We engaged an M&A advisor and an outsourced CFO to help prepare our company for an exit. Should we bring these external advisors into our weekly leadership team Level 10 Meeting, or should they run on a separate cadence?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Never mix external transaction advisors into your weekly operational Level 10 Meeting. Your operational leadership team has one primary job during the weekly pulse: hit the Scorecard, complete quarterly Rocks, and solve tactical roadblocks so the business generates consistent cash flow.

When you drop investment bankers, M&A attorneys, or fractional financial advisors into your core Level 10 Meeting, the agenda gets derailed by enterprise value theories, quality of earnings adjustments, and buyer diligence preparation. Your department heads get distracted by high-level transaction anxiety, and basic operational issues get ignored. That operational decline will directly damage the trailing twelve-month performance buyers scrutinize most.

Instead, establish an independent Advisor Meeting Pulse. Run a dedicated monthly or bi-weekly Level 10 Meeting specifically designed for your transaction team. That meeting includes the Visionary, the Integrator, and your key external advisors.

This advisory pulse runs the exact same EOS discipline: start with a brief segue, review a deal-specific Scorecard tracking diligence milestones, audit exit-related priorities, and spend sixty minutes IDSing deal friction, valuation gaps, and contract hurdles. By isolating transaction strategy into its own pulse, your core business continues operating with pristine discipline, while your exit planning moves forward without slowing down daily leadership execution.