What has been your experience with advisory boards?

January 05, 2026

by a searcher in Toronto, ON, Canada

Hey fellow searchers, and a happy 2026 to you all! I am currently searching within Ontario, Canada, with a focused thesis on consolidating the Plumbing, HVAC, and Electrical sectors. I am aiming to have my Advisory Board/Non-Executive Directors squared away before mid-February, or at the latest by the end of Q1. I believe a strong "brain trust" is essential for vetting targets against my criteria and navigating the integration of these technical trades. I would value the community’s insight on two fronts: 1) How would you go about sourcing these such profiles? 2) What has been your experience putting together a non-executive board? Any assistance or lessons learned from those who have walked this path would be greatly appreciated.

Reply by a professional
from Embry in Orlando, FL, USA

I run a Board Opportunities network. We are about 30 strong of seasoned board experienced people in many skill sets. Representative Profiles • Former NASDAQ CFO with three IPOs and audit-committee leadership • Healthcare CIO specializing in cybersecurity and HIPAA compliance • Private equity operating partner with carve-out and roll-up experience • Founder who scaled a mid-market cybersecurity and MSP firm to a 250 M-dollar exit • Fortune 500 supply chain EVP with ESG and LEAN expertise

Reply by a professional
from University of Rhode Island in Portland, OR, USA

My Advisory Committee for BuyTheBlazers.com has been amazing and indispensable. As it is said; "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." I found some of them as they had signed up as interested parties in general. Then, I asked them to recommend strong candidates from their circles. Other than that, tap your LinkedIn spheres and don't be afraid to make a public post on there - you may be surprised as to the results.

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