
One of the main objectives of most entrepreneurs is to set up a business that can stay fully functional without them in the picture. The free time this will afford you will ultimately pave the way for more businesses, larger profits, and a business that has a mind of its own. More importantly, it will also allow you to sell the business at a price you set.
Investors want the peace of mind that once they take over your business, it won’t stop being profitable without you in the picture. So what does it take to make your business run without you?
Write an Instruction Manual
Take a pen and paper and write down all the essentials of running your business. Think of your business as a jigsaw puzzle. It would be hard to put the pieces together without the final picture to reference from.
Maintain records of important processes so that anyone with access to the manual can start running the show. Remember, your prospective buyers won’t have the same insider perspective as you. Without an instruction manual, they’ll fumble around to figure things out – and lose profits during this process.
Once you have created an instruction manual, your staff will know what to do when you’re not around. When an important employee leaves, it becomes relatively easy to find a replacement who can take over.
Start Relinquishing Control
You like to be in control. And that is a good mindset to have if you plan to stay in charge for the long haul. But it makes for a poor exit strategy and makes it difficult to sell your business at a premium. This is why you should start to gradually offload your responsibilities and allocate them to different staff members.
Make a list of products and services that you could easily hand over to your team without you in the picture. Commit to stop selling the products that can’t be sold without you in the picture.
Repeat this process until your business starts running without you.
More importantly, your employees will become more self-sufficient and used to running the show without you being in charge every time.
Give Your Staff a Stake in the Business
Self-sufficient employees are the hallmarks of a self-sufficient business. But this won’t happen overnight. And it won’t happen without you giving them the incentive to do so.
The best incentive is to give your employees a stake in the business.
Be more transparent about your profits. Layout the business’s goals for everyone to see. Tell them how they can contribute to your business to achieve those goals.
Tell important staff members what they need to win the game so you won’t have to micromanage them. Do keep in mind that even the most talented people won’t take the initiative if you don’t motivate them.
Tell your employees about the financial aspect of your business and what they can do to take ownership of their responsibilities.
This will give them an incentive to take charge of their role.
Follow the above steps to get your business off the ground without your involvement and sell it at a premium price.
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