Option two · The Exit Readiness Program
Know where you stand. Then have someone watching.
For owners who are not selling this year, but who refuse to be caught unprepared when the year arrives.
The problem
The value of your exit is decided long before you list.
Customer concentration, owner dependence, unassignable contracts, cash-basis books, a key employee with no contract. None of these are visible from inside the business, and all of them come out in diligence, at the worst possible moment, when your leverage is at its lowest.
The Exit Readiness Program exists so those things surface on your calendar instead of a buyer's. It runs in two stages: a Business Audit that establishes where you stand, then Annual Value Monitoring that tracks the business every quarter. Choose the Plus plan and we also stand between you and any buyer who comes calling.
Illustrative readiness profile
An example only. Your Business Audit scores your value drivers against your financials, contracts and operations, and ranks the gaps by their effect on price.
Two stages
An audit up front, then a year of quarterly monitoring.
Stage 1
Business Audit
- Written audit report covering financials, operations, market position and risk
- Estimated valuation range and value driver scorecard
- Prioritised risk and improvement roadmap
- 90-minute review meeting
Stage 2
Annual Value Monitoring
- Secure business dashboard built from your audit
- Quarterly updates to earnings, valuation range and value drivers
- Quarterly review meetings and roadmap tracking
- Year-end report with a refreshed valuation range
Buyer vetting with Plus
On Value Monitoring Plus, send any unsolicited buyer to us. We check who they are, whether they can fund it, and what their offer is actually worth. Compare plans
Market intelligence
Multiples, lending conditions and buyer appetite in your sector, so timing is a decision rather than a guess.
A broker already up to speed
When you decide to list, we are not starting from zero. The valuation work, the history and the story already exist.
The year, quarter by quarter
How the program runs.
Business Audit
Two to three weeks from receipt of your documents. You receive a written report, valuation range, value driver scorecard, improvement roadmap and a 90-minute review.
Your dashboard goes live
We build a secure dashboard from your audit baseline and give your team access.
Update and review
You upload quarterly financials. We normalise them, update your valuation range, scores and roadmap status, and meet with you for an hour.
Year-end report and annual review
A refreshed valuation range, an updated readiness evaluation, and a 90-minute session with a straight answer: list next year, or keep building?
A buyer approaches you
Forward them to us. We qualify the party, assess the offer against your current valuation range, and tell you whether it deserves a conversation.
Owners rarely choose their exit date. Illness, an offer, a partner, a burnout year. Readiness is what turns a forced sale into a chosen one.
If a quarterly review tells you it is time to list, we move to a sell-side listing and your audit and monitoring history carry straight over. 100% of program fees are credited toward our commission when the sale closes.
Free, and nothing is submitted
Ten-question readiness self-check.
Check every statement that is true of your business today. Nothing is sent anywhere, and no email address is required. This is a rough directional read, not the assessment itself, but it will tell you which conversation to have next.
Choosing between the two
List now, or get ready first?
| List Now | Exit Readiness Program | |
|---|---|---|
| Right for you if | You want out within the next twelve months and the business can withstand diligence today. | You are one to five years out, or you are not sure, and you want the number to be higher when you go. |
| What happens first | Valuation, CIM, data room, go to market. | Business Audit: valuation range, value driver scorecard and improvement roadmap. |
| Ongoing | Weekly activity reporting through to closing. | Annual Value Monitoring: quarterly dashboard updates and review meetings. |
| Unsolicited buyers | Directed into the live process. | On Value Monitoring Plus, we vet them for you and tell you whether the offer is real. |
| Commitment | A listing agreement for the engagement term. | A program engagement you can convert to a listing at any point. |
| Fees | Success fee at closing, set out in the listing agreement. | $5,000 Business Audit, then $7,500 per year for Annual Value Monitoring or $10,000 per year for Value Monitoring Plus with buyer vetting. All credited in full toward our commission if we sell your business. |
Someone approached you about buying your business?
If the party approaching you is a buyer looking for representation of their own, send them to The Deal Strategy Co.