Colin Sanburg: From Financial House of Cards to Thriving Enterprise
Colin Sanburg: From Financial House of Cards to Thriving Enterprise  
Podcast: Scouting for Growth
Published On: Wed Jun 19 2024
Description: On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL talks to Colin Sanburg, a seasoned entrepreneur & the Founder of FinElevate, an innovative strategic finance firm that is changing the game for small businesses. On this episode, we dive into Colin's entrepreneurial journey, explore the challenges faced by small business owners, & learn how FinElevate is revolutionising small business finance. KEY TAKEAWAYS If there were 10 things that could kill a company, the very first business I got involved with was doing 9 of them! It was in really rough shape. But from the hardships of figuring out how to make it less bad & eventually get better, I became obsessed with finance & how to build a better business. Now there are many more entrepreneurial groups & masterminds, but earlier in my career, I went years without knowing any other entrepreneurs. They were the hardest years when I was trying to figure things out. Luckily, I got turned on to a couple of books. After I got through that & connected to other entrepreneurs, the second stage of my career began. When people hear “fractional CFO,” they think of a really experienced person who is C-Suite level who’s going to give them a complicated 12-page plan of all the things they should be doing that they don’t have the time to do. That doesn’t work for entrepreneurs; entrepreneurs want freedom, their business to do better than ever & live a better lifestyle. It’s hard to do that, but we get into your business to help improve it The reality is, most businesses need to do some of the same things. We can train your team & get into your business &, instead of giving you a 12-page plan, we can say for the next quarter we’re going to focus on these areas based on your goals, thus making progress.  BEST MOMENTS ‘You can get trapped in a bubble of small business & limited mindset, but once you break out of that & work with other entrepreneurs, it’s so exciting.’ ‘We’re training your leadership team. The fear when you ask them to make more profit is that the team hears: “Make me more money.” When we come in, we teach them how to grow their career as well as the company.’ ‘The goal is not to do 450 things at once, it’s to have 450 things mapped out so that we know the next thing to focus on.’ ‘You need to understand how your business makes money & you can describe that on a napkin.’ ABOUT THE GUEST Colin Sanburg is the Founder & CEO of FinElevate, an innovative strategic finance firm that helps small business owners leverage their financial data to drive profitability & growth. With an MBA & extensive experience as an owner & CEO of manufacturing, distribution, & service businesses, Colin has developed a passion for demystifying small business finance & empowering entrepreneurs to achieve their dreams. Colin's passion for connecting with & supporting fellow entrepreneurs led him to start several mastermind groups, where he became the go-to person for financial strategy & advice. He pursued an executive MBA to further enhance his skills & knowledge. Through his experiences, Colin has gained invaluable insights into the financial challenges faced by small business owners & is dedicated to helping them navigate the complexities of business finance to achieve long-term success. ABOUT THE HOST Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet. If this episode sparked your thinking, follow Sabine VanderLinden on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram for more insights. And if you’re interested in sponsoring the podcast, reach out to the team at hello@alchemycrew.ventures