A brain-injury rehabilitation business has more referrals than it can handle – but expansion is not an easy option.
| Entrepreneur |
Richard Osborn and Sue Sloan |
| Company |
Osborn Sloan and Associates |
| Business type |
Assessment and rehabilitation of people with acquired brain injury; audiology services |
| Founded |
1997 |
| Employees |
7 |
| Head office |
Melbourne |
| Contact details |
+61 3 9819 5480 |
Key Learning Points |
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Market research
Know your business thoroughly. But remember that markets change, so even research can be misleading.
Diversification
Do what you know best - but try to extend those skills to deal with market changes.
Ethics
Do not just meet standards of professional ethics - exceed them.
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The Osborn Sloan & Associates Story
Injury to the brain can occur in seconds; rehabilitation can take a lifetime. A Melbourne medical services business, Osborn Sloan and Associates, provides rehabilitation services for clients with a brain injury. Its combination of patience, vision and commitment has made the business boom. But success has pushed its directors, Richard Osborn and Sue Sloan, to consider just how big their business should become.
In the past seven years, Osborn Sloan and Associates has expanded from one therapist seeing a few clients from home to an award-winning business with an annual turnover of $600,000. It has 75 long-term clients and up to 30 short-term clients. In July, the company was named Victorian winner of the Australian Government Award for Microbusiness (up to five staff) at the 2004 Telstra and Victorian Government small business awards.
The business was started in 1997 by Sue Sloan, an occupational therapist. Richard Osborn, an audiologist, joined in 2001. There are now four other therapists and a part-time neuropsychologist. The company provides a specialised service for the assessment and rehabilitation of people with brain injury. Osborn also has a general audiology services practice. The business tailors therapies and activities for each client. Osborn says: “Our aim is simply to make people as independent as they can be.”
Osborn and Sloan have been very cautious about growing their business. Osborn says: “All of our expansion has been very incremental. We only got our first business loan last year.” The loan was to finance the redevelopment and expansion of their premises.
The business is paid to treat its patients by various parties including organisations such as the Transport Accident Commission and Melbourne CityMission, money from legal settlements, or by families who want the best possible treatment for a relative. No money comes directly from government. Osborn says it is important to link with similar health-care organisations for cross-referrals, information sharing and professional development.
Osborn and Sloan say informal mentors have been important in developing business skills. Osborn’s father, Peter, taught management at the Mt. Eliza Staff College (now the Mt. Eliza Business School) and has been a useful resource for the business. But after examining the business for the award process, Osborn now believes that more formal mentoring and assistance may be needed.
Winning the microbusiness award has helped to increase Osborn and Sloan’s confidence in their business skills. Osborn says: “Having our achievements acknowledged by people outside our specialist areas is very encouraging.” The process of submitting for the award was also very useful. “It made us document things such as how much time we spend with clients, and staff appreciated the opportunity to be involved in talking about the direction of the business.”
The company does no formal marketing and does not have a web site. In fact, it has more referrals than it can take on as clients because of word-of-mouth promotion in its specialist field. To cope with demand, it has hired new staff recently (two therapists: one full-time; one part-time) and is renovating and expanding its premises.
But maintaining a warm, homelike atmosphere is a key consideration. Osborn and Sloan have put limits on their expansion because of their commitment to quality of care, and personal contact with each client. Osborn says: “Currently, the whole team is aware of what is happening with individual clients. We want to maintain that.”
They are also reluctant to take on partners, preferring to keep tight control of the company. Osborn says: “Having partners can lead to problems when one wants to sell or move on, and the others don’t.”
Osborn and Sloan are looking at alternatives to partnership, including having other professionals working independently with them, or allowing existing staff to buy into the business.