Why this matters
You
- First business exit.
- Never negotiated with serious buyers.
- Never managed due diligence.
- Zero experience.
- Zero knowledge of red flags.
Buyer
- Acquired dozens, hundreds, sometimes thousands of businesses.
- Have acquisition teams.
- Have templates.
- Know every red flag.
- Have institutional knowledge spanning decades and billions in transaction value.
Costs
- That imbalance costs unprepared sellers millions in preventable losses.
- Price cuts.
- Tax inefficiency.
- Operational distraction.
- Team attrition.
- Emotional toll.
- Lost years.
Solution
- We orchestrate specialist advisors (tax, operations, legal, accounting).
- You coordinate and execute on your timeline,
- not a buyer's.
- Then you approach the market from a position of strength.
Eight dimensions determine your exit readiness
Financial statements quality
Are your books audit-ready?
Management independence
Does the business function without you?
Customer concentration
Is revenue diversified or at risk?
Tax optimization
Is your structure optimized for this sale?
Compliance and legal
Are there undisclosed liabilities?
Operations documentation
Can your team execute without you?
Working capital and assets
Is efficiency optimal?
Personal and family
Are you truly ready?
Two paths forward
Score 7-8 on readiness assessment.
You're ready (20 per cent of owners).
Timeline: four to six months to close. We orchestrate buyer outreach, competitive bids, final negotiations and closing. You maintain leverage throughout.
Score 3-6 on readiness assessment.
You need preparation (80 per cent of owners)
Timeline: six to 24 months of preparation, then close. We orchestrate specialist advisors (tax, operations, legal, accounting). You coordinate and execute on your timeline, not a buyer's. Then you approach the market from a position of strength.
True cost of unprepared exits
Professionals with skin in the game
Agile and nimble advisors who've lived exits themselves, not career service employees:
- Accountants: assurance, quality of earnings, tax and working capital.
- Entrepreneurs: built, sold and exited businesses similar to yours.
- Executives: leadership and functional experts.
- Intermediaries: investment bankers, advisors and business brokers aligned with your deal size.
- Lawyers: tax and mergers and acquisitions specialists.
- Lenders: acquisition financing and buyer lending requirements.
- Risk and insurance: representations and warranties, earnout and tax planning.
- Wealth managers: wealth preservation, tax, philanthropy and retirement planning.
Your advisory team
Key difference:
- You interview and select your advisors.
- The Shaughnessy Group coordinates, orchestrates and quarterbacks.
- Your team stays aligned on your successful outcome.