Hi

Most small business owners in the UK know they “should” have a board of advisers. Few do. And those who try often end up with something that looks good on paper but doesn’t change how the business runs day to day.

Here’s the truth: a board is only as valuable as the discipline, candour, and focus it brings. And on that score, private equity (PE) backed businesses have shown us a better way.

PE investors demand results. Their boards are smaller, sharper, and much more focused on value creation than their public company equivalents. McKinsey research shows PE boards spend 21% more of their time on strategy than public company boards — and are four times more likely to say their decisions have a very high impact on value creation.

So, what if you could borrow that same discipline and apply it in your own business — not with expensive non-executives, but with a virtual board of directors powered by AI and ChatGPT?

Why your business needs a virtual board

Running a business is lonely. Decisions about pricing, hiring, growth, or even whether to drop a client land squarely on your shoulders. A virtual board gives you access to diverse perspectives without the cost or complexity of a full boardroom.

The idea is simple: you set up a small group of AI “directors”, each representing a distinct viewpoint (Finance, Marketing, Operations, Client Experience, Strategy). Then you feed them your monthly management report and key challenges. They debate, challenge, and give you a sharper recommendation than you’d reach on your own.

But to make it work, you need to design it with the PE playbook in mind.

Seven PE practices to build into your virtual board

1. Establish clear expectations for directors
PE boards make it crystal clear what’s expected: every director thinks like an owner, focuses on value creation, and doesn’t shy away from hard conversations. Do the same with your virtual board. Write a one-page “mandate” for each director GPT: what they care about, what they challenge, and what they output.

2. Keep the board small and sharp
The average public company board has 10+ directors. PE boards? About seven. For your business, 5–6 is plenty:

• Chair & Strategy
• Finance & Risk
• Marketing & Growth
• Operations & Tech
• Client Experience & Retention
• (Optional) Challenger / Red-Team

That’s enough diversity to avoid groupthink but not so many voices that nothing gets decided.

3. Spend more time with important stakeholders
PE directors don’t just sit in meetings. They talk to customers, employees, and investors to get the unvarnished truth. You can mimic this by feeding client feedback, survey results, or even transcripts of client calls into your virtual board. It ensures your directors are working with reality, not assumptions.

4. Create a “value creation bridge”
PE boards love their value creation bridges — a one-page graphic showing today’s value on the left and the specific levers (pricing, margin, lead flow, retention, expansion) that will double it over the next three years. Build one for your business. Then make it the centrepiece of every virtual board session. Ask: which levers are we pulling? Which are stuck?

5. Use meeting time to decide, not to present

In PE, there’s no time wasted on slide decks that simply repeat the numbers. The preread carries the data; the board meeting is for debate and decision. Do the same: send your virtual board a concise pack (KPIs, pipeline, issues, questions) and use the session to generate 2–3 tough, actionable decisions.

6. Engage outside formal meetings
PE directors create impact between meetings — shadowing teams, attending customer events, or running deep dives. For your virtual board, this means running ad hoc queries. Don’t wait until the “monthly meeting”: if you’ve got a pricing dilemma or a marketing test that needs stress-testing, ask your Finance Director GPT or Marketing Director GPT there and then.

7. Tie incentives to value creation
In PE, directors’ rewards are linked to the equity value they create. You can’t give your virtual directors equity, of course, but you can hardwire their prompts to focus relentlessly on value drivers. For example:

• Finance Director: “Only recommend actions that increase average sales value or gross margin.”
• Marketing Director: “Prioritise lead generation ideas with lowest CAC and fastest payback.”

That way, every recommendation is anchored in what really moves the needle.

How to run your first virtual board meeting

1. Prepare a pack: one page of key numbers (MRR, average fee, CAC, margin, pipeline, client health).
2. Brief your directors: paste the pack into ChatGPT with instructions for each role.
3. Set the agenda: 2–3 strategic questions (e.g. “Should we invest £5k in LinkedIn ads?”).
4. Debate: let each director give their perspective.
5. Challenge: ask your “Red-Team Director” to find flaws.
6. Decide: the Chair summarises 3 concrete actions, owners, and deadlines.

A virtual board is more than a gimmick. Done well, it gives you the discipline of PE without the cost of private equity capital. It forces you to think like an investor: where’s the value, what levers matter most, and what are we going to do about it this month?

For small business owners who want time and financial freedom, that’s a game-changer.

Noel Guilford

PS I you’d like my help to create your virtual board of directors and monthly management pack drop me an email.