Succession Stories

"Exit planning is good business, not just about exits. Doing exit planning is going to help your business today." Too many founder CEOs pour years into scaling their company without ever building a plan for what comes next — and it costs them. Bruce Eckfeldt is a former Inc. 500 CEO who scaled, led, and exited his own company, and now coaches founder CEOs to do the same with intention. He faced the reality of an unplanned post-exit life firsthand — and what he discovered changed how he coaches everyone who comes after him. Key Insights: Exit planning improves your business today, not just at the finish line. Treating your business as if it could be sold tomorrow forces clarity in strategy, leadership, and operations — giving you a stronger company whether you sell or not. Develop a compelling post-exit vision first. When founders have a clear, exciting plan for what comes after, they become more motivated to grow faster, set tighter timelines, and make better decisions leading up to a transaction. Founder dependency in sales is the riskiest — and hardest — constraint to break. When the founder is the rainmaker, it suppresses valuation, complicates deals, and is fueled by a dopamine cycle that's genuinely difficult to step away from. Institutional knowledge must replace individual knowledge to scale. Brilliant technical founders often are the smartest person in the room — but a company built around one person's intellect cannot scale or transact at full value. Know where you fall in the valuation range — and move the levers. The market sets the multiple range; what you can control is whether you land in the bottom, middle, or top third of it by addressing the fundamentals buyers care about most. The "keep-sell posture" protects your negotiating power. Being genuinely ready to either sell tomorrow or hold for another decade removes desperation from the table and ensures you're choosing the right deal — not just the first one. Chapters 00:00 - 01:51 Introductions 01:52 - 05:24 Bruce's Founder Journey as Inc. 500 CEO 05:25 - 06:48 The Architectural Thinking Behind Scaling a Company 06:49 - 08:04 Why Scale and Exit Planning Are Connected from Day One 08:05 - 09:25 Building a Post-Exit Vision That Motivates Faster Growth 09:26 - 10:51 Founder's Identity and System Building 10:52 -12:30 Founder Dependency: The Sales Dopamine Trap 12:31 - 14:46 When Intellectual Capital Is Trapped in the Founder's Head 15:22 - 18:56 Exit Readiness and Push & Pull Factors across Generations 18:57 - 21:19 Legacy Building 21:20 - 24:33 What makes a Business Valuable 24:45 - 25:45 Bruce's Three Takeaways for Every Founder 26:00 - 26:36 Life After Exit: Himalayas, Adventure, and What Comes Next Is your business truly ready—and are you? Take the Succession Readiness Assessment to get a clear snapshot of where you stand and what to focus on next. https://btsherpa.com/succession P.S. Most owners don't realize where they stand until they're already in a transition. Take a few minutes now to understand your readiness—and give yourself more options later. Connect with Laurie Barkman: Website: https://lauriebarkman.me LinkedIn: in/lauriebarkman YouTube: @LaurieBarkman_BTSherpa Connect with Bruce Eckfeldt Website: https://www.eckfeldt.com Email: [email protected] LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/beckfeldt 📣 Write a Podcast Review: ratethispodcast.com/successionstories This Show Is Sponsored by The Business Transition Sherpa® Learn what every entrepreneur needs to know about building value and avoiding pitfalls!

"The day you start your business, you should know your exit strategy." Host Laurie Barkman sits down with Amy Veltri, Co-Founder and CEO of NGE, an environmental and geotechnical engineering firm. Amy built the company with her brother nearly 20 years ago, and made the deliberate choice to transition to 100% employee ownership through an ESOP. Amy shares the personal journey of weighing a third-party sale, doing nothing, or choosing a path that protected the people who helped build the business. Celebrating 6 Years of Succession Stories This episode is part of a special milestone—celebrating 6 years of the Succession Stories Podcast. Thank you for being part of this journey, where we explore the real stories, decisions, and strategies behind building, transitioning, and exiting businesses. This episode was filmed in front of a live studio audience in partnership with the Exit Planning Institute Pittsburgh Chapter, bringing the conversation to life with an engaged community of advisors and business owners. Key Episode Insights Co-founding a business with a sibling requires clear operating agreements to protect both the relationship and the company Drive may be an innate entrepreneurial trait, but skills like communication and judgment can be learned Knowing your exit strategy from day one shapes how you build and grow your business An ESOP can be financially compelling — tax savings alone can nearly offset transaction costs Employees who become owners are motivated to grow company value for themselves and future colleagues Leadership succession planning requires intentionality — and starting the search early enough to find the right fit CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction and the Entrepreneurial Gene 02:00 Co-Founding NGE with Her Brother — and Making It Work 08:00 Scaling from $50K to $5M in Five Years 09:15 Challenges when scaling the business 11:30 The Three Exit Options for a Service-Based Business 14:00 Why a Near-Closing Third-Party Sale Changed Everything 15:30 Understanding ESOPs and the Feasibility Study Process 17:00 The ESOP Magic — Tax Benefits and Employee Engagement 21:00 Leadership Succession and the Search for Amy's Replacement 22:25 What's Next: Retiring, Grandbabies, and Letting Go Is your business truly ready—and are you? Take the Succession Readiness Assessment to get a clear snapshot of where you stand and what to focus on next. https://btsherpa.com/succession P.S. Most owners don't realize where they stand until they're already in a transition. Take a few minutes now to understand your readiness—and give yourself more options later. Connect with Laurie Barkman: Website: https://lauriebarkman.me LinkedIn: in/lauriebarkman YouTube: @LaurieBarkman_BTSherpa Connect with Amy Veltri: Website: https://www.ngeconsulting.com Email: [email protected]

