Stepping back successfully

When you’re intimately involved in the day-to-day management of your business, taking a step back can seem impossible. But whether you’re nearing retirement, keen to explore other options, or simply thinking of the future, it’s essential to have a succession plan in place.

Thrive CA’s Succession Planning service helps you work out your goals, understand the legal issues involved, and establish a clear succession plan. It’s about making sure your business can go on without you, and that you can go on without your business.

Succession planning can be complicated, particularly if you’re running a family business or have multiple people keen to take over operations. Working with one of our business planning experts helps ensure that your succession plan is practical – and legal – no matter how complicated your situation.

Goals, expectations, and potential issues  

Even if you’re decades away from exiting your business, succession planning sessions are valuable. They give you a set time to really examine your business – the current situation, ongoing goals, and your ultimate vision for the future.

Early succession planning also ensures you won’t be leaving your team or shareholders in the lurch if you get sick or incapacitated.

The sessions are a good way to alleviate your concerns about the business and your retirement. Many owners worry their business will struggle without their input, or that family members will run into conflict when they leave. Others are unsure about their own financial needs after retirement, and need help clarifying their expectations. Working with a business expert helps you define realistic goals and expectations, and gives you a step-by-step guide to making them happen.

A shared vision for the future

During your Succession Planning sessions, we will help you review your business and define your succession goals. We’ll help you talk through various succession scenarios and identify potential challenges and opportunities.

These sessions will usually involve other stakeholders – managers, team members, and potential successors. When everyone agrees on the future of the business, you’re less likely to run into issues during transition.

Goal setting is a key step. You’ll set strategic goals and milestones for the business, and clarify your expectations around finances – will you stay on as owner or part-owner, stay involved as a shareholder, or hand over the reins completely? How much profit do you expect to take with you – and is that realistic? We’ll then help you define concrete steps to achieve goals over the coming months or years.

Finally, we’ll help you communicate your succession plan with other stakeholders in the business. If you run into issues or disagreements, we’ll give you strategies to help, or adjust your plan if needed. As always with business, it’s important to have a solid strategy in place – but not so solid that it can’t be changed.

Ready to start your succession planning? Click below to book a complimentary 30 minute discovery call to discuss your business and developing a succession plan.