Owner-Managers:
Want a clear Exit Plan, in 12 weeks?
Your mission over the next 12 weeks, should you choose to accept it, is to produce your Exquisite Exit Plan: clarifying how you will
monetize your stake, modify your management role & secure your legacy - in ways that are optimal for you, yet de-risked
Exit Planning isn't easy for us entrepreneurs, even at the best of times. It involves 3 transitions, the timings of which are inter-connected and the significance of which is often deeply personal.
The 3 transitions have to do with Monetization, Management and Meaning: the 3 M's that matter most to us entrepreneurs in our businesses.
Some Exit 'runways', such as a Trade Sale, may bring about all 3 transitions simultaneously. But others, such as sale to an Employee Ownership Trust, can crystallize a (tax-free) monetization schedule while leaving you in the management driving seat for as long as you want.
So it's vital to understand which 'runway' would 'bring your business in to land' most comfortably for you.
The Exit that optimizes all 3 transitions for you is what I call your "Exquisite Exit". But, because we're not in the best of times, our Exit Plans also need to cater for contingencies.
However, the good news is that achieving your 'Exquisite Exit' is not as tricky as it seems, provided you plan for it.
Although there's a lot to think through for Owner-Managers, and we may have emotional attachments that complicate matters, it makes sense to face the issues and have a plan. Otherwise, we risk getting blown off course and, God forbid, even having to make an Emergency landing if conditions deteriorate.
But be encouraged - help is at hand, through the "CLEAR TO LAND" course with my live coaching.
If you feel it's time to grasp the nettle and finally get clarity in the complex area of Exit planning, I'm here to help with this course.
Happy landings!
David Young, Founder & CEO, Shield Corporate Finance Ltd
Do you really want to leave your entrepreneurial 'landing' to chance?
(Especially in these turbulent times?)
The fact that you're reading this as an Entrepreneur shows that you achieved your 'Take-Off' successfully, and quite possibly by yourself. You probably rely a lot on your instincts to pilot your business - and you deserve great credit for that. But bringing your business in to land involves a set of inter-locking challenges you may not have faced before. It's not just about doing a deal for your shares. It's about extracting yourself from management without damaging the business or its value. And you may well want to try to preserve what's meaningful about your business 'baby' as it moves to a new home. How best to sequence these inter-related transitions? And what about the tax issues at the end of each potential landing strip? No wonder Exit Planning gets postponed ... sometimes, sadly, 'til it's too late to avoid a crash landing.
I understand the anxiety & confusion we Entrepreneurs can feel as we peer into the future, wondering how & when to bring our businesses in to land (hoping to escape economic or personal cross-winds and down-draughts in the mean-time):
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"I'm not ready to retire!"
Understood. But if you don't want to risk delaying Exit until you're ready to retire, what about selling to an Employee Ownership Trust? That way, you can lock in a tax-free fair price, while staying in the saddle for as long as you like!
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"I want to (re-)build value before Exit"
Very understandable. But how long will that take? And how long do you, personally, have (bearing in mind other life pressures)? Also, bear in mind that your business may offer significant combination-value to trade buyers. That combination-value may offset a recent decline in your stand-alone value. Worth exploring!
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"I'm waiting for the business/economy to improve"
OK. That's a natural and common desire. But how long might that take? And how does that business schedule fit with your own personal plans and aspirations? Even if you're confident that your business is set to thrive in these unpredictable times, maybe it's worth having a contingency plan? After all, who would have predicted the events of the last two years?
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"Management succession takes time"
It does. But if you plan to maximise price by selling to a keen strategic buyer, they may not need your management team, anyway. There are ways to find out. You don't want to delay sale for spurious reasons!
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"I might just retire and take dividends"
Fair enough. A lot of Owner-Managers can't find better-yielding investments than their own business. But do you have strong enough second-tier management in place to keep the dividends flowing once you've stepped back? If not, an EOT could give you tax-free proceeds while you work on management succession.
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"Haven't figured out yet whether an Employee Ownership Trust would make sense for us"
This course will enable you to explore and discuss that, while comparing the EOT outcome with the likely results of alternative Exit options. Even if a Trade Sale looks like your best route, all things considered, an EOT sale could be a useful stalking horse in negotiations and provide a contingency plan for you. Let's see...
What if you could open a channel to a 'Control Tower' expert, who can talk you through the manoeuvres to bring you in to land safely?
