Protect Your Business
Secure future profitability and cashflow, and safeguard shareholder ownership of your business.
Your business is likely one of your most valuable assets and significant investments. It's not just your livelihood; it provides income and security for you and your family.
What are your aspirations for your business and your role in it? Have you considered strategies to maintain your business and your control over it in various scenarios?
We specialise in helping companies with multiple shareholders plan for business continuity and maintain ownership control. This includes:
1. Protecting business cashflow against unforeseen circumstances, such as the ill health of key team members or staff.
2. Maintaining ownership control during transitions, like shareholders buying into or exiting the business due to health issues or other reasons.
These areas require detailed planning that begins with our aspirations mapping process, which helps align your business strategies with what truly matters to you.
When it comes to implementing specific risk mitigation strategies using financial products or risk insurance solutions to address these needs, Bruce works with clients in his capacity as a member of the SHARE NZ team.
Our approach aims to maximise the certainty of your business strategies with your overall aspirations and goals, providing a robust framework for your business's future.
Business Continuity & Key Person Risk Mitigation Strategies
Every business has individuals whose expertise, relationships, or specialised knowledge are vital to its success and profitability. Have you considered how your business would perform or continue when one or two of these key people were suddenly unable to work due to serious illness or injury?
We help you identify and assess the critical roles and individuals whose absence would significantly impact your business continuity and cashflow in operations, client relationships, or technical capabilities. This could be your lead engineer, top sales professional, technical expert, or other essential team members - regardless of whether they hold ownership in the company.
Our approach begins with understanding your business structure and operations to determine:
- The crucial aspects of your business continuity and plans for growth
- Which roles and individuals are truly critical to business continuity
- The potential team and financial impacts when those key people are unable to work
- What operational or project gaps would need to be filled
- How long it would take to replace or train and develop the new recruit
- What strategies could help maintain business stability during such transitions
We then explore various approaches to protect your business against these risks, including:
- Internal development for effective support or replacement
- Funding mechanisms to cover temporary and long term replacement costs
- Strategies to maintain effective client relationships and business momentum
- Approaches to replicate specialised knowledge and expertise
- Plans to manage extended absences of key personnel
- Funding mechanisms to mitigate reduced sales, projects and cashflow
When there is call for specific risk management advice and mitigation strategies utilising risk insurance solutions or financial products, Bruce works with clients in his other capacity as a member of the SHARE NZ team.
Our goal is to help you develop a robust continuity plan that protects your business from the impact of losing key people, allowing you to focus on growth and success with greater peace of mind.
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Shareholder Transition Planning
When you're in business with others, it's crucial to consider what happens when a shareholder, decides to retire unexpectedly, to leave the business for another reason, becomes seriously ill or passes away. Do you have a clear and certain plan in place for these scenarios both planned and the unplanned?
Remember, you could find yourself on either side of this equation. Whether you're the one needing to buy out a partner or the one requiring your shares to be purchased due to illness or other circumstances, having clarity is essential.
A well-structured plan allows remaining shareholders to buy the shares of a departing shareholder within clearly defined parameters, ensuring you maintain control of the business without unexpected financial demands from the family, especially of an ill or deceased shareholder.
Having a strategy for immediate access to funds to buy out shares—whether you're buying or being bought out—provides certainty, clarity, and peace of mind for all parties.
This approach means you:
Avoid being forced into "fire sales" of properties or investments at below-market values during stressful times
Prevent the need to seek urgent bank loans or other sources of cash when you're least likely to get them - such as when a key business partner is seriously ill and the business's perceived value and viability have been impacted.
Maintain continuity of business operations and profitability, without having to rapidly liquidate assets or restructure during already challenging periods
A comprehensive strategy often involves various risk mitigation tools. Beyond immediate cash, while life coverage is often considered, other protective measures for scenarios like critical illness or long term disablement options provide options and choices we can't easily imagine.
Key components of an effective shareholder transition plan include:
Agreed scenario options for triggering the buy/sell process
A clear formula for share valuations
Clear agreements documenting when shares will change hands, under what specific conditions, and the process to be followed—as well as circumstances where transitions might be restricted or delayed
There's no one-size-fits-all solution for shareholder transition planning. We help you create a highly personalised strategy that matches your specific circumstances and budget.
When technical or professional advice is needed in areas such as legal, tax, accounting, or business structure, Bruce will coordinate with your existing advisers or help you find appropriate specialists. For specific risk management strategies involving insurance solutions or financial products, Bruce works with clients in his capacity as a member of the SHARE NZ team.
Our goal is to help you develop a robust plan that provides certainty and peace of mind for all shareholders, allowing you to focus on running and growing your business with confidence.