Business Succession Planning

It’s crucial to plan ahead when you own a business. You want to ensure that your company is in good hands through thick and thin. Who will take overyour business and replace key positions in the event of retirement, illness, or death? These are difficult but important questions, and the answers are never obvious. It is essential to identify and train your employees to be able to step into leadership positions. At Zetter HealthCare, we are here to help you develop an efficient business succession plan. We start by ensuring that your current employees are developing their skill sets and are trained and prepared to fillopen positions. Developing and preparing internal employees is an essential part of business succession planning.

Steps of Business Succession Planning

Zetter HealthCare is here to help you through each step of the business succession planning process. First, it is important to recognize which leadership positions are crucial to your company. For each position, create a profile including the ideal personality and skill set of a person who best fits this role. Next, identify which of your current employees match this description or show the potential to do so with further training. Promoting an existing employee to assume a role in the company is often a better strategy than bringing in an external successor. However, if your internal employees do not fit a profile, it’s important to develop a plan for external hiring as well. As the company grows and develops, incorporate the business succession plan into regular operations.
 

Benefits of a Business Succession Plan

When you create business plans, you are setting your company up for success in the near and distant future. With Zetter HealthCare, we clearly identify the needs of your company and each specific occupation. Additionally, we help you recognize your employee’s potential and set up plans to improve their skills for future opportunities. This helps to create a more efficient workplace. Informing your employees that you see their potential and want them to prepare to take on a bigger role strengthens your relationship. More often than not, you are less likely to lose your most valuable employees to other companies when they are on your succession plan.
 

Business Succession Planning as a Solo Practicing Physician

If you are a solo practicing physician, you have multiple options for your business succession plan. In general, there are three possible routes. First, you can continue operating full time until the day you retire. Then, you may opt to sell the practice to a successor or an external buyer. This option can take a varied amount of time depending on whether or not your successor is already a practicing physician.

The second option is to identify your successor long before retirement. After working alongside your successor for some time, you can appoint another physician to work with your successor once you retire. This option takes a long time since you will be hiring multiple physicians. Because it’s so tedious, it’s important to begin the process long before retirement.

Finally, you may choose to gradually close your practice leading up to your retirement while not choosing a successor. Then you may sell your practice and equipment and close up shop. This is the quickest option.
 

Succession Planning for a Large or Group Practice

Multiple physician/practices’ succession plans can get technical and confusing. While we understand the intricacies of business succession planning, it’s important to consider the obstacles of your departure. For instance, when buying a practice, you look for the lowest possible price. But when selling a practice, you look for the opposite. We perform a thorough valuation that considers all elements of the practice to establish a fair value for both parties. When exiting your practice, it’s important to include paying your medical malpractice insurance’s tail in your succession plan. This will help you avoid the rising costs of the tail and premium. Additionally, you should clearly identify the real estate buyout terms if you do not lease your practice space from a third party. These are only a few obstacles to succession planning for a large practice. Zetter HealthCare is here to ensure a smooth transition while avoiding these pitfalls.
 

Transitional Planning with Zetter HealthCare

Whatever option is best for your business’ succession, Zetter HealthCare is here to help you through every step. Regardless of the road you take, we can assist you through your business succession plan. Our primary goal is to set your practice up for success in its future and provide an easy closing or retirement process.

At Zetter HealthCare, we are here to help you identify your company’s vital positions and ideal personalities in order to perfectly fill your practice’s occupations. Planning for the future, recognizing potential, and putting time into training your employees builds a stronger practice. Transitioning solo physicians and larger practices are very different, but Zetter HealthCare has the experience to provide you with the support you need. To learn more about the importance of business succession planning, contact us or call us at (717) 691-6768.