Your business is like a 'plane, powered by the fuel of its cash flow and exposed to the ambient weather conditions. Bringing it in to land, successfully and safely, is an accomplishment. But whereas pilots can train in simulators, entrepreneurs tend to fly by the seat of their pants. Professional advisors on Exit tend to focus on specific runways (such as Sale, or Succession) and often lack an overview of all the options available to the Entrepreneur. Worse still, some business brokers do not behave professionally at all. But in this 'Clear To Land' course, a proven Exit Expert talks you through his proven drill to deliver you a de-risked Exit Plan.
Six Steps to your De-Risked 'Exquisite Exit' Plan:
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1. Watch your Fuel Gauge!
Keep a close eye on all the factors that could curtail your flight time: the monthly cash flow outlook for your business and personal factors including your health, motivation and life-plans. Knowing whether 'time is on your side' is fundamental to planning and negotiation!
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3. Clarify your Goals, & prioritise them (in case of emergency)
For Owner-Managers, Exit tends to involve 3 intertwined transitions: of Management, of Money (for their stake) and of the Meaning of the business they have spent years creating. But not all Exit Runways involve all 3 transitions. An 'Exquisite Exit' is one that meets your goals for all 3 transitions. That's absolutely worth aiming for. If we're not clear what we really want, we reduce our chances of ever getting it! But in challenging circumstances, we have to do the best we can. So it's wise to set priorities, just in case we need to make compromises among our goals.
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5. De-Risk those Exit Plans!
There is much that can be done (though it often isn't!) to De-Risk Exits. I am frequently surprised at how little forethought goes into many entrepreneurs' Exits. Simply going though an Exit Planning process provides a basic level of de-risking. But there are de-risking drills specific to each Runway, and over the years I have developed some methods of significantly reducing the risk of failed Sale. These are all explained during the 'Clear To Land' course.
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2. Know all your Runway Options
Some runways may be much more suitable for you than others. But changing conditions may rule out your preferred runway before you can reach it, while others remain open to you. So it's important to understand the lay of the land, in order to be aware of all your options.
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4. Work out your preferred- & contingency Landing Plans
Different Runways accommodate different Goals. For example, if you want to retire and draw dividends, Management Succession needs to be in place. If you want to retire and sell, a Trade Sale makes sense, whatever the state of your management, whereas an MBO may not, while an EOT Sale in this scenario would also need management succession to be in place. If you have the time and inclination to stay on in management, an MBO or EOT Sale might be excellent routes for you. But in all cases, careful consideration needs to be given to the likely after-tax proceeds at the end of each Runway!
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6. Draft your Exit Plans, ready for Action
In order to have a clear basis for action, when the time is right, it's important to capture the thought processes that led to the preferred Exit plans, and to commit those plans to writing.
The 'Clear To Land' course culminates with the compilaton, in a binder, of your Exit Plans:
- Your De-Risked Exquisite Exit Plan, and
- Your Contingency Plan(s)
At last:
an Exit Planning process that gets you "Clear to Land", with plans we put together over 12 weeks
This 12-week group coaching course is designed to deliver you a clear, written plan for your own 'Exquisite Exit', with a contingency plan in case of turbulence.
I guarantee that you will come away with clarity about your Exit goals and plans, both for fair weather and foul.
Imagine the relief and energy that will flow from having that kind of clarity - at last!
Your mission over the next 12 weeks, should you choose to accept it, is to produce your Exquisite Exit Plan: clarifying how to monetize your stake, modify your management role & secure your legacy - in ways that are optimal for you,
yet de-risked.
The Course will guide you step-by-step though my proven,proprietary process
for producing your plan for your 'Exquisite Exit'
The Exit Expert is going to lead you through the 'C.L.E.A.R. T.O. L.A.N.D.' process, to get you safely and confidently to mission accomplished: HAVING YOUR 'EXQUISITE EXIT' PLAN.
Here are the steps we'll be taking towards the delivery of your Plan:
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1. Cash Flow Forecasting
To make sure we can stay airborne long enough to reach our preferred runway, we must monitor our monthly cash flow projections and build reserve financial fuel tanks if necessary (by borrowing or asset sales). Remember: weather conditions can change frighteningly fast!
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2. "Listing Particulars"
We pull together all the information anyone would need in order to understand your business, value it and appreciate all its potentials. (A bit like the listing particulars you'd need if you were selling your house. But in this case it's for confidential distribution to potential partners we could identify for you and which you would approve, when the time is right)
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3. Exquisite Exit
By "Exquisite Exit" I mean one that achieves your goals in all dimensions of the transition, especially Money, Management and Meaning. If we don't get clear about what we really want, we're much less likely to be satisfied once a deal is done. Maybe we will have to make compromises. But maybe not!
