Planning Your Exit – Maximizing Value And Your Company’s Future

Your 2024 To-Do List for Exit Planning

As a business owner, you have worked tirelessly to build your company into your largest financial asset. However, it is important to start thinking about the future.  Perhaps the sale of your company is something you’ve flirted with but you don’t have all the answers, steps, and strategies for a lucrative exit of your company in the next 1-3 years.

By starting the discussions now, you can maximize the value you receive from your company while ensuring its future success. This will allow you to enjoy your retirement, spend quality time with loved ones, and finally reap the rewards of your hard work and sacrifices.

To make this transition smooth and successful, B2B CFO^® offers these strategies for your exit planning to-do list.

Planning the Exit – Steps to Maximize Value

Going After the Big Two: Profitability and Cash Flow

Most companies are valued on a multiple of EBITDA (Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization).  This means that increasing earnings also increases EBITDA.  A company with a history of increasing profits and cash flow with margins above its industry averages will therefore sell at a higher price.

So, let’s dive into which tools will help you to increase profitability and cash flow:

• Accurate, timely, well-structured, and meaningful financial statements and reports
• Benchmarking tools for tracking and improving operations and financial performance.
• Gross profit optimization – margin analysis and improvement
• In-depth labor analysis and reporting to improve labor efficiencies and reduce overhead.
• Working capital improvement strategies to reduce A/R and inventory and to increase cash.
• Purchasing and negotiation strategies to lower purchase costs.
• Job and cost accounting systems for understanding and improving margins.
• Line of business, product line, and customer profitability analyses and improvement
• Formalized cost and overhead reduction programs
• Tax minimization strategies for increasing cash
  
  It’s All in the Sales

Increasing sales, if done properly, is often the quickest way to increase company value.  When above the break-even point, the gross margin on additional sales can dramatically increase profits.

Did you know companies with higher revenues normally have higher EBITDA multiples? Financial strategies like the ones below can be very powerful in increasing sales:

• Proven B2B CFO^® process “Finding the Exit” ^® to help the CEO/Owner sell more.
• Strategic and Financial Planning, incorporating sales and marketing strategies.
• Quoting and pricing tools and strategies to understand costs and improve proposals.
• Financial modeling & ROI analyses for new products, investments, and facilities
• Sales analysis tools – insight from understanding trends by customer and product line

Strengthening the Infrastructure

Simply put, companies in the business of acquiring want to buy well-run companies with solid infrastructures.  Strong management teams are as crucial as robust and well-documented systems, procedures,  and processes. In other words, you want to prove you’re running a tight ship.

Several ways to prove strong infrastructure are using the latest technology, having talented and confident department leads, well-documented intellectual property as well as consistent customer and vendor contracts.

This is because companies with strong infrastructures command a higher price.  Most buyers will analyze the infrastructure when performing due diligence.  You do not want them deducting significant amounts from the sales price, or worse, walking away altogether because you do not have your infrastructure in order.  At B2B CFO^® we understand how to help you improve your infrastructure to maximize company value.

The Main Event: Strategic and Financial Plans

The big picture for a successful company includes 3 components that all speak to the growth of the brand:

• A consistently strong strategic planning process
• A holistic vision for the company’s future
• A breakdown of strategies that drive high long-term growth and profitability.

The key is to prepare financial models that analyze strategic initiatives as well as projected financial statements. This helps you understand what future profitability and financing needs may be.  Just as important is a strong operational planning process to develop goals, action plans, timelines, and accountabilities to reach the current year’s goals. These are then integrated into the strategic plan. The operational plan simultaneously includes a well-thought-out budget.

Working with B2B CFO^®, these components can be brought together to create a results management program ensuring proper goal-tracking.

At the end of the day, companies that use structured approaches are much more successful in reaching their profitability goals than those that run with simpler planning methods.  A strategic business advisor knows how to facilitate the strategic and financial planning processes to accelerate your company’s growth, and has extensive experience helping companies execute their plans, overcome barriers, and drive profitability.

The Much-Awaited Finale: The Sale and Exit

The sale of a company is a complex process and normally involves many parties— as well as a 6- to 12-month time frame.  To maximize value, we recommend starting to Plan the Exit a year or more in advance so that you have all the time you need to cross the t’s and dot the i’s. We also recommend using an investment banker who can bring many potential buyers to the table as well as working with an estate/business attorney,  and a tax advisor.

Indeed, whether you are thinking of exiting your business now or in a few years, understanding how your company may look to a buyer today is a critical first step. B2B CFO^®  Partners will perform a free Gap Diagnostic Analysis™  and provide you with a complimentary Assessment Report to give you insight into how you can improve your company’s potential sale value.

One Final Note

Your B2B CFO^® is uniquely qualified to help you increase the value of your company to maximize its selling price.  We have the expertise as well as strong relationships with top middle-market investment bankers and other professionals to help you through a smooth and successful exit from your company.

Start planning for your business exit today and secure the future you deserve. Contact us to schedule a consultation and take the first step towards maximizing the value of your company and achieving your personal and business goals. Email Art Bottoms at ArtBottoms@B2BCFO.com to schedule a discussion.