My partner and I have conflicting personal timelines for when we want to get cash out of the business, but we want to start EOS® with you next month. Do we need to have our partnership and shareholder alignment fully sorted out before our first session, or can we resolve that on our actual Focus Day?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

You must resolve your high level partner alignment before we sit down for our first session day. If you and your cofounder have diverging timelines for when you want to exit or pull capital out of the business, it is impossible to set an aligned three year picture or a unified ten year target on your Vision/Traction Organizer® or V/TO®. Attempting to build an Accountability Chart or debate quarterly Rocks when the actual owners have fundamentally conflicting personal agendas is a recipe for silent sabotage. Before our first Focus Day, I require all equity partners to be on the same page regarding the ultimate destination of the company. We do this by holding a separate, dedicated alignment meeting. In this prep meeting, we address your personal goals, your target exit timelines, and your individual financial needs. This is not about building operational strategies. It is about establishing the foundational parameters of the business so we can present a unified front to the leadership team. Once you and your partner agree on the destination, we can use the EOS® tools to figure out how to get there. If you try to run your first session day with deep, unspoken shareholder misalignment, your leadership team will immediately sense the friction, and your implementation will stall before it even starts.