Moving On: Preparing to Sell or Transition Out of Your Business

Entrepreneurial Roundtable

August 17, 2009: 6:30 PM - 8:45 PM

Learn the keys of how successful business owners build value and harvest wealth as they transition out of their businesses. Bruce Leech and David Jackson, two former business owners themselves, have talked with many former business owners about how they handled their transition, what worked well and what didn’t. From those talks, they have gleaned important keys to successful transitions.

Where

NOTE: New Location -- Northern Illinois U. (NIU) - Naperville Campus
First Floor Lobby & Auditorium
1120 East Diehl Road
Naperville, Illinois

Driving Directions:(Note: Most online maps of the Naperville Road Exit from I-88 are wrong.) Directions: From Route I-88, take the Naperville Road exist which will take you to a “T” at Freedom Drive. Turn south onto Freedom Drive (that is a left turn if coming from the East on I-88). Take Freedom Drive to a “T” which is Diehl Road. Turn right onto Diehl Road. Go 2-3 blocks. Northern Illinois University (NIU) will be on left, across from the Hampton Inn. Turn left into driveway at west end of NIU property to park. From parking lot, enter center door of building.

Event Details

Nationally, over 50% of middle market businesses will change ownership in the next 5 to 10 years. However, research shows that over 80% of former business owners were dissatisfied with the process or the results of transferring ownership and control. For business owners, departing from the business is always a major transition not only for the owner but also for his/her spouse and family. Come to hear Bruce and David relate stories of how former business owners prepared for the transfer of their business and the changes in their lives. From those stories and their extensive research, Bruce and David will develop the points to bear in mind as you begin the process of preparing to transfer ownership and control of your business and move on to the next stage of your life. Bruce Leech founded CrossCom National, Inc. in 1981. The company grew to $90 million in sales, installing and servicing voice and data systems for large U.S. retailers such as Walgreens, CVS, Kohls and Kmart. Bruce sold a majority interest in CrossCom in 2004 to a private equity firm. He has a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State and an MBA from DePaul. David Jackson also owned a business, FirstChoice Healthcare, a home healthcare business in the Midwest. He has degrees in Business Administration and Public Policy from Carthage College. Bruce and David are co-founders of evolve, a membership organization where both active and former business owners come together in community for peer mentoring, group meetings and transition planning.

Cost

$25.00 for public; $20.00 for Roundtable members and Chicago Booth alumni. Additional $5.00 discount if register by August 12th.

Registration

Register Online

Deadline: 8/17/2009

Program

6:30 PM-7:15 PM: Networking & Hors d'oeuvres

7:15 PM-8:45 PM: Program with speakers

Questions

Bill Wentz, Class of 1988, XP-57 
Roundtable Coordinator
630.344.1119