"Profitability rewards the founder. Transferability rewards the future." In many founder-led businesses — especially those under $10 million — the owner is the strategy, the rainmaker, and the decision-maker. But what happens when the business can't operate without you? In this episode of Succession Stories, Laurie Barkman is joined by Steve Preda, Founder, Summit OS Group, to explore the role of structural capital in succession planning and exit readiness. They unpack the difference between building a profitable business and building a transferable one — and why reducing owner dependence is critical to increasing enterprise value. You'll learn: What structural capital really means for small, founder-led companies Why being indispensable can hurt your exit strategy The early warning signs that your business is too owner-centric How to build leadership, systems, and processes that increase valuation Why succession planning should start long before you're ready to exit Whether you're actively planning a business exit or simply want more freedom as a founder, this conversation will help you shift from operator to architect — and build a company that thrives beyond you. Because succession isn't an event. It's a design decision. This Show Is Sponsored by The Business Transition Sherpa® Learn what every entrepreneur needs to know about building value and avoiding pitfalls! 📖 Get your FREE digital copy of The Business Transition Handbook https://lauriebarkman.me/book 📣 Write a Podcast Review: ratethispodcast.com/successionstories Connect with Laurie Barkman: Website: https://lauriebarkman.me LinkedIn: in/lauriebarkman YouTube: @LaurieBarkman_BTSherpa Connect with Steve Preda: Website: https://stevepreda.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevepreda/

"No one's promised tomorrow." Host Laurie Barkman talks with Scott Arden, Chairman of Controllers Ltd and Managing Partner of Generational Wealth Solutions, about the intricacies of financial strategies for business owners. Controllers Limited focuses on advanced strategies for asset protection and generational wealth. Focusing on growth, succession planning, and the importance of legacy, Scott emphasizes the need for business owners to prepare for transitions, whether through exit strategies or succession planning, and highlights the significance of teaching financial literacy to future generations. The conversation also touches on the psychological aspects of business ownership and the value of experiences over mere accumulation of wealth. Key Insights Business owners often procrastinate on succession planning due to a false sense of security. Crucial to identify who will run the business in case of an owner's incapacitation. Protecting asset value can be as important as building asset value. Experiences and memories may be more valuable than simply accumulating wealth. Financial literacy is essential for future generations to manage inherited wealth. Engage the next generation in business operations or governance. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Financial Strategies for Business Owners 02:35 Understanding Business Growth and Exit Strategies 05:28 The Importance of Succession Planning 10:30 Psychology of Business Transition and Legacy 14:34 Rethinking Wealth: Experiences Over Accumulation 17:19 Teaching Financial Literacy to Future Generations This Show Is Sponsored by The Business Transition Sherpa® Learn what every entrepreneur needs to know about building value and avoiding pitfalls! 📖 Get your FREE digital copy of The Business Transition Handbook https://lauriebarkman.me/book 📣 Write a Podcast Review: ratethispodcast.com/successionstories Connect with Laurie Barkman: Website: https://lauriebarkman.me LinkedIn: in/lauriebarkman YouTube: @LaurieBarkman_BTSherpa Connect with Scott Arden: Website: https://generationalwealthsystems.com/ Website: https://www.controllersltd.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottarden/

🎙️ Business growth and succession planning start long before an exit. In this special Succession Stories swapcast, Laurie Barkman introduces the B.U.I.L.T.™ Method, a practical framework for building value and preparing for business transition. 🔓 This episode features Laurie's guest appearance on The B2B Growth Podcast with Mark Osborne, where the mic is turned around and she shares the thinking behind the B.U.I.L.T.™ Method for Business Growth and Transition. Designed for founder-led and closely held companies, the framework helps owners reduce dependency on themselves, strengthen operations, and prepare for leadership transition or exit — on their terms. 🎯 This conversation is especially relevant for owners in the built environment, including construction, engineering, architecture, and related professional services, where complexity, people, and relationships make transition planning both critical and challenging. 📊 The B.U.I.L.T. Method explained… Why succession planning should be integrated into business growth How the B.U.I.L.T. Method helps build transferable enterprise value Common transition challenges for built-environment companies How owners can prepare for what's next without rushing an exit 💬 Standout insight: "Gen X business owners have seen what happens when owners never step away — and we want something better." - Laurie Barkman 🧭 If you're thinking about business growth, succession, or transition planning, this episode offers a clear, structured approach to building a stronger, more resilient company — long before an exit is on the table. This Show Is Sponsored by The Business Transition Sherpa® Learn what every entrepreneur needs to know about building value and avoiding pitfalls! 📖 Get your FREE digital copy of The Business Transition Handbook https://lauriebarkman.me/book 📣 Write a Podcast Review: ratethispodcast.com/successionstories Connect with Laurie Barkman: Website: https://lauriebarkman.me LinkedIn: in/lauriebarkman YouTube: @LaurieBarkman_BTSherpa