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4. Attractions
We brainstorm all the attractions your business holds for potential buyers. This helps us identify potential buyers as well as ensuring we communicate well. We also want to consider all the risks, in their eyes, and how best we might mitigate them in advance.
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5. Runways
As you plan your 'landing', it's vital to know what runways are available to you. Conditions can change suddenly and you might be glad to switch to another approach to get you down safely. From a negotiating standpoint, too, it's always good to cultivate alternatives. You're not limited to Sale, Succession or Liquidation. What about MBO, BIMBO, Merger or Sale to an Employee Ownership Trust? There's more flexibility available to you than you might think!
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6. Think Through the Financials For You
To compare your Runway options in monetary terms, we need to consider the likely timing of installment payments (including any dividends) and their tax treatment in your hands. For example, a Trade Sale might yield a higher headline price, but trigger more tax and deliver less Earn-Out than a (tax-free) sale to an EOT. (Look, I have no axe to grind; I just want you to be clear what you might run into at the end of each possible approach!)
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7. Option Selection
Now we're ready to pick your most promising Runway, with a contingency scenario, so you develop a pragmatic Exit plan that will work for YOU & your business
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8. Landing Gear
It's time to look at the mechanics of your chosen Exit: what happens, when and who does what. What sort of advisory team is necessary/makes sense in each case, how to select legal, tax & other advisers, and how to prepare for Due Diligence investigation by the buyer(s).
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9. Around Again?
If it turns out that landing on our preferred runway is going to be unpalatable, we'll need to decide quickly whether we can pull up and go around again, or whether we're out of fuel and need to make the best of a bad situation. Is time on our side, vis-a-vis valuation growth and current trading conditions? In this session, we focus on what to watch if we ever face a need to abort a landing.
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10. Next Steps: Your Action List for Exit
Time to pull together your Action Plan for your preferred Landing. Here we'll look at check-lists and time-tables, so you can cut and paste to develop your own time-lines and to-do list.
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11. De-Risking Your Landing
Depending on which Runways you have selected for your Plan A and Plan B, there are specific steps that can and should be taken to reduce the risks as you come in to land. I have developed some proprietary strategies for de-risking Sale and some fruitful guidelines for dealing with counter-parties. You will get the benefit of all this, here.
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12. Conclusion: YOUR De-Risked Exit Plans
In the final week, we assemble your Exit Plan binder. Equipped with this, you are ready to start taking action, and delegating some of the preparations. Something to celebrate!
The subject matter is serious, but the Course is fun. It's planned with clear milestones, to pace you in pursuit of a clear objective. It's also designed to be a rewarding and enjoyable experience in its own right - quite apart from the peace of mind and clarity that having your written Exit Plans will bring you!
To reinforce your results from the
'CLEAR TO LAND' Course
I'm adding 3 special bonuses for all those who take action ahead of the deadline:
(I want you to be fully equipped for this exciting process, and I want to make your return on your investment in it so good that signing up is the only sensible thing to do!)
BONUS ONE
A 1:1 Strategy Session with me personally, to clarify your Exit goals & timing constraints
My mission is to help each Owner-Manager I work with to achieve an 'Exquisite Exit' for them. So I'm offering to commit one hour to each Action-Taker who commits to this "CLEAR TO LAND!" live course. Whether by Zoom or by phone, as you prefer, let's discuss what would constitute an ideal Exit for you, in terms of monetizing your stake, transitioning your management role and trying to safeguard the meaningful aspects of the business you have built. This session is a gift to action-takers, worth £500!
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Let's discuss your ideal outcomes for eachof the 3 Key Exit Transitions (Money, Management and Meaning)
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Let's clarify your ideal timing and any constraints that you can see
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Let's help me tailor your whole course experience to YOU!.
BONUS TWO
'Secrets of Business Sale Success', my signature video course, worth £2,000, free!
In this powerful training, I distil the secrets of success in selling a business from my 35 years of professional experience in Mergers & Acquisitions, seeing some ghastly failures as well as many stunning successes. Gold dust!
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What potential buyers really want and actually fear
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How to succeed by offering potential buyers a good, reliable return on their investment.
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Case studies to show you how much is possible for small businesses that have good potential growth and/or strategic value for strong acquirors!
BONUS THREE
A free copy of my book 'Increase & Extract the Value of Your Business'
This jargon-busting booklet, co-written with a business leader and a motivational mentor, is designed to encourage you to get to grips with the levers of value in YOUR business by de-mystifying financial mumbo-jumbo so that you can pursue and defend the value of your business confidently! RRP £19
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You can read its 40 pages in a weekend. (I'll give you the £27 audio version too!)
