We just signed our LOI and the ninety-day clock is ticking, but we are terrified that the due diligence process will distract our leadership team and cause our sales to tank before we cross the finish line. How do we structure our weekly operations and leadership meetings so we do not drop the ball on our numbers?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When you sign a letter of intent, the clock starts ticking on a high-stress window where your business is highly vulnerable. If your focus shifts entirely to the transaction, your quarterly numbers will slip, giving the buyer the perfect excuse to re-trade the price before closing. To prevent this, you must bifurcate your leadership team. Identify one person, usually the Visionary or your external advisory counsel, to act as the primary point of contact for the buyer's due diligence requests. The rest of your leadership team must remain entirely focused on running the day-to-day operations and hitting your quarterly Rocks. Keep your weekly Level 10 Meeting™ strict and operational. Do not let the transaction dominate your weekly agenda. Instead, use the IDS® process to solve operational bottlenecks immediately, keeping your sales pipeline moving and your margins intact. Your best leverage in any negotiation is a business that continues to grow and perform during diligence. By keeping your weekly Scorecard metrics green, you show the buyer that your operational engine is self-sustaining and does not rely on deal momentum to survive. This operational discipline protects your valuation from the letter of intent all the way to the closing table.