For most business owners, the majority of their wealth and income is derived from their business…an illiquid, non-diversified asset subject to loss of valuation for events beyond the owner’s control. Proper protection planning, however, can often mitigate loss and further help a business owner fulfill their vision of Personal Legacy.
There are four key areas of planning that need to be addressed: Succession, Estate, Retirement and Key Stakeholders. Well documented, funded and coordinated plans will address unplanned events like death, disability, loss of a partner, divorce, loss of a key employee, etc. Unfortunately, the thought of putting these plans in place can be daunting. Many owners will feel frustration, confusion and vulnerability when trying to coordinate all of the different professional advisors, proposed ideas and solutions, and decisions that must be made. This can then result in procrastination, with no planning put in place and the value of the business exposed to a substantial risk of loss.
The primary cause of this planning pain is that there is no system in place to organize the advisors into a cohesive team. Instead, each advisor is working in a silo, sincerely trying to help the owner, but without regard or coordination to what the other advisors may be recommending. This will often result in conflicting, incomplete or inappropriate plans that don’t fulfill the ultimate vision of what the owner has in mind.
Before we look into how to fix this problem please consider taking a quick self-assessment of your current plans on how your wealth and income is protected. Download this free PDF and read through each of the questions. If you find most of your answers are clear and specific, then you may just need a check-up of your planning documents to be sure they are current, complete and coordinated. On the other hand, if answer are vague and non-specific, then your value is at risk and we recommend starting the process with a quick and easy valuation of your company.
For more information or to discuss the results of your self assessment, please schedule a call with us.