Business Planning Is Relationship Building
Planning your business succession or exit may seem like a transactional event. However, in many cases, this planning is much more like a relationship: with your loved ones who rely on you, your employees and your advisors. When fostered, it can be a fulfilling process.
Consider an example of how two business owners changed the course of their planning by viewing it as a relationship rather than a task or event.
A Change in View: Joanne & Jim
Joanne Johnson had been meeting with her trusted advisor, Ava, every month for the past year to plan for how she and her husband, Jim, would eventually sell the business. As co-owners, Joanne typically handled front-end responsibilities. But in the planning process, without Jim present, this was starting to create problems. Joanne needed Jim’s input to create incentive plans that would help retain their key employees, while Joanne and Jim worked toward their financial independence. Two key employees had already left for greener pastures because the planning process had stalled.
Ava encouraged Joanne to engage Jim in the planning sessions so they could address important deliverables to achieve their goals. Jim explained to Ava that he was afraid that he feared making irreversible mistakes that might hurt the business. Ava thoughtfully answered Jim’s questions while explaining the effects his absence was having on the plans he and Joanne were trying to execute. As Ava built trust, Jim began to come to their planning meetings, allowing him and Joanne to clearly communicate, plan together and put in place the incentive plans that retained their key employees.
Don’t Be Afraid
Planning for a successful future can be nerve-wracking. You may feel that it could distract you from what you do best—running the business—and harm what you’ve built. These fears are normal, but they can also launch you headlong into the very thing you’re trying to avoid: working against your own interests.
When business advisors work with owners to plan for a successful future, they seek to create strong relationships in guiding their clients with these points in mind:
Planning for a successful future requires financial independence that allows business owners to leave their businesses on their terms—terms that are unique to each business owner.
Many business owners have family members and employees they want to protect, even after they leave the business.
Successful planning often requires the coordination of different people and personalities toward a common goal.
Viewing the planning process as an exercise in relationship building can make the process more consultative with better outcomes.