We want to use our EOS implementation to build a business ready for a clean exit, but we are unsure how to represent our ultimate valuation and sale goals on our V/TO without distracting our team from weekly operational execution. Where do we document our exit strategy within the standard EOS tools?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Your long-term exit goals belong in the ten-year target section of your V/TO®. This is the place where you define the ultimate destination of the business. If your goal is a clean exit at a specific valuation within five to ten years, you should state that target clearly on the document.

However, to keep this target from distracting your team from daily execution, you must translate that long-term vision into short-term, bite-sized goals. Your three-year picture and one-year plan must focus on the operational milestones required to build that exit value, such as increasing your gross margins, institutionalizing your core processes, or diversifying your client base.

Your weekly Level 10 Meeting™ and quarterly Rocks should never be focused on the transaction itself. Instead, they must be focused on running a highly profitable, self-sustaining business. A buyer does not want to purchase a company that is obsessed with selling itself; they want to purchase a company that is obsessed with operational excellence. By keeping your exit goal as your North Star on the V/TO® and focusing your weekly execution on operational health, you naturally build a business that is highly attractive to buyers.