I’ve known Howard for several years now and not only do I have huge respect for Howard as an entrepreneur and business professional, I think he’s probably one of the nicest people I know. He’s very motivating and always has great insight into business matters and issues. Here’s a personal insight into Howard’s life and times….

Howard Graham in and around Clerkenwell!

Howard Graham qualified as an accountant in 1983 and became a Partner at Westbury accountants in 1987. He is the innovator behind the award winning Made Simple Group and has started businesses in the food and catering industry.

You’ve been a Partner at Westbury since 1985. What excites you about IT and accounting?

I became a partner in 1987 having been with the firm since 1985. I can’t say I get that excited by IT or Accounting anymore and that might explain why I’m due to retire as a partner at the end of this year with a view to becoming a consultant for the next few years. Nevertheless, I know that my training and experience as an accountant have made my skill set that much more valuable and have helped me build the other businesses that I am involved with.

What were you doing when you had your eureka moment to start up the Made Simple Group?

I suppose two things spring to mind. The first was a chance throw away comment by an accountancy client of mine in connection with how he thought the internet could be used to provide business services. That must have resonated with me and I did something that most people don’t do, I took action! The other was literally sitting on an Easy Jet plane. Hence the reason the business is called ‘Made Simple’- ‘Easy’ had already gone!

Apart from Westbury and the Made Simple Group, your entrepreneurial interests have taken you to other industries.  Tell us a bit about your decisions and what made you choose food and the catering industry?

Like so many decisions in life, the steps you take and the path you eventually go down are not always a matter of planning and sometimes happen as much by luck than by judgement. Situations which at the time were relatively stressful resulted in events that led me to meet people at critical times in my career. So it was with food and catering. I was there at the beginning when Vernon Mascarenhas and Gregg Wallace, of Masterchef fame, started their farm, selling produce to the London Restaurant industry. It was natural that when they decided to set up a restaurant, I was involved with this as well. Along the way, I have found the restaurant sector to be one where I could really add value.

What surprises you most, about your own personal interest in being an entrepreneur?

Nothing really surprises me about my interests in being an entrepreneur. It is probably the only creative way I can express myself, being lousy in most other creative activities.

What surprises you most, about your own success in being an entrepreneur?

I’m a great believer that luck plays a part in everyone’s life and that is really the case for me. Being in the right place at the right time and meeting the right people at that time helped a great deal and although I have probably made some good decisions along the way, I probably had a fair share of luck as well.

Where do you find your inspiration – is it from making money or being happy?

Both are important, but seeing a plan work is the most gratifying.

You don’t at all come across as a typical ‘accountant’. Without wanting to pigeon-hole accountants, why do you think you stand out from the crowd?

I was always more interested in the business side than accountancy per se. Unlike many accountants who enjoy the financial side, the idea of building businesses always appealed to me. Naturally, this made me stand out a bit and many people said to me that I wasn’t a typical accountant.

What would you say to people who say …. ‘Accountants don’t make good entrepreneurs’?

I agree 100% and that’s why I have decided to give up accountancy.

You’ve been nominated and won a number of business awards. How has this helped the Made Simple Group?

Business Awards are great, even if you don’t win them as they help sharpen your focus and enable you to review where you’ve been and where you are going. Winning them is of course excellent for credibility and confidence and gives the team a great lift too.

How do you feel when your staff say to you to ‘leave them too it….’ And not to interfere?!?

A member of my team recently turned to me and said “DI” which stands for ‘don’t interfere’. It really is hard not to micromanage people but realistically, there is no way that you can grow a business and deal with all the small stuff yourself. I recognise that many of my team do what they do better than I could do it and even if they make the odd mistake, you can’t do everything yourself. I think it’s important to let people do it their way and grow.

If you could see in to the future, what do you think will be the most important aspects of business that businesses will have to do in order to survive the next 12 months?

This is a really difficult one particularly as none of us know the way the things are going to develop with the world economy, but assuming the worst, I think many businesses will need to look very closely at their costs and cashflow. This is going to be a sizeable challenge and could lead to staff reductions. However, difficult times also present great opportunities and hard work, judicious decision making, and a little bit of luck should help many survive. Generally, the businesses that go to the wall, and this is a generalisation, are those that never did particularly well in the good times.

 I know you’re passionate about online and digital technologies, what makes you so passionate about businesses being online?

I’ve always been an early adopter having been involved in IT in one way or another since 1983, when I put my first computer into a business. The internet was something that I realised had great potential, even way back in the 1990’s, and I have become even more convinced by its relevance for business. The problem with so many people online is that their presence is poor and they do nothing about it, that’s assuming they have an online presence – as many still don’t. Without an online presence I truly believe there is no future for a business. With one, you have a chance.

And what would you say when a business owner says that they don’t need a website?

Without being too dramatic or extreme; anyone who would say to me that they do not need a website at all needs their head examined. They might as well say that they don’t need a business card or any other marketing tool. A website doesn’t have to be all singing all dancing and has to be fit for purpose but potentially, it can do so much more than any other system. There isn’t a business in the world that doesn’t have potential and opportunities from using the web.

What do you think will be ‘the next big thing’ to hit the internet – the latest was social media, what do you think could be the upsell from that?

If I knew that, I don’t think I’d still be working.

You’re busy all the time – and meet so many people – are you planning to slow down at all?

I am busy and I do meet lots of people, but I also know how to relax and don’t really feel any stress at all. I have a great team who I trust and I find it relatively easy to take plenty of breaks and know that the business is in safe hands. I read something recently from a book called ‘Rework’ which summed up my attitude to workaholism. In the book, they say ‘…working more doesn’t mean that you care more or you get more done. It just means you work more… No one makes sharp decisions when tired…workaholics are not heroes. They don’t save the day, they just use it up. The real hero is already home…’

What’s the funniest story you can share with us that’s happened to you in business?

Nothing springs to mind or nothing that I can say publicly!