Exit
Exit. Your value is set before the banker arrives.
Buyers pay for a company that grows on systems, shows clean numbers and runs without its owner. Most of that is decided years before a sale. As we put it in our essays: "Your EBITDA defines your value. Your growth rate defines your multiple." We work inside the business on both. Usually people come in for growth, and a lot of it turns out to be margin.
What makes a company worth more to a buyer?
Predictable growth, clean numbers, and a business that doesn't depend on its owner.
Revenue and enterprise value aren't the same thing.
A lot of owners are sitting on companies that have grown organically, with no path to exit. Simple math, right? Your EBITDA sets your value and your growth rate sets your multiple. So that's what we work on, along with how much of it depends on you.
Owner dependence.
If the founder is involved in most deals, buyers see that. They look at whether growth and earnings depend on one person, and it gives them a reason to pay less.
A few big customers.
Buyers look at how much of the revenue rests on a handful of accounts. We find it and fix it first.
Thin margins.
If every new dollar of revenue needs more hands, margins stay thin.
Numbers that don't hold up.
Spreadsheet forecasts are often wrong. Buyers discount accordingly. Can you predict next quarter's revenue within 10%?
built to exit at a significant value
What we do
Exit readiness
We find what would cap a buyer's price (owner dependence, a few big customers, thin margins, numbers that don't hold up) and fix it first.
Grow what the company is worth
The highest-value market, revenue first, and healthier margins.
Take the owner out of the middle
The systems, team and decision rights that let the business run without you. Pricing, approvals and escalations get written down, so decisions keep moving when you're not there.
Numbers that hold up
Reporting a buyer can trust when they look closely. Documented systems and revenue-attribution reports, packaged for buyer review.
Who it's for
Owners
Owners who've engineered a job they can't step away from, and want the choice to sell on their own timeline.
Talk about your companyInvestors and private equity
Investors and private equity firms who need the companies they own to be worth more by the time they sell. We do the work inside those companies, with their founders and leadership teams.
Talk about a company you ownRead this before you call a banker.
Practice and essay
- Exit EngineeringFix what would cap a buyer's price: margins, owner dependence and numbers that don't hold up.
- Stop Building for RevenueMake decisions that add enterprise value every quarter — the CEO's framework for building toward a successful exit.
Inside the climb
Headed by an operator who has been inside the climb at every stage, including WebCT, the university e-learning pioneer, from startup to a $180M sale to Blackboard.
How it works
If revenue doubled over the next 12 months, what would break first?
Map → Model 2× → Find the first limit → Size the gain in what the company is worth → Build.
Common questions.
When should an owner start preparing for an exit?
Earlier than most expect. The things buyers pay for take years to build, so start while you still have those years.
What makes a company worth more to a buyer?
Predictable growth, clean numbers, and a business that doesn't depend on its owner.
Your exit multiple is an engineering problem.
We work inside the business to build what buyers pay for, so when you're ready to exit, the company is too.
WebCT, the university e-learning pioneer, from startup to a $180M sale to Blackboard.