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Your clarity and confidence in goal-setting for your business will surge
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The perfect primer & companion for "CLEAR TO LAND!"
Now let's put this in perspective:
What would be the cost of a failed sale?
What is it worth to eliminate that risk?
And how will you feel to have
clear Exit plans, at last?
The pain of failed sale can be immense; it can even involve the collapse of the un-sold business, due to weakened morale and competitive attack on customers and staff.
But even in the best case, where the business survives, the wasted legal, tax and other advisory fees can easily exceed £50,000, even for small companies. I have seen so many cases, over the years, of this happening to hard-working Entrepreneurs that I felt compelled to do something about it.
This course is the result. I'm extending a hand of help. Now it's over to you: will you take it?
Total Package Value: £7,546
Course Fee: £5,000
(Or 3 Payments of £2,000)
100% Privacy. We Will Never Spam You!
YOU ARE PROTECTED BY MY
PERSONAL GUARANTEE
"By the end of this program, I guarantee that you will have De-Risked Exit Plans for your business, or I'll work with you 1:1 to craft those plans!"
David Young
Founder & CEO, Shield Corporate Finance Limited
What do our clients say?
I've been assisting entrepreneurs with Exit Planning since I founded Shield in 2001, to defend Owner-Managers in a world of financial advice biased in favour of buyers (who are obviously the repeat clients of the big banks and their lawyers). From an initial focus on sale transactions, I moved upstream into value-building and Exit Planning.
"Given the turbulent economic times, I called David for him to assess Rubicon’s valuation alongside his professional opinion on suitable ‘Exit’ and ‘De-Risking’ options. That turned out to be one of the best “instructions” I’ve made in my business career as we’ve now completed a sale that’s: • achieved a multi-million pound sale that exceeded expectations • left Rubicon’s staff even more motivated and engaged • been much cheaper to administer than a trade sale • retained my control of the business for the foreseeable future • granted additional earn-outs • provided the freedom to issue shares to myself and key managers down the line and • been completely free of tax liabilities. In essence this has been a massive “win/win” for me, my business partner, the staff and the business as a going concern. David is the man to consult if you're serious about preparing for your 'exit'."
Lloyd Banks
Founder & Managing Director, Rubicon People Partnership
"They were superb, guiding us through a very demanding sale process, very innovative, attentive and refreshingly straightforward to deal with. It was very reassuring to have Shield by our side.
I cannot commend them highly enough."
Eduardo Loigorri
Founder & Former Managing Director, Exchequer Software Limited
"Hiring Shield was probably one of the best decisions we ever made. Having built a business for thirteen years, in the last three months we managed to triple its value"
Joe Zammit Lucia
Founder, Former President and CEO, Cambridge Pharma Consultancy
Susan Achmatowicz
Founder, Country Lanes Limited
"Shield helped me reshape my company's strategy (away from package tourism and towards cycle hire operations at strategic tourist destinations) in a way that made it more attractive. They found buyers when all the obvious candidates had withdrawn. And they maintained competitive tension. As an ex-banker myself, I can safely say that I have never seen such great value delivered in a corporate finance transaction before. Shield was able to bring investment banking expertise to a much smaller transaction size than the investment banks would look at."
Questions?
We welcome questions, and we have one or two answers!
1. "Is this for me?" FAQs
Why not leave Exit Planning until the time ever comes to sell my business?
You're in good company; many entrepreneurs think like that.
But I've witnessed lots of hard-working, dedicated entrepreneurs sold terribly short in the end. Which has always grieved me.
The trouble is that the things that drive value and a good Exit, and the things that undermine all that, take time to deal with. Yet they're not that difficult to understand.
Whether or not you currently want to sell, the value of your business seriously affects your ability to attract good staff, build a dedicated team, raise debt or equity finance and enjoy the freedom you deserve to spread your wings, both business-wise and personally. So it's important to build value, which obviously helps achieve a great exit when the time is right for you.
And over the years I've seen plenty of "I'll never sell" entrepreneurs change their minds, for various reasons:
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Business success calls for structure, systems, procedures, admin and bureaucracy, which change the feel of the place. Entrepreneurs, usually full of ideas, want to start things, rather than administrate. Only a few can keep their balance through the tricky transitions which growth necessitates. Many get to a point where they're happy to monetize their investment to fund further ventures.
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If sales stagnate and organic growth proves elusive, a business may still offer tremendous value to acquirers well-placed to benefit from its customer-base, technology, geography or other assets. It may well be that such acquirers can offer enough of "tomorrow's value" today to make early sale surprisingly attractive.
