Our specific service offering is tailored and scoped to your specific needs but generally fits into the framework shared on our Approach page. 

First, view our video content on our Owner Resources Page. If you're a business owner, reach out to us and we can provide you a passcode.

Second, schedule a call with us. We speak weekly with various owners who are contemplating a transaction or transition. We desire to educate and provide insight on how to think about the entirety of the transition or transaction process so that you ultimately accomplish what's most important to you.

No. We are not investment bankers and do not represent ourselves to be such. Investment bankers market the company during a transaction. Instead, we work ahead of investment bankers to enhance the value of the business and express the value in a way which investment bankers may use to market your company.

No. We are not business brokers and do not represent ourselves to be such. A business broker is an intermediary who assists in marketing a business for sale, often smaller companies.

Investment bankers market the current value of the company. If you’re wanting to get the most value from the sale of your company, then you need to consider how to enhance your value, separate from marketing the sale of your business.

There are several items to consider. First, in our experience, most investment bankers do not possess the skill set necessary to enhance and express the value of your company in a manner beyond what you present to them. Their job is to receive the information you provide and package that information in the best manner possible for sale. 

If you’re looking to get the most value from the sale of your business, there are problems with this approach. We've found that often investment bankers express value in a standardized manner, which is not often consistent with the "true" economics of your business. We've found this to be problematic when attempting to lead a buyer to an understanding of enhanced value. Furthermore, when investment bankers speak of enhancing value they do so in the context of marketing your company not an actual proactive enhancement process.

Second, investment bankers are incentivized to close deals as quickly and efficiently as possible. This doesn’t always result in you receiving the most value for your business or the right investment partner for you. Their fee structure will incentivize them to sell your business at the highest price, but it will be structured in a way favorable to them based on what they know to be a likely outcome. Additionally, keep in mind, investment bankers strive for efficient processes. Though not specifically stated, like buyers, investment bankers measure success based on an unspoken IRR. Therefore, speed to close is a major consideration and motivation for them. As such, their focus is often how to transact the business and do so most quickly.

Conversely, our focus is on enhancing the value of the business with an eye towards realizing its full value. Given the uniqueness of our skill set, we are able to focus both on the enhancement period and transaction period. For you to maximize the value of the business, these two periods need to sequenced, complementary, and managed well, which is why we often help guide the investment banker selection process and play a key role in how the value of the company is expressed to the market.

To be able to truly enhance the value of your business ahead of a transaction or transition is a unique skill set. We formed T7 Partners because no one we knew was doing this. While buyers certainly are able to enhance the value of the company, they're not incentivized to do so pre-sale. This leaves sell side advisors. We've found those who suggest they do “value enhancement" most of the time simply offer analytical or benchmarking tools to compare your value with other companies and offer high level suggestions on areas you could improve. These tools are generic and are meant to be used by those who don’t have a deep understanding of the value drivers of your business. It’s a standardized way for those with financial backgrounds to represent themselves as being skilled or certified in business transactions or transitions. While those tools may have value for preliminary assessment, they don’t go much further than that. We advise owners to be leery of larger groups who represent value enhancement services as they rarely possess the technical advisory skill set needed to unlock real value. 

We’re typically involved when an owner is first contemplating a transition or transaction. This allows proactive planning regarding both the enhancement and transaction periods. As such, owners involve us ahead of choosing an investment banker. This is important as we have the skill set to oversee and direct the investment banker in the transaction process. In these situations, we help owners in the selection of the most appropriate investment banker, which we often do through a competitive process. On occasion investment bankers involve us in their deals already in progress to help enhance and express value which helps them better market the business or more appropriately express the value of the business to a sophisticated buyer.

We work across industries. See Our Results page for some example projects. The one common attribute of our clients are owners who want to maximize the value of their business ahead of a transition or transaction.

You can reach out to us at any point in your process. However, we're usually one of the first advisors owners speak with. That's because we can speak to the entirety of the process, which we define as both enhancement and transaction. In the end, this is missional for us. We want to see that your ultimate objective, whatever that may be, is achieved.

Our services are tailored to your timeline, but generally we define the enhancement period between 6 months and 2 years ahead of a transition or transaction.

There are are three main considerations when considering to sell. First, consider your reason for selling. This is personal and requires self-reflection. Second, determine how much time you are willing to give to the process, both to enhance value and transact the business. Third, look beyond the transaction to your personal continuity plan. What will do after the sale of the business? 

You may find our book The Heart of the Deal helpful in thinking through some of these questions. You can purchase a copy on our Book page.

