Our guest blog post comes from Tom Andrew of Northwest Business Advisory.  Tom was a speaker at our Equinox Focus Event on September 28.

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Consider the following scenario: You have built up a successful business from scratch. You have labored to establish a loyal customer base that can rely upon your product or service without reservation. Your employees are qualified and well-trained. All is well with the world. Retirement is ten years away.

But then, something unforeseen happens to you: a debilitating illness, an unfortunate accident, even, although you don’t like to think about it, your untimely death.  What happens then to those years of hard work and sacrifice?  How much of your company’s success and longevity is dependent upon your steady hand on the tiller?

Succession planning is a topic like life insurance.  It only matters when it matters.  If the value of your estate is dependent, even in part, on the ability of your family to realize that value, the subject of planning for your withdrawal from the business is far more urgent and important than we often recognize.  It needs to be addressed as soon as you have built your business into an enterprise that has value.