Proper exit planning requires that the business owner obtain what he or she needs financially from the business in order to meet retirement goals. While most business owners dream of the day when they sell their business to an outside third party and walk away with all cash at closing, the fact of the matter is that close to 70 percent of exits are internal exits where there may never be enough value in the business at any point in time to meet the departing owners financial needs.
Rather, properly structured internal exits are done over a long period of time as financial growth targets are met by engaged insiders. The challenge is to design and implement an exit plan that accomplishes a successful insider transfer while minimizing risk, maximizing net after-tax proceeds and keeping the owner in control of the process.
