What New Leaders Want in Ownership

Is your firm ready to pass the baton?

By Terrence E. Putney

Buying into a firm as a new owner involves great opportunity, but also significant risk. It is reasonable for ownership candidates to evaluate the potential for professional and financial rewards before taking such a step. Therefore, firms must be willing to honestly assess the potential risks and benefits for candidates as they seek to attract new partner-owners who can contribute meaningfully to the firm’s continued success.

MORE: What’s the Why? | Learn How to Let Go and Let Someone Else Step Up | How to Close the Generation Gap | How to Encourage Firm Ownership | Each Generation Must Change
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Most of the firms we work with on succession planning start off with a strong preference to remain independent. They want to avoid having to sell or merge in order to address the need to pay off and replace retiring owners. The common reasons we hear cited are:

Posted on October 30, 2022

Terence Putney

About the Author

Terrence E. Putney, CPA, is CEO of Transition Advisors, a mergers-and-and-acquisitions broker for CPA firms. Terry has more than 35 years’ experience in the CPA profession. For six years, he served as Managing Director - Mergers & Acquisitions for RSM McGladrey, the country’s fifth-largest accounting firm and held several executive posts with its corporate parent, H&R Block. At RSM, he structured and negotiated numerous deals resulting in the acquisition of accounting and consulting firms ranging in size from sole proprietors to multi-state firms with hundreds of staff and professionals. Prior to joining McGladrey, he served as Managing Partner of Donnelly Meiners Jordan Kline, a 60-person CPA firm in Kansas City.

Terry believes it’s imperative that practitioners have a clear understanding of their objectives when pursuing a sale of their practice or the merger with, or acquisition of, another practice. “I've seen deals not work or not materialize because one of the parties to the succession plan had not thought through what they really wanted to accomplish. Transition Advisors will make sure the approach to executing your plan will meet your objectives. Because we are consultants and not brokers, we can be much more flexible in helping a firm succeed with its transition plan.”

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