Our Founder's Note
Founder
Bachelor of Laws LLB (Hons),
University Of Buckingham (UK)
Barrister-At-Law Of The Middle Temple
Advocate & Solicitor (Singapore)
Accredited Mediator,
Singapore International Mediation Institute
Member, Accreditation Core Committee
Singapore Institute of Legal Education
Trained Negotiator (University of Oxford)
Year Of Call – 1993
I
started my own law practice more than 26 years ago. I recall that sometime into my 10th year, I was approached by a fairly large law firm to join and head their corporate litigation department. I never forgot what the managing partner told me: “Mark, your small business suffers from days between feasts and famine, whereas in a large company, this is something you will never have to experience again.” I immediately recognised the truth of that statement and very nearly wanted to give up my small business to go join a bigger outfit. But, as people now know, I never did. Why?
Instead of just accepting the truth of that statement, I decided to challenge it by asking myself a further question:
why is it that all small companies have to suffer this?
My search for an answer led me to discover that small businesses actually need not have to suffer this if they learned the secrets of large companies and applied them. I soon learned that all businesses comprise of 5 basic functions of Sales, Operations, HR, Finance and Legal Structures. Like most small business owners who frequently focus on sales and do not normally have the time nor “head space” to think about the other 4 functions.
I changed my way of thinking about my business. I started to think and act by juggling all the 5 functions. This has now resulted in me not having to suffer the “feast and famine” problem. This has also helped me tremendously to weather through 5 global recessions.
Many business owners think that legal problems can be solved in isolation to the rest of the other business functions. However, the truth is that it has to be solved in the context of the rest of the business functions. This is where VanillaLaw® LLC is unique. With more than 26 years of experience as a business owner in the SME space, I can safely say I have deep understanding of the challenges faced daily by my clients, and therefore, I am able to offer them solutions designed for their businesses.
Hear more from Mark:
My Origin Story
I
started my own law practice more than 26 years ago. I recall that sometime into my 10th year, I was approached by a fairly large law firm to join and head their corporate litigation department. I never forgot what the managing partner told me: “Mark, your small business suffers from days between feasts and famine, whereas in a large company, this is something you will never have to experience again.” I immediately recognised the truth of that statement and very nearly wanted to give up my small business to go join a bigger outfit. But, as people now know, I never did. Why?
Instead of just accepting the truth of that statement, I decided to challenge it by asking myself a further question: why is it so that all small companies have to suffer this? My search for an answer led me discover that small businesses actually need not have to suffer this if they learned the secrets of large companies and applied them. I soon learned that all businesses comprise of 5 basic functions of Sales, Operations, HR, Finance and Legal Structures. Like most small business owners who frequently focus on sales and do not normally have the time nor “head space” to think about the other 4 functions.
I changed my way of thinking about my business. I started to think and act by juggling all the 5 functions. This has now resulted in me not having to suffer the “feast and famine” problem.
Many business owners think that legal problems can be solved in isolation to the rest of the other business functions. However, the truth is that it has to be solved in the context of the rest of the business functions. This is where VanillaLaw® LLC is unique. With more than 26 years of experience as a business owner in the SME space, I can safely say I have deep understanding of the challenges faced daily by my clients, and therefore, I am able to offer them solutions designed for their businesses.
MARK GOH
Founder
LLB (Hons), University Of Buckingham (UK)
Barrister-At-Law Of The Middle Temple
Advocate & Solicitor (Singapore)
SIMI Accredited Mediator
Year Of Call – 1993
