Many entrepreneurs start their exit journey with a partial sale to de-risk from a substantial portion of their wealth being tied up in the business. Doing so sets them up for an eventual full exit.

In this episode, Mark Dorman speaks with Jim Doyle, who founded and sold Jim Doyle and Associates (now JDA.Media). Jim shares his experience of navigating ESOPs (employee stock ownership plans) and eventually selling his business to a strategic buyer.

Jim discusses: 

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• The process of making his business “sellable”
  
• How the ESOP helped his employees develop an ownership mindset, enhancing the company culture
  
• Leveraging consultants, mastermind groups, and new executive leadership in the firm
  
• The emotional side of exiting a business (and how he dealt with it)
  
• Why you should always be thinking about “What’s next?”
  
• And more
  

Resources:

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• Finish Big: How Great Entrepreneurs Exit Their Companies on Top by Bo Burlingham
  
• Selling with a Servant Heart: Ten Lessons on the Path to Joy and Increased Income by Jim Doyle
  
• Trapped in the Family Business, Second Edition: A Practical Guide to Uncovering and Managing This Hidden Dilemma by Dr. Michael Klein
  

Connect with Mark Dorman: 

• 
  
• Succession Plus US
  
• LinkedIn: Mark Dorman
  
• LinkedIn: Succession Plus
  
• Facebook: Succession Plus
  
• (330)-416-9271
  
• mdorman@succession.plus
  

Connect with Jim Doyle:

• 
  
• LinkedIn: Jim Doyle
  
• JDA.Media
  

About Our Guest: 

Jim Doyle loves sales, and he loves salespeople. He’s been selling and leading salespeople for almost fifty years. In 1991, he founded Jim Doyle and Associates, which is now the leading training and revenue development company in the Television and digital advertising business. During his 30 years with JDA, Jim presented workshops on sales and marketing to audiences all over the United States. Jim stepped away from the day-to-day leadership of what is now called JDA.media in 2020. But he’s quick to say he is a long way from being retired. He is still frequently speaking to salespeople and leaders about the principles in his new book, Selling with a Servant Heart.