Business Exit Strategies

Do you own your own business? Working long hours with no exit in sight?

Rather be fishing?

We can help. We specialise in working with business owners to find innovative new ways for them to be released from their businesses either part time or full time.

Many business owners are trapped in a vicious cycle of long working hours, limited management oversight and a desire to exit the business within the next five years.

We use a three step process to help business owners agree a strategy that will allow them to enjoy their business, their retirement or both. The process that we use is broken down into three stages.

Stage 1 - Meeting with the Owner

We meet with owners and discuss their personal goals and aspirations over the next five years -  for the business and for their personal lives. Often we will include spouses and loved ones in this discussion. From this we create a wish list from the owner as to how they would like to see their future unfold.

Stage 2 - Understanding the Business

We cannot make any recommendations unless we understand the business and the current interaction of the owner within the business. We facilitate a review of the business to compare it to best practice standards for a business of its type. We review internal processes and reporting mechanisms as well as evaluating key staff and business prospects.

Part of this process involves documenting all of the roles that the owner currently undertakes and also to identify what other resources are available in the company to take over some of these responsibilities.

Typically, a business owner cannot spend more time away from the business until some of his workload can be offloaded, while still retaining the quality of work performed.

Stage 3 - Recommending and Implementing a Plan

After Stage 2, we present the a series of recommendations (in the form of a Plan) to the owner with a timeframe for completion. This recommendation will usually involve a number of steps to be taken to achieve the overall objective and to align with the owner's personal wish list.

We then work with the owner to resource the plan to ensure that it will be a success. 

What Owners get from the Process

Review of Business - the business review process allows a number of recommendations to be given to the company to allow the owner to achieve their stated outcome. These recommendations in themselves have great value in comparing the business against best practice and identifying areas that can be improved.

This document identifies risks to the business and steps that can be taken to ameliorate these risks. Opportunities for improvement are also identified and some recommendations given as to how these may be realised.

The plan also provides a template for setting up Key Performance Indicators for the business that will allow the owner to remotely monitor the health of the business while they are "away" from the business.

The plan is a pathway that allows the owner to move from their current situation to a new situation that they desire.

Implementation program - Corporate Management Advice Ltd will assist the owner in implementing recommendations that are put forward and agreed. This involves putting an implementation program in place, with key objectives, responsibilities and timeframes. The end result is a realisation of the owner's goals and aspirations for themselves and their businesses.

For more information call Craig McIvor on 021 355 365 to arrange a confidential meeting or email craigmcivor@managementadvice.org