Exit planning for business owners: a three-year roadmap
Exit planning · 9 min read ·
Ask owners for their exit plan and most will say the business is the plan. Very few can tell you who buys it, for how much, or on what terms. Exit planning closes that gap. It doesn't start the year you sell. It starts the year you decide how this ends.
Year three: decide what you want
Before valuation, before buyers, get clear on the outcome. Do you want a full sale, a partial sale with a second payday later, a transfer to family or employees, or a business that pays you without your daily involvement? Each path changes what you build next.
- Set a target date and a target number you actually need.
- Get a baseline valuation so you know the distance between the two.
- Talk to a tax advisor early. Structure decisions made now can matter more than price later.
Year two: build what a buyer pays for
This is the value-building year. Reduce owner dependence, tighten financial reporting, and lock in recurring revenue. Promote or hire the people who can run the business without you, and let them actually run it.
Year one: prepare the deal
Clean up the books, document your processes, and assemble the team: an M&A advisor or broker, an attorney who closes deals, and an accountant who has been through diligence. Decide what you'll accept on terms, including earnouts, seller financing, and how long you'll stay on after close.
The sale itself
A prepared owner negotiates from strength. An unprepared one negotiates from fatigue. The work in the first two years is what gives you the confidence to walk away from a deal that isn't right.
For the numbers behind each step, from earnout payout rates to the 2026 SBA lending changes, read the Back 9 Exit Guide.
Planning isn't only for selling
The same work that makes a company sellable makes it easier to own. Even if you never sell, a business that runs without you is one you can step back from, borrow against, or pass on.
