Don’t leave your firm’s future to chance or your exit plan vulnerable to a sub-optimal outcome.
It’s inevitable…someday you will leave your firm. It is never too early to make plans for your firm’s survival after your departure.
NOW AVAILABLE: 73 Terms Every Buy/Sell Agreement Must Have PLUS A Complete Sample Agreement!![]() ![]() |
Architecture, engineering, and construction firm owners who fail to plan properly on ownership or leadership transition are leaving the firm exposed to the potential for undesirable outcomes – including significant loss of firm value, brand equity deterioration, and loss of market position. But, more than just the “transition plan” itself, the details of the execution in the context of changing market conditions and a host of other variables provide plenty of opportunity for plans to stall or fail to realize the desired results.
At the very least, a successful ownership and leadership transition plan will:
- Adequately reward and compensate equity holders for their investment
- Provide a vehicle for motivating and incentivizing up-and-coming leaders
- Keep the company well-capitalized and protected from the risks associated with unexpected shareholder departures
- Align with the long-term strategic growth objectives of the company
The most successful design firms weave ownership and leadership transition planning, and these objectives, into broader strategic planning and everything that they do. Further, in addition to starting with a well-conceived plan, closely-monitored execution and flexibility to adapt to change are the keys to success.
At PSMJ, we have been advising architecture, engineering, and construction firm leaders on succession planning and the issues associated with it for more than three decades. Nobody knows the A/E/C industry like we do and that insight and perspective comes to every client engagement that we are a part of. Just some of the areas that we can assist with are:
- Business valuation
- Ownership and leadership transition modeling and feasibility testing
- Ownership transition plan assessment and troubleshooting
- Buy/Sell agreement review
Is your firm headed towards a costly ownership dispute?
Over 40+ years of advising A/E/C firms on ownership transition and reviewing 1000s of buy/sell agreements (aka Ownership Agreements or Partnership Agreements), we’ve collected some of the most painful and costly flaws that land too many A/E/C firms into expensive and damaging disputes.
Take this quick five-minute anonymous and confidential yes/no quiz to see how your agreement stacks up!

