SBDC Workshop to Focus on Succession Planning for Family

Succession planning for passing on family-owned businesses is often not talked about, but warrants important discussion.

A Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) webinar, titled “Succession Planning for Family-Owned Businesses,” is scheduled Tuesday, Sept. 19, from 2-3:30 p.m. This webinar will help family business owners understand and manage these issues to assist with a smooth transition between themselves and the future owners of their companies. 

The SBDC is a partnership among the University of Wyoming, the Wyoming Business Council and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBDC focuses on educating small-business owners and potential owners on how to successfully start and operate small businesses. The SBDC’s main office is located at UW.

Leonard Holler, a licensed certified public accountant, certified valuation analyst and chartered global management accountant, will present the webinar. Holler has been a practicing accountant in Wyoming for more than 40 years, and has spent much of the past 22 years as a regional director for the Wyoming SBDC Network in Casper. He has extensive education and expertise in valuations for business transitions and family-owned business succession planning.

Important considerations for succession planning include who will manage the business once the current owner is no longer working and how will ownership be transferred. What is the value of the business? How will your retirement funds be paid? Succession planning can be especially complicated in family businesses due to the relationships and emotions involved, and the fact that most people are not comfortable discussing topics such as aging, death and their financial affairs. 

“This is a topic that most businesses do not think about until some life event occurs,” says Cindy Beth Unger, business adviser for the Wyoming SBDC.

There is no charge for this program due to a Portable Assistance Grant from the U.S. SBA, but participants must register at www.wyomingsbdc.org to obtain the link to the webinar.

Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested at least two weeks in advance. Language assistance services for clients with limited English proficiency will be provided. For more information, call Justin Farley at (307) 234-6683 or email him at justin.farley@uwyo.edu.

The Wyoming SBDC Network is a business advising group of the Wyoming SBDC, Procurement Technical Assistance Center, Market Research Center and SBIR/STTR Initiative. The network’s mission is to help Wyoming entrepreneurs succeed. Advising and most market research activities are free of charge to Wyoming residents.

The SBDC is funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. SBA. Additional support is provided by the Wyoming Business Council and UW.

For more information, go to www.wyomingsbdc.org or call 1-800-348-5194.