If you are the CEO of a startup or scale-up company, it is natural for you to be completely focused on building your business. There are certainly enough challenges, both external and internal, to occupy your attention. However, from my experience both in selling and subsequently evaluating companies for acquisition, if you are like most CEOs you may be getting so caught up working in your business that you aren’t taking enough time to work on your business.
A TechCrunch study of over 15,000 companies determined that companies were 16 times more likely to exit by acquisition than by IPO. Unless your business is on a clear path to an IPO, odds are that it will be acquired. Bearing in mind the old adage that success equals preparation meets opportunity, there are at least 5 things you can START doing now to prepare for and maximize the eventual acquisition value of your business:
- S – Define your growth strategy
- T – Identify and form relationships with your target list
- A – Choose your advisor(s)
- R – Always be transaction-ready
- T – Consider the right timing
Planning for your company’s exit is a no-regrets move: either you pick up some great habits that enable you to better grow your business, or you end up in a situation where you get a great outcome by acquisition because you put yourself in the right place when the right time comes along.
Next section: S – Define Your Growth Strategy
(Subscribe to be notified of new posts)
My name is Alexander Rink. Drawing upon over 20 years of experience growing early-stage companies, my team and I help CEOs and Boards of Directors of companies from $1M to $25M in revenues identify and resolve strategic and organizational challenges to accelerate their company’s growth in a capital efficient manner.
Contact
