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It’s a beautiful thing when a career and passion come together. No one knows this better than Tina Siebrandt. Tina’s passion is in healthcare which was inspired by her parents. Even in high school, Tina spent her time at the local assisted living facility community caring for seniors.

As time went on, Tina completed a degree in psychiatry, but found herself drifting back to her love of assisting an underserved and growing populations such as the elderly. Tina was sickened when she saw the need for dental and mental health services in senior and assisted living facilities and knew she needed to take action.

She enrolled in courses to obtain a certification in the administration and management of assisted living facilities. Once she completed her certification, Tina decided she wanted to buy a business!

Tina gravitated toward practices that supported marginalized communities. However, she didn’t find the right opportunity until she connected with the Firm Advisors. Align Care is a local Omaha Health Practice in a host of different disciplines that had over 25 active clients at the onset of her ownership. By May 2021, Align Care will have more than 200 mental health patients.

Through her buying process, Tina discovered the joys and hurdles many buyers are all too familiar with. Due to her challenges with securing financing, Tina advised “Always have a backup [bank]…or three,” and stressed that networking and making connections with different bankers, lawyers, and CPA’s is critical. By overcoming these hurdles, Tina not only learned a great deal about the process of assembling her own business “dream team” but fully realized her dedication to her pursuit of helping others. 

 “You can’t be everything, no matter how badly you want to be as an entrepreneur.” She said that by gaining advisory assistance through the help of a CPA, she was able to sit down and discuss her goals and plan actionable steps towards achieving her dream. 

After closing on August 14th, Tina dove right into a hands-on training and transition period with the prior owner. At this time, the Covid-19 pandemic was in full swing, but Tina just re-doubled her efforts. With the care facilities’ limited access to outside services, Align Care’s in-home clinics were needed now more than ever. Tina understood the essential nature of her business and fought harder than ever to provide seniors with access to dental and mental health care services. Growing mental health needs in these elder populations that have been forced to isolate from family during these trying times. Align Care has been adding more providers to aid in their mission to meet the growing demand and supply therapists and medication management to those in need. Align Care also serves its community by providing mobile dental units that offer dentistry procedures including restorative and denture services and x-rays virtually anywhere including libraries and conference rooms. 

Align Care’s core mission is to add a personal and familiar touch to the services offered by ensuring that her team members are placed as a regular part of the healthcare teams at each senior facility. Tina remembers her roots, but her eyes are set for the horizon and her plans for expansion.

 

Tina Siebrandt’s advice to entrepreneurs:

  • Build your network. Entrepreneurs often find themselves wanting to assume many roles. However, by assembling a multi-faceted, reliable team, you can become more knowledgeable and better prepared to tackle deals. 
  • Follow your passion. Resilience and patience are key to making transactions go smoothly and there will undeniably be some hurdles. If your mindset is on following your passion, you will be more likely to fight to make smart, actionable progress. 
  • Identify a need for the opportunity. This can give you the angle to market yourself and your business intelligently, even in uncertain times. 
  • Always look for growth. Once you have identified a need for the services you are offering, connect with other communities and businesses in the area to expand your horizons. 
  • Do your homework. Is there a license or certification that can make you more marketable in a competitive industry? It may be worth your while to pursue an addition to your resume to make you stand out in the crowd of buyers. This can be especially effective if you are new to the industry and looking to promote yourself next to entrepreneurs with more experience. 
  • Always have a backup. Hurdles in financing are not uncommon, so it doesn’t bode well to put all your eggs in one basket. Connect with your network and identify several options for commercial bankers to approach regarding financing. 
  • Specify a mission. Tina was able to narrow down her goal: to serve underserved populations. From here, she was able to identify what communities qualify as underserved and pursue the types of services specific to their needs.

 

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The Firm makes no warranties or representation in consideration to the information provided above. All communication regarding this business must occur directly with The Firm Advisors, LLC. The Firm is not a real estate brokerage and does not sell real estate. The Firm solely advises on exit strategy.