Small to medium sized organizations occupy a large percentage of the market place. Approximately 90% of the businesses globally fall into the small to medium size business. It is no surprise to learn that many of these organizations go on to be very successful within their industry, and if they had introduced the relevant practices from the get go, like the best resource management software from ProSymmetry, they would have been able to manage their business more effectively, providing them with little to no trouble down the line. How good is that? Now here is the scary part!

Approximately 71% of the business owners are planning on exiting their business in the next ten years. They have spent years building the business, hiring new employees, dealing with conflicts, learning the difference between different healthcare plans (Learn More Here), and so much more! So, they're planning on selling their business and living off the sales it brings. The optimum word in the last sentence is "planning". Only 7% actually have a formal succession plan of any kind. So at 11:59am on the day that a business owner is leaving the company panic and pandemonium will set in all because we didn't put a plan in place. Not having the time to plan is not a viable excuse. We assumed that everything would take care of itself and we could turn the keys over to someone on our way out the door. We assumed that someone would come knocking on our door with the idea in mind of buying our business. We assumed that all of that would be in place and that we could use the money from the sale of the business to fund our long overdue retirement. Something is drastically missing from this picture – a succession plan!

There are a number of barriers to the whole process. Some of these include: financing the successor, finding a suitable successor, reducing the dependency on the current owner, and valuing the business. It doesn't have to be that way. Firstly, you could contact an Austin business broker to help you sell your business. A business broker will help make the process MUCH easier! Or, you could do all of the hard work yourself!

Finding a suitable successor has always been a challenge. The most popular exit strategy (37%) is to sell to a third party after learning How to Sell Your Business for a fair price. Only 26% of business owners would sell to a family member as part of their exit strategy. Preparing your successor takes time and a willingness to help someone learn and grow. Two key steps need to take place when a business is changing hands. There must be a knowledge transfer from the current owner to the successor. There must be some form of leadership development prior to the departure of the current owner and that development process will more than likely be on going. The knowledge transfer and the leadership development are tasks that we can address through the mentoring process. This is ideally where an external mentor works the best to guide the transfer of knowledge. The external mentor can also play a huge role in the development of leadership skills on an ongoing basis or for a pre-determined time frame. In most mentoring relationships that I have seen in this particular role, the successor and the mentor will arrive at a time point where the need for the mentoring will diminish over time.

All of this sounds daunting as there seems to be a lot of moving pieces to the puzzle. It doesn't have to be that way. There are people that can quarterback for you and guide you to professional resources that will work with you through the process. One such organization is SuccessionMatching.com.

SuccessionMatching.com is an online platform that allows business owners to privately find potential buyers. They also connect members with economic development officers and succession planning professionals who can provide resources and advice throughout the process.

There is no need to wait to plan your exit strategy. You can begin that journey now and reduce the stress in doing so simply by reaching out for some guidance. You have worked hard to create your legacy and now you need to ensure that your legacy continues on for years to come. Begin the journey to build that succession plan today – can you afford not to?
References:
1. http://www.thompsonlaw.ca/pdf_folder/Succession_Survey.pdf
2. https://www.cga-pdnet.org/Non_VerifiableProducts/ArticlePublication/SuccessionPlanningSME/SuccessionPlanningSME.pdf
3. http://www.successionmatching.com/?p=1355