Business development is the wheeling and dealing of monetary deals to help small and medium businesses grow. Having been in this business awhile, you take pride in knowing how many companies you helped, and how many have thrived because of the work you have done. Yet, now the time has come to retire, or change careers. When business development is not your deal anymore, and you want out, here is what you can do.

Sell Your Portion of Your Business to an Employee or Partner

Sell your portion of the company to a partner. If you do not have a partner after all this time, offer it to the next in command. Otherwise, you could offer the sale openly to anyone in your company. Giving "first dibs" to employees means that you can reasonably expect that your company will continue in a similar operational fashion as it has, rather than a complete overhaul of the company after you are gone.

Go Public and Sell Your Company to the Highest Bidder

It is unusual to "go public" this late in the game, but other companies have successfully done it. The one bonus to going public (i.e., converting your company to a stock market exchange corporation) is that you can still retain ownership through publicly traded shares of stock without actually owning the company. That means that you can continue to profit from the company if the company itself profits under the new leadership. Ergo, going public before you retire allows you to keep part of the company for the purpose of turning a profit while you sell the company to the highest outside bidder. It is almost like doubling your money.

Hire a Business Development Broker/Dealer to Sell for You

A business development broker/dealer is someone who specializes in taking business development companies like yours and brokering deals to sell the company. The broker/dealer tracks down interested parties, tries to broker deals for your company. Then he/she sells your company to the most lucrative prospect.

It may take a little more time to find a buyer, but then the broker/dealer does not sell to just anyone who is interested in buying. The broker/dealer is working for you to find the best buyer, something which you would not have the time to do yourself as you are preparing your exit strategy and retirement. It is the most convenient and profitable approach to leaving your company. Contact a company, like Luxor Financial Group, for more help.