Too little working capital had been a constant problem at Industrial Robotics (IR), a designer of automated manufacturing equipment. But, in 2010, with 47 employees and seven offices across North America, IR faced a cash shortage that threatened to hit $1 million. Founder Jack Miller wasn’t concerned. But his banker, Mario Sarducci, thought that amount was too much for a company barely doing $5 million in sales. Sarducci had worked on the IR file for the previous decade and wanted Miller to reduce his travelling expenses, shrink overhead, maximize profits, and give the bank good financial information. “You’re not running a profitable operation,” Sarducci lectured, “and your balance sheet doesn’t support your credit. My bank has gone as far as it will go.” Indeed, the bank had gone even further. At the end of 2010, IR had overdrawn its $800,000 line of credit by $300,000. If Sarducci had refused to honour those cheques, he would have forced the company to close. But Miller wasn’t alarmed: “Entrepreneurs come up against barriers. They’re walls to some; to others, they’re only hurdles.”

Why do you think Miller and Sarducci have such different views on the company’s needs? What suggestions would you give Miller?