Business Owner Planning
Align your company’s value with the life you want beyond the business
For many owners, the business is both their passion and their largest asset, which makes planning especially important. We help you connect business decisions to personal goals so your company supports your retirement, family, and long-term financial security.
Explore Core Planning Areas for Business Owners
Strategies for Succession, Retirement, Risk, and Tax Efficiency
Business owner planning brings together exit strategy, personal wealth building, and risk management in one integrated framework. The pages below expand on the specialized planning topics that matter most to entrepreneurs and family business owners.
Succession & Exit Planning
This page outlines how to prepare for a sale, leadership transition, or family handoff well before the actual event. It explains steps to protect value, structure buy-sell agreements, and design an exit that fits your goals.
Tax & Retirement Strategies for Business Owners
Learn how business-sponsored retirement plans and tax-efficient structures can turn your company into a powerful retirement engine. This resource explores plan options, contribution strategies, and how to diversify beyond the business.
Business Risk & Protection Planning
Explore how insurance, legal structures, and contingency plans protect both the business and your family from unexpected events. This page covers key person coverage, liability protections, and strategies to shield personal assets from business risks.
Holistic Planning for Business Owners
Connecting Your Company’s Success to Long-Term Personal Security
As a business owner, your financial life rarely fits into neat, separate boxes — your company, your personal wealth, and your family’s security are closely linked. We begin by understanding how your business operates, where its value lies, and what role it plays in your long-term goals. From there, we help you measure and grow the value of the business while gradually building personal assets outside the company. Succession and exit planning are addressed early so you’re not rushed into decisions when an opportunity or change arises. With a coordinated strategy, your business can support the life you want now and the future you envision after you step away.
Common Questions About Business Owner Planning
Your Business, Exit, and Personal Wealth Questions, Answered
What makes financial planning for business owners different?
Financial planning for business owners is more complex because personal and business finances are deeply intertwined. Decisions about reinvesting in the company, taking distributions, or structuring compensation all affect your personal goals. Your business may also be your largest asset and primary retirement strategy, which raises concentration and liquidity concerns. A tailored plan helps balance business growth with personal security and long-term diversification.
How far in advance should I plan my business exit?
Ideally, exit planning begins years before you intend to sell, transition, or step back from your business. Early planning allows time to strengthen profitability, organize financials, and address operational or legal issues that affect value. It also gives you space to consider different exit options, such as selling to a third party, transitioning to family, or installing professional management. With more runway, you can design an exit that supports both your financial and personal goals.
How can I reduce the risk of having most of my wealth tied up in my business?
Diversification is key for business owners whose net worth is heavily concentrated in their company. Over time, we help you intentionally build investments outside the business while still supporting healthy growth within it. You might use dividends, salary, or sale proceeds to create a separate portfolio aligned with long-term goals. This dual-track approach helps protect your financial future, even if business conditions change.
What role does tax planning play for business owners?
Tax planning influences how you pay yourself, how profits are retained or distributed, and how your eventual exit is structured. Entity choice, compensation strategy, and retirement plan design can all significantly impact your overall tax picture. Coordinating with tax professionals allows us to align these decisions with your broader wealth strategy. The result is a more efficient approach that supports both business reinvestment and personal financial security.
How do I plan for life after selling or exiting my business?
Planning for life after business begins with envisioning what you want your days, finances, and sense of purpose to look like. We work with you to project how sale proceeds or ongoing income will support your lifestyle, retirement goals, and legacy plans. We also help design an investment and income strategy that replaces your previous business cash flow. With this clarity, you can transition out of the business with confidence, rather than uncertainty about what comes next.
