Staying on when you sell a business.Commonly asked Questions,
Should I consider the offer?"Consider" is the key word here. By all means. Unless you have other plans. Get all the facts before you make a decision. Most times a buyer, not knowing what to expect after the sale, will want you to be a part of the transition team or even be a part of the new management team. Find out exactly what they want from you, what will your duties be? For how long? How much will you be compensated? What benefits will you receive such as sick time and vacation time. Remember, you will be an employee. In writing, always in writing. Keep these questions in mind as you go through the rest of the questions below. Back to TopIf I stay on as a member of the team what can I expect ?This question covers too broad an area to be answered with a few statements. We will try. As an "employee" you will soon realize it will be difficult to deal with most of your former employees. You are no longer their leader. The person that signed their pay check. The person they looked up to as having the final say. The person that was always there when they had a problem. You will be viewed as the person that sold them out after all they had done to make you a success. And the perception will be that you made a lot of money doing it. This will make for very uncomfortable situations as you try to accomplish goals as a team member. As the new ownership settles in it will only be a matter of time before they start changing things to suite there needs and you will be there to see what is happening. It will bring you stress. You will have little or no input into these changes but, you will feel as though, some how, you should have made these same changes in the past. Or you tried these before and they won't work and you can't communicate the feeling to the new owners. As problems creep up with your old customers you will be nearby to be told, or made to feel that they are not good customers and that is why you wanted out or could no longer manage the business. Another area of great concern will be as you watch the vendors and business associates that helped your company succeed slowly go by the wayside as the new owners build their own relationships with new vendors and pick out new favorites from the customer list. If any of these are family or good friends it will be even more difficult to watch the changes. This brings up possible other problems if there are family members working in the business. Remember, if there is stress during the transition you will be made to feel it is your fault. As you have gathered, I do not recommend staying on after the sale of a business any longer than what it takes for the new owners to see how it is. There is a time that the excitement of the change over will last before you and the new owners become uncomfortable with each other. And this will surely happen. I would think six weeks of transition time would be tops. Back to TopCan I expect the new owners to treat my employees the same ?Very little will change the first few months. After a short time the new owners will start implementing their own ideas. What you may have considered a good relationship with your employees may now be considered unacceptable because of these changes. It will be up to the employees and the new owners to build new relationships. You should not expect the employees to be treated in a manner acceptable to you. You are no longer in command. And the employees should not expect you to have made provisions for their future comfort. It will be a new Ball Game. Back to TopWill the same be true of customers and vendors ?Very much so. They will have to build their own relationship with the new ownership if they want to continue doing business. If some relationships get broken, which is bound to happen, it is no reflection on you. Remember question one? If you are in a position to be close to these changes it will have a negative effect. The weight of change will bear heavily on you. Back to TopIf I don't stay on how can I get a job if I have a non-compete contract?Very good question. A non-compete will surely be a part of the sales agreement. You must be very careful to consider if you want to stay on as an employee. If you decide not to, which is advisable, build the non-compete so the new owners can see that you do not wish to hurt their chances of success but, want to have avenues to continue in other pursuits. I assume you are a Printer selling a printing business. Being that straight forward describing it can get you in trouble. Be more specific. As an example. I sold a Sheet-fed Commercial Printing Company and wanted to start a Roll-Fed Web Forms Company selling to the resale market. Both are Printing companies but have little or no connections with each other. Have open conversation with the buyer so they see your concern about making a living if you do not wish to stay on with them. By looking at the Printing industry as many different industries related by a common heading of Graphic Communications you can offer a no compete to the new owners and have avenues of resource open to yourself without putting the future success of the new owner in jeopardy. Back to TopDoes this mean I can not have a good relationship with my old company ?Absolutely not! There will be changes. Many things will arise to create stress between you and the new owners. To help keep stressful feelings to a minimum start off on the right foot by being honest and straight forward about your plans, put everything on the table, agree to spend some goodwill time helping with the change over, do only what the new owners ask and you, do not get in their way and there is a good chance you will be welcomed anytime you want to visit. Back to TopBob Becker, RKB Enterprises
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