“TAKE THIS EXIT” - REALIZING VALUE YOU’VE BUILT BY FINDING A PARTNER THAT PROVIDES THE RIGHT CULTURE AND THE RIGHT TRANSACTION

Selling a business can be the single most important decision of an entrepreneur or small business owner’s life.  It’s an emotionally-charged, often deeply personal matter for them. Their business is typically the single largest element of his or her asset base and estate, often with both real capital tied up and huge amounts of sweat equity invested. The company has probably been the center of the entrepreneur or small business owner’s life, with relationships that have been built with partners, employees and customers that are nearly family-like.  Often, it’s not just a company that has been created, but a culture.  

But with all this at stake, few entrepreneurs ever plan their exit.  Typically, they first really begin to think about it when a prospective buyer approaches them.  Or worse, when external pressures, like health, family or partner problems force the issue.  And even those that, actually, do some planning for their exit, find it can be an overwhelmingly complicated decision with layers of questions to be answered before beginning to move ahead and still more to consider once you do.  

Questions and considerations like when is the right time to sell; the difference between valuation and proceeds; how to find the “right” buyer with more than the right transaction, but the right culture; ensuring your employees are “taken care of;” how will the company be managed after you’re gone – what’s your succession plan; how to make due diligence work for you; managing expectations and living with the result, and many more.

This talk will examine the answers to these questions and many more to help the small business owner better understand the benefits of being prepared, the sale process, including the pitfalls to avoid and key issues to consider.  The session will provide not only useful information to take away, but “war stories” and “real life” examples that support the advice provided.

It is broken down into the four key segments of any sale process – the Decision, the Plan, the Approach and the Deal and should provide the audience with a good sense of what’s ahead for a successful exit.