Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

30 Questions. That’s all it takes for Al Da Silva’s AI software to deliver tailored recommendations for startups and small businesses.

How does it work?

Small business leaders complete an in-depth evaluation of their company’s operations and receive a Business X-Ray with actionable next steps. They participate in a strategic vision workshop, ongoing training, and guidance from a virtual chief operating officer, as well as high-performance tactical plans for the next 90 days.

“Even though I love these processes, working with the business owners and entrepreneurs has been the most satisfying part to me,” Da Silva said. “I noticed how empowering it is for leaders to execute with their team, without consultants.”

That’s an interesting statement for Da Silva, who owns a consulting firm called Da Silva Business Consulting, which has delivered $100 million of value to Mid-South businesses through business intelligence (BI) and operational enhancement.

“Yes, I’m preaching against myself here,” he laughed. “But this business accelerator teaches these entrepreneurs the core and foundational principles of business. They learn, they implement, and the lightbulb goes off in their heads. It’s really cool.”

Da Silva’s background

In 1998, Da Silva moved from Brazil to the United States. His ultimate goal was to work in health care, so he enrolled in nursing school at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee.

“The decision came after a lot of prayer and mentorship,” he said. “I think one of the best decisions I made was to become a nurse.”

That career launched him into health care operations and administration. It ultimately led him back to school, this time at the University of Memphis, to earn a master’s degree in hospital administration. He worked in hospital administration for several years.

“By accident, I kind of got involved with entrepreneurship when somebody asked for help on a business plan,” he said.
The experience opened his eyes to how much fun it can be to build something from scratch. So, he left behind his clock-in, clock-out routine and opened his own consultancy in 2017, going full-time in 2019.

“I’ve been blessed. One of my former bosses called me up shortly after I launched the business and asked if I could help him turn his hospital operations around. That was my first big contract,” Da Silva said.

Since then, his business has expanded into many different industries, not just health care.

“My advice? Relationships, relationships, relationships. Be in front of people and never burn a bridge. That’s the best advice I have,” Da Silva said.

After finding success in consulting, Da Silva started to recognize the same six things plaguing business owners and preventing them from achieving their potential.

The six areas of focus

• Leadership & Execution
• People & Process
• Customer & Marketing

“These things must go together. For example, you cannot separate the marketing from the customer, just like you can’t separate the leaders from the execution. Most of the time, problems happen when those things are disconnected,” he said.

Now, he’s sharing that knowledge, preventing business pitfalls, and implementing change through his signature six-month Roadmap to Success Business Accelerator.

“The final piece of the accelerator is that it had to be implementable. In other words, these business owners had to be able to go and apply it to their business,” Da Silva said.

He is looking forward to welcoming the next cohort of founders. He anticipates the next group will kick off in West Tennessee in the spring.

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