When should a business owner begin succession planning?

The answer to this question is different for every business and every owner. However, we've found that most owners start thinking about succession planning when they feel like their business is stable and established enough to pass on to another generation.

If you're thinking about succession planning, don't worry—you're not alone! In fact, according to a recent survey conducted by BizNexus, 56% of small business owners have already begun the process of succession planning. But here's the thing: the sooner you start thinking about it, the better off your company will be.

It's important to note that there are two kinds of succession plans: "pre-event" (before an unexpected death or retirement) and "post-event" (after an unexpected death or retirement). If you're thinking about creating a pre-event plan, we encourage you to do so as soon as possible! The longer you wait before beginning the process, the harder it will be for everyone involved—including yourself.

So when should you get started? Now! It really doesn't matter whether your business is one year old or twenty years old; if you haven't started thinking about how it will continue without your direct involvement yet then now is.

When should a business owner begin succession planning?

Many business owners struggle with the question of when to start succession planning. The short answer is that it's never too early to start thinking about who will take over your company and how your business will transition from one generation to the next.

In fact, it's best to get started on this process as soon as possible! Here are three reasons why:

1) It helps you figure out what you want your legacy to be. When you're still at the helm of your business, it's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day details of running it. But once you've made it through those years and are ready to retire, or if something happens unexpectedly and forces you into retirement before you're ready, it's important for your successor (or successors) to understand what legacy you want them to carry forward in their new roles. This is particularly true if there are multiple people involved in the succession process – which we'll discuss more below.

2) It helps prevent burnout among current employees. If everyone knows there's an end date and plan in place for when they'll need to step up and take over some of the responsibilities from their managers or mentors, then nobody has.

It's never too early to start succession planning for your business.

If you're thinking about selling your business, it's important to consider how the next owner will be able to take over smoothly. This is where succession planning comes in: it helps make sure that the transition from one owner to another is smooth and successful.

Think about it this way: if you were going on vacation, you'd probably want to plan ahead so you could leave things in good order before you left. That's what succession planning is—it's a way of making sure that when you sell your business, everything is ready for someone else to run it smoothly.