In 2003 I signed the agreement with two other owners to sell our 200-employee construction company via a management buyout to five new owners in a deal that was structured over 10 years. The new team was well prepared for the transition as they were eager to have their day in the sun. They have exceeded all of our expectations as they have navigated the company through the latest economic headwinds into 2012 with a strong performance.
I was the last of the three owners to leave in 2008, and I never realized what a minority our company was in until I became a student of exit planning and consulting. Our company had passed several critical milestones to enter into the special milestone club of the “one percenters.” When I left in 2008, we successfully transferred our 62-year-old company to the fourth generation of owners, which put us into that elite club.