The importance for business owners to occasionally adopt the perspective of an investor to gain valuable insights and opportunities for growth cannot be overstated. Here are five key reasons why this shift in perspective is beneficial, including enhanced objectivity, a focus on long-term value creation, identification of strengths and weaknesses, access to capital and resources, and strategic alignment and accountability. Learn more and take advantage of tools like Ready for Next's assessment to evaluate their businesses through an investor's lens, even if they're not currently seeking investment, as it can lead to enhanced enterprise value and long-term success.

Our very own Sean Hutchinson tells us his journey from being one of the first 100 Certified Exit Planning Advisors (CEPAs) worldwide in 2008 to being part of a 5000-strong professional community today. Through perseverance and experimentation, they developed a methodology for value acceleration, emphasizing partnership with owners to unlock their business's value. Plus, Sean shares the origin of Ready for Next’s explorer, pivoter and triggerer approach to business owners. Sean reflects on his growth from a novice CEPA to an expert, highlighting the rewarding experiences and community found along the way.

If we assume VUCA is an adversarial environment – hostile to our short and long-term business interests – we bypass our cognitive biases telling us to dismiss what threatens our needs. We assume a posture of response rather than reaction and our approach to risk management switches from defensive to offensive.

It is important to have the right people and professionals around the table to help you achieve your optimal transition from business ownership. Even with long-standing advisors, experience in transitioning a business is critical to your success.
Having the right people in your corner will have a positive impact on the outcome. Learn more.

This article by guest writer, Julie Keyes, CEPA offers insight into three important things you can do for your business. These changes will help you have more control over your business transition, no matter how near or far in the future.

Intergenerational business succession in family businesses fail at an alarming rate. This means there is a great deal of opportunity to have better results. Curvespanning™ is a revolutionary approach to work with both incoming and outgoing generations of a family business to improve their odds.

Owner independence is one of the top three value drivers for any business. For smaller lifestyle businesses, the idea that the owner isn’t the “heart, soul and face” of the place is difficult to imagine. But too much reliance on the owner is actually an impediment to growth.

These quick videos answer a wide range of frequently asked questions business owners at all stages in their entrepreneurial journey want answers to.

Building value in a business includes stopping or mitigating the things that kill value. As a flip-side to the top three value drivers blog, here is a look at the top three value killers.

A focus solely on topline revenue can be misleading. Generating true value can take several different forms. Here we focus on the top three value drivers.

When it comes to business, all growth is not created equal. This article looks at when growth brings value and when it doesn’t.

The RFN Cities white paper takes a look at how communities can prepare for hidden economic uncertainty. RFN Cities has developed a proprietary calculation to identify the business disruption risk within our communities. Read the US RFN Cities white paper to learn more.

Value acceleration and transition-readiness is our core business and we excel at it. We believe transition-ready businesses are more valuable™. This easy, 10 question survey will give you a quick indication as to how ready you are to sell or exit your business.