The first step is to make sure you're ready. This requires having an overall and thorough understanding of the entire process. Next, you should begin to understand the market value of your business and what the value drivers of your business are, as understood by potential buyers, whose attributes can vary. This does not need to be a formal business valuation. Instead, you are better served initially by speaking with those who are knowledgeable of the market and can walk you through the entirety of the process. 

We pride ourselves on educating owners on all aspects of a transaction. We believe knowledge is power, and what you need to know is not often shared with you ahead of a transaction.

There are many aspects to preparing to sell a business. We believe in a proactive approach which begins by understanding yourself and your business. This is important because in the end selling a business is about being able to express the value of your business in way a buyer can understand. We've found many can advise on certain technical elements of a transaction, but few can advise on the end-to-end process, especially how to enhance value as part of the transaction planning process.

For high quality companies, there's never a bad time to sell  your business. High quality companies are always in demand. 

That said, the recent interest rate environment slowed down the number of transactions for a time. While there were high expectations for the deal market entering into 2025, market uncertainty has impacted deal flow to a certain extent. Valuation multiples have also seem to come down in certain sectors while other sectors remain elevated. Consequently, it is more important than ever to be proactive in considering how you enhance value before you transact value. If you have a plan on how to enhance value, then it provides you many more options as it relates to market timing and exiting your business.

Understand that unsolicited offers are not uncommon. So be flattered, but don’t misinterpret.

Many owners receive unsolicited offers to purchase their businesses. The reasons will vary and may relate to your business possessing a unique value add, being part of a growing or fragmented market, or the acquisition allows the buyer to enter a new market or product category. 

Buyers use the unsolicited offer to preempt a market sale process which in turn often allows them to avoid market competition and negotiate with you a lower purchase price. When you receive an unsolicited offer, use it as an opportunity to understand why the buyer is interested in your business. Ask them to share with you their view of the market and how they understand your value add. There is no reason to disclose any financial information. Instead, use the unsolicited offer to take a proactive approach for you to understand your own value in the market and potential growth opportunities. 

To receive the maximum value for your business, you’ll need to be able to express your value and accompanying growth opportunities with underlying data in a way you’ve not needed to do so before. This isn’t the time to “go it alone.” And don’t be confused. The process of leading a sophisticated buyer to a congruence of perceived value using underlying data is not the goal of the investment banker or broker. Their goal is to sell your company with the existing financial information you provide them. However, if you want to maximize the value of your business you’ll need to prepare differently and take a more proactive approach to the sale of your business.  That’s why we formed T7 Partners. 

If you received an unsolicited offer and you’d like to discuss how you respond or what steps you should take to enhance the value of your business, reach out. We speak regularly with owners who receive unsolicited offers and help them think through their own goals and objectives and how they can be more proactive and less reactive in the sale or transition of their business.

It can be extremely disheartening when you put in significant time, energy, and money into a transaction to have it fail. This can happen for a whole host of reasons, including, but not limited to having a buyer walk away, too large of a valuation gap, cultural misalignment, a due diligence or business issue, macro-economic change, or you’re simply unsatisfied with the pool of potential buyers. 

While every situation is different, we regularly speak with owners who have gone through a failed process. In fact, we’re often introduced by advisors asking us to speak with their clients about where they should go from here. 

In our experience a failed process is painful. We don’t wish it on anyone, but it can be a critical learning experience (and one that may often be necessary). We say that because when transactions fail there’s usually a reason. Apart from simply bad market timing, a failed process usually reveals some issue in the business that needs to be resolved. 

The issue can take various forms but usually it is fundamental to the business. The whole process can be frustrating because once you’re in a transaction process the issue normally cannot be rectified without significant repercussions to valuation. Furthermore, through the process owners sometimes learn that their sell-side advisors may not have truly understood their business (or you as the client for that matter). If they had then the issue would have been dealt with before beginning a process rather than reacting to it during the transaction. 

The failed process requires thought and planning. You’ll need to reassess your value creation plan, make necessary changes, and ensure those changes have had time to demonstrate measurable results, assuming you have the time to do so. Doing these things will strengthen your business model and will ultimately result in a much more efficient transaction process when you go back out to market. 

We believe five steps need to be followed in order to maximize your sale price. See our Approach page for a high level description of each or reach out to discuss your unique situation. 

