?
“Finally, I can honestly say that what I said a year ago has proven to be totally accurate: ‘In merging with Antony Batty & Company, we have found the things that really matter in business life – good people who understand the struggles that businesses can face and are motivated to help by using their experience and talent.’”
What does Jeff Brenner say about how it’s gone?
“It has been one year since the merger. Of course, both companies went into it anticipating that it would go well. It has however exceeded expectations and has been the perfect fit. In particular, all of the people are very like-minded in their approach to problem solving and servicing clients which has driven the success of the situation.”
What does Antony Batty think really makes this work?
“Insolvency is a highly regulated industry and that means there are legal processes that must be followed all the time. But that’s only part of the story. As Jeff and Nitin have stated, what really matters are the people and what this merger has done is bring together two sets of experienced, talented and like-minded people whose aim is, and will always remain, to help directors and business owners save their businesses and livelihoods. One year into the merger and I can safely say that is exactly what we are doing.”
What advice would Nitin give to anyone considering a merger?
“My advice for anyone looking to merge is look beyond the synergies and plans to expand horizontally – above all look at the people. Are they positive, is there a collegiate ethos, an extended leadership team with the experience and desire to let people flourish and deliver the results people want?”