- A day will come when you as owner-manager will leave your business. This is a simple fact of life. In the best case scenario, you will have created a commercial success that will outlive you. Congratulations! But you will want to provide for Succession, if not Sale. Since you cannot remove your ultimate Exit from the horizon, why not plan for it and make the most of it?
I'm just getting going. Surely I don't have to worry about Exit yet?
Precisely because it takes time to build the value that provides a great Exit, the sooner you start weaving value-building into your day-to-day business activities, the better. Since sale value relates to what your business offers potential buyers, it makes sense to start thinking about how to maximise that from the outset, too!
(Please see the answer to the previous question, too).
Understanding what improves and what undermines the value & 'sale-ability' of your business has a crucial bearing on your choices of direction as you develop it.
The 'CLEAR TO LAND!' course will give you a great framework for keeping the end in mind.
If you'd prefer to wing it, I can but wish you well!
I'm just thinking about launching a business, but I haven't even started! Surely I should wait and do this later?
Actually, the smartest entrepreneurs design their businesses from the outset to optimize their Exits. They work backwards from planned Exit date and planned Exit valuation to what kind of business and business model to adopt.
But even for most of us mortal owner managers, who are motivated to get started by a good idea, or a drive to be free, the sooner we face the Exit facts of life, and embrace them and apply them, the better off we'll be.
Joining the "Clear to Land!" course will give you a solid grounding in the business Exit facts of life. You'll come away with skills and confidence to have your End-game in mind from the outset. This will stand you in good stead for all of your business flights!
2. Support FAQs
Is this a live course, or pre-recorded?
The course is very much a live, real-life experience! We have weekly live video conference calls with the group, led by David Young, to explain and discuss the weekly training materials released earlier in the week. Those training materials often include pre-recorded videos, as well as PDF's and Worksheets.
You have unlimited email interaction with your coach, David Young, on course assignments and questions arising.
So the course is highly interactive, stimulating and fun!
How much help and interaction do I get?
My goal is to get you a De-Risked, Optimal Exit Plan in the shortest possible time.
The weekly video coaching sessions, coupled with unlimited email interaction on the weekly assignments, should give each participant all the support they need to succeed.
What if I can't attend all the sessions?
Not to worry! Each coaching session is recorded, and each recording is posted for participants on the course delivery platform. This also provides a handy reference library for you, enabling you to revisit previous material as the course unfolds.
3. Billing FAQs
You're offering a payment plan over 3 months for a 3-month course?
Yes, that's right. Because I really do want to help fellow entrepreneurs wherever they are on their journeys to Exit. I remember what it's like to have lumpy cash flow. So I want to enable every Owner-Manager who really wants this to do it.
Also, I know that anyone who joins the course will be grateful they did. And I'm hoping to develop working relationships where the trust and respect is mutual. So I welcome you with an open heart, rather than a tight fist!
Can I pay with Paypal, as well as with a credit card?
Yes, you can pay with either.
Or both ;-)
So, why not make 2024 the year
you get clarity on your Exit?
At a time when we all need to consider what the future may hold, I'm offering you a tried and tested framework for Exit Planning.
Fire-fighting has to be done. But all too often, our businesses end up running us. Yet we're the Owner-Managers and we're in charge! So let's make sure we operate and Exit our businesses in ways that meet our objectives, notwithstanding uncertainties about what the "new normal" will look like.
The most precious thing we have is time. Why waste it, stuck in ruts or floundering in frustration? The sooner we get clear how we're going to bring our businesses in to land successfully, the better.
Now you can turn time to your advantage by starting to plan your Exquisite Exit. Join me on "CLEAR TO LAND" and I'll show you how!
David Young, Founder & CEO, Shield Corporate Finance Ltd
Remember, you're protected by my
Personal Guarantee
"By the end of this program, I guarantee that you will have De-Risked Exit Plans for your business, or I'll work with you 1:1 to craft those plans!"
If my "CLEAR TO LAND!" Exit Planning framework fails to produce clarity for you, I will roll up my sleeves and work with you to build the Exit Plans that optimise your chances of achieving an Exquisite Exit.
As I said, I've seen too much pain from failed sales.
So I'm extending a hand of help. Now it's over to you: will you take it?
Total Package Value: £6,216
Bootcamp Fee: £5,000
(Or 3 Payments of £2,000)
100% Privacy. We Will Never Spam You!
© Copyright 2022 Shield Corporate FInance Limited. All Rights Reserved.