Client Examples succession planning

Client Name: Diane

Company Type: Engineering Firm

Employees: 50

Revenue: $27,000,000

Diane owns an engineering firm. She has three daughters, one of whom (the eldest) is actively involved in the business and who would, one day, like to run the business. The other two daughters are not involved in the business. Diane’s husband is close to retirement and she would like to have a succession plan in place prior to them both entering retirement.

Challenges: If Diane leaves the business to her eldest daughter, how does she handle the distribution of their estate and keep things equal among the three daughters if the business represents 75% of the value of the estate? This only leaves 25% of their estate to the other two daughters.

The Brezden Solution: Succession planning often has many elements. As part of the BWA solution, consulting specialists from the Brezden Network were brought in to ensure the successor (daughter) was ready, willing, and able to take on her new role as business owner and President of the company. In addition, BWA used various financial techniques to ensure an equitable distribution of the estate while considering the role of the active child, versus the two inactive children in the family business.