Consultation
Succession Readiness Assessment
A two-session engagement mapping your business transition — successor gaps, financial snapshot, and a written 12-month action plan.
Who this is for
Owners of established local businesses — retail, trades, professional practices, hospitality, regional services — who know a handover is approaching but have not yet mapped the sequence. Typical clients employ between ten and eighty people and have operated for fifteen years or more.
What you receive
Session one (2.5 hours): Owner interview covering personal goals, family dynamics, and management structure. We document current leadership roles, informal decision-makers, and any existing succession conversations.
Between sessions: We review three years of management accounts (with your accountant’s cooperation), staff org charts, and major supplier or customer contracts that may affect a sale or internal transfer.
Session two (2 hours): We present findings — successor gap analysis, financial readiness snapshot, risk register, and a prioritised 12-month action plan with named next steps and suggested advisers.
Written deliverable: A bound report (printed and PDF) you can share with your solicitor, accountant, and family.
What is included
- Two facilitated sessions with a senior consultant
- Stakeholder mapping worksheet
- Financial readiness summary (not a formal valuation)
- Risk register with mitigation suggestions
- 12-month action plan
What is excluded
- Formal business valuation (we coordinate with your valuer)
- Legal document drafting
- Tax structuring advice (we work alongside your accountant)
- Ongoing implementation (available as a separate engagement)
Provider
Led by Eleanor Whitfield, principal consultant, with support from our research associate. Eleanor has guided over forty local business transitions across the NT and Queensland since 2011.
Preparation
Bring your most recent management accounts, a rough org chart, and any letters of intent or informal agreements already in place. If family members are involved, let us know who should — and should not — attend each session.
Next step
Request this consultation or call us to discuss whether the timing is right.