Internal or external successor

If an entrepreneur has the wish to entirely resign from operational responsibility when selling, the decisive question is who can and wants to take over the operational functions in the future.

Owner stays on board in an operational manner

When selling the company, the entrepreneur can initially continue to operate within the company if this is his wish. The motivation to do so may be to partially realise the company value for the benefit of risk diversification and to further develop the company’s potential with the help of a new majority shareholder. This specific case is known as Owners Buy-out and can be an initial step towards the arrangement of a subsequent succession.

Existing second management level with leadership ambitions

Is another qualified and motivated managing director or a second level management team willing to take over the company and its responsibilities? Furthermore, are they committed to financially participate by acquiring a stake in the company and taking on the entrepreneurial obligations that accompany it? This case is known as Management Buy-out (MBO).

External successor necessary

If this is not the case, there is the possibility of using an external entrepreneurial manager. This entrepreneurial manager must have the necessary ambition and ideally have been part of BPE’s Management Buy-in (MBI) Candidate Network (BPE MBI-Initiative) for a number of years. This prerequisite ensures that he has the necessary experience, appropriate qualifications and is additionally prepared to make a financial as well as an entrepreneurial investment.

… or a combination of both, the success model par excellence

Many cases involve the implementation of both an internal and external succession planning. Interestingly, this is the most successful variant, as stability and continuity of existing managers are augmented by the diversity and complementary experience of new, external managers.