Checklist for Passing the Baton

  1. Develop a business plan… with an outside advisor -- so your management team knows your vision and the manner in which YOU intend to achieve it.
  2. Develop a succession plan…with your family business members -- so they can participate in your decision process while also learning the process for their next generation.
  3. Determine your retirement funding needs... with a professional financial planner -- so you know what you need and the timing for obtaining it.
  4. Obtain an independent valuation of your business… from a professional firm - so you have a realistic assessment of the "nest egg" you have created.
  5. Finalize your legal agreements… including wills, estates and trusts, buy/sell agreements -- so your family is not subjected to unnecessary hassle, delay, and expense.
  6. Identify and separate family issues from business issues... with minimal emotional bias -- so you deal with issues and not "baggage".
  7. Create a "family council"… not the same as a Board of Directors -- to enhance communications, relationships, and decision making among family members.
  8. Ask yourself (and your family members) if you are prepared to do what it takes to survive… given that 2 out of 3 family businesses do not make it past the 2nd generation, and 6 out of 7 do not make it through the 3rd generation -- due to inadequate succession planning.
  9. Identify resources who may aid during an "unplanned transition" (i.e. your death or disablement)… such as other similar non-competing businesses, members of a trade group, joint venture partners, consulting firms, and other professional advisors -- so that family members have someone to rely on during the transition.
  10. Learn the rest of the steps not listed here… by reading books, articles, joining a family business institute -- so you are prepared to implement them successfully.