Exit Planning -- the M²R² Way

Are you ready to turn over the keys

of your business to a new owner? 

Is your business well-positioned to attract serious buyers and valued to provide optimum return on your investment?

Have you decided to whom you want to sell, under what terms, by when and for how much? 

Have you protected your family, staff and business in the event of unforeseen catastrophe?

The majority of business owners -- from 60% to 90% -- are not prepared, don't have an exit strategy and aren't working on one, according to a number of recent surveys* by independent business organizations.

At the same time,  nearly all owners say it's important to have an exit plan for both their future and for the future of their business.  More than 60% of small business owners are planning to leave their businesses in the next 10 years.

• 65% of business owners don't know the value of their business.
• Only about 12% have calculated how much money they need to receive from the sale of their businesses in order to retire.
• 15.14% have talked to an Exit Advisor about creating a plan.

Another startling statistic:  From 75% to 90% of businesses for sale DO NOT SELL.  All say the #1 reason is -- a failure to do pre-sale planning.

One more good reason to do your planning -- In the opinion of business attorneys involved in the legal issues of buying and selling businesses and of business brokers, having a well-thought out and documented ownership transfer plan is worth more than 7 times the cost of its preparation to the business owner.  A 7 to 1 return on your investment would certainly seem a sound reason to proceed with creating your Exit Plan!

Transferring ownership of your business is likely to be the most significant financial event in your life.  It's not one you want to leave to chance.

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*Sources:

BEI 2014 Business Owner Survey

Institute for Independent Business (IIB)

Securian Financial Group

Price Waterhouse Coopers

M&A Today

White Horse Advisors, LLC/by CMI marketing research company

Exiting your business successfully can be as challenging as it was to set it up and run it. 

Creating your exit plan involves consideration of a myriad of issues:  legal, financial, operations, marketing, staffing, systems and procedures documentation, taxes, and more.  The process can feel overwhelming.

Our purpose is to help make the exit planning process manageable.  Our 14-step M²R² program, outlined below, is designed to provide a logical, value-adding roadmap that you can follow at your own pace.  A practical, on-the-ground approach, our program not only pinpoints what needs to be done, but also how to go about it.

The intent is to craft a plan that maximizes the value of your business to the prospective buyer and enables you to leave the business when you want to, on your own terms, and receive the funds you want in order to maintain the lifestyle you have chosen post-sale.

That requires taking the actions necessary to maximize the value of your business:

• Putting in place the well-defined operational systems needed, especially if your business is almost entirely dependent upon the skills and reputation of a single individual;
• Putting in place a trained management team that can bridge the seller and buyer to ensure continued smooth running of the business; and
• Implementing the organizational, marketing and financial strategies necessary to maximize that value, take time to mature and take hold.

In actuality, exit planning is long-term business planning.  Preparing an exit plan is not a stand-alone event.  Inherent to this preparation is focused, ongoing work ON your business, likely affording benefits today -- it can have a material, positive impact on profitability, cash flow and value of your business while you are still in control through to the point in time when you exit.

Further, it provides the wealth of information, facts and figures, that the valuation consultant and business broker need to value your business and create an attractive proposal for purchase for your business.

Anticipate that it will take 1 to 5 years or more to create and implement your plan in order to position your business to be optimally attractive to potential buyers. 

The 14-Step M²R² Process

Phase I:  Analyze the Current Situation of Your Business (3 Steps)

Self-Assessments, Existing Documentation, Detailed Information Gathering on the 12 areas of your business

Phase II: Develop Your Exit Plan (9 Steps)

Goal Setting, Exit Strategy, Exit Team, Document Business Operations and Marketing Processes, Preliminary Asset Valuation, Action Plan for Business Improvement where needed, Business Financials,

Business Funding (if needed), Finalizing the Plan

Phase III: Implement Your Exit Plan (2 steps)

Final valuation, retain broker to proceed with sale of your business (as appropriate), SELL YOUR BUSINESS!  Congratulations!

To learn more about our M²R² roadmap for exit planning for your business, request a copy of our complimentary booklet Exit Planning:  A Practical Guide to Preparing You and Your Business to Achieve the Best Return on Your Investment in Your Business," through our Contact Us page.  We will send you our booklet describing the process and the benefits that thoughtful exit planning can bring you.