The Importance of Succession Planning, and the Pitfalls that Arise Without It
Last week, while I was enjoying my first ever law firm retreat with Lommen Abdo up at Grandview Lodge in Nisswa, Minnesota, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal broke the news that my prior law firm, Mansfield Tanick & Cohen, was closing as of October 1.
Having been at the Mansfield firm for seven years, I can personally attest to the fact that the most significant issue surrounding the firm was how the founding partners were going to transition the firm to the next generation of attorneys. It was an ongoing discussion for as long as I was at the firm, and ultimately I and several of my colleagues chose to move on to other firms.
It does not matter what type of business you own – law firm, auto body shop or insurance agency – if you do not begin well in advance to plan the succession of the business to new owners (be they family members, employees or a competitor), you will likely end up shutting the doors at the end of the day and there will be no legacy of yours that continues on in the business.
Here at Lommen Abdo, we are working hard to stress the importance of planning a successful exit from your business. On November 8, we will be sponsoring a seminar designed to help business owners do just that. For more information on this very interesting and important seminar, click here.