The enhancement process begins with understanding what factors are necessary for achieving a premium valuation. Then you must assess yourself honestly in these areas and develop the right strategy and plan for growth. Next, you'll need to execute on this strategy recognizing certain limitations. Embedded in this process is re-thinking the "true" economics of your business in such a way that you ultimately integrate this understanding within the operations and managment of the business. Doing this will help you best express enhanced value to a buyer.

Yes. They are different types of valuations performed for different purposes. On the one hand, there are tax valuations which are often performed by a CPA, and used by the IRS to assess capital gains, gift or estate taxes. On the other hand, there are market valuations, which typically include some combination of comparable company analysis, similar transaction analysis, and discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis. These valuations are usually performed by deal professionals. But as the case with any market valuation, the value of a business will ultimately be determined by what price someone is willing to pay. 

It is important to keep in mind that market valuations are only a snap shot in time. They do not factor in any type of enhancement you may do to the business. While they may be a good starting point, they're only a starting point. Owners should never transact value without first considering how to enhance it. It is fine to have someone give you their take on what your business is worth but take it with a "grain of salt." You will drastically increase the value of your business when you approach a transaction from a proactive, holistic perspective, which is the reason we exist.

EBITDA stands for Earnings Before Interest Taxes Depreciation Amortization (EBITDA). EBITDA is an approximation of operating cash flow and is most frequently used when determining the value of a business. 

Businesses face systematic and nonsystematic risk. Systematic risk is the risk associated with future cash flows affected by general market risk. However, nonsystematic risk is the internal risk associated with future cash flows affected by company-specific risks.

While it's difficult to reduce systematic risk because of unforeseen market conditions, it's possible to reduce a certain amount of nonsystematic risk - the risk posed by mix and individual product contribution margin.

Our economic modeling approach addresses the two largest unknown dynamics affecting profitability variability - the effect of changing volume and mix. Using transaction-level data, we help construct a view of the business based on economic reality-delivering insight related to critical business issues related to pricing sensitivity, product profitability, contribution margin analysis, customer and sales analysis, etc. This type of analysis is necessary if you're going to be able to lead a sophisticated buyer to a congruence of perceived value.

There are many aspects which factor into your ability to be able to express the value of your business to a buyer. But for the purposes of reflection, here are some questions to ask of yourself and financial management team. These questions are limited in scope but will at least help you begin to think more broadly.

- Do you understand profitability across various segments of your business, including product, customer, end market, machine process, etc.?

- Do you have a strategic pricing plan which accounts for different actual costs related to specific products, customers, or processes?

- Are you able to identify and quantify which products or services are most profitable and therefore most opportunistic?

- Do you have the ability to quickly and effectively identify opportunities to cut costs?

- Do you only have one company-wide overhead rate applied on only one type of base (i.e. direct labor, machine hours, etc.) for assiging indirect costs?

- Are you using absorption costing for your monthly internal financial statements as well as for year end financial reporting?

- Do you identify and monitor key metrics that drive cash flow?

- Do you develop a strategic plan with confidence using real-time and quantifiable data or is it developed on "feeling" and speculation?

We are not wealth managers and do not represent ourselves as such.

However, our clients rely on us in helping them select the most appropriate wealth manager for their family. As such, we are proactive in evaluating all different types of wealth management firms. 

We pride ourselves on being a "true" fiduciary to our clients. Therefore, we accept no referal fees from any type of advisor. This ensures we remain independent as we help our clients choose the best wealth management firm for their unique needs.

Family office has different meanings depending upon the usage and context. For example, in the context of a buyer or investor, family office can mean a high net worth family which functions like a private equity, most often with a long-term hold strategy. 

However, family office services in the context of wealth management relate to customized wealth planning offerings intended to help high net worth families achieve their long-term wealth planning goals. 

These services may be offered as one of many other offerings of a wealth management firm or they may be provided to a limited number of families as part of a Multi-Family Office (MFO), which only serves similar type families with dedicated resources. 

Typically, these services will fall under the following categories:

Family Governance Administration

Wealth Transfer Planning

Investment Management

Risk Management Consulting

Philanthropic Strategies

Technology

Accounting & Tax Services

Generational wealth transfer brings with it unexpected complexity. As such it is important to develop standards of best practice by which the family communicates and makes decisions about their long-term wealth. Family governance is an aspect of Family Office Services usually provided by the wealth manager which helps families navigate these challenges through working to create a Family Mission Statement, assisting with family meetings and education, assisting with family board of directors, helping define financial and philanthropic goals, and cultivating within the family a shared strategic vision for how the family best stewards, preserves, and passes on their wealth generationally.