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Corefieldoperational succession

Build a business that runs without you.

Then choose what comes next. Keep it with managers running it, bring in a partner, hand it to family, sell it to your team or to a buyer, or step back at your own pace. Corefield gets the business ready, and proves it works without you.

Get your free Handover Check How it works

Free. About ten minutes. Your report comes by email.

How a business runs before and after operational succession Today every part of the business, from customers and pricing to licences and the bank, connects to the owner. After the handover, each part connects to the team, the systems or the records, and the owner is free. You TeamSystemsRecords You: free to choose CustomersPricingThe bankLicencesHiringSuppliersQuotesProblems
Today, every line runs through you. When you’re away, things wait.

The crew changes; the ship keeps sailing.

On a ship, people rotate every few months. Its know-how lives in its systems, routines and handover notes, not in any one person.

Most businesses work the other way. The know-how lives in the owner’s head. When the owner takes two weeks off, the phone keeps ringing.

Corefield brings the ship’s way of working to your business.

The crew changes; the ship keeps sailing A cargo ship sails on a continuous course while three crews take turns, each handing over to the next. The ship keeps sailing Crew 1handoverCrew 2handoverCrew 3

Does this sound like you?

Owners tell us the same things, in almost the same words.

  • “I can’t get away.”
  • “What happens to my people if something happens to me?”
  • “Nobody else can do what I do.”
  • “The offer was lower than I expected.”
  • “I don’t know where to start.”
  • “My family keeps asking when.”

You’re not doing anything wrong. This is how a good business grows when one person builds it. Everything ends up running through that person. It can be changed, and it’s one of the most worthwhile changes an owner can make.

Your paperwork may be done. Your handover isn’t.

Your accountant and lawyer have probably worked out who will own the business and what it’s worth. Nobody has worked out whether it runs without you. That second half has a name: operational succession.

Paper succession

Answers: who will own it, and what is it worth?

  • Tax planning accountant
  • What it’s worth valuator
  • Shareholder agreements lawyer
  • Will and estate plan estate lawyer
  • Insurance insurance advisor
  • Finding a buyer broker

This side matters, and your advisors handle it.

Operational succession

Answers: will it run without you, and can you prove it?

  • The work gets done without you
  • Customers deal with your people
  • Someone else can run the numbers
  • Decisions don’t wait for you
  • The bank and suppliers know your team
  • Licences don’t depend on you

Few owners have this in place. This is what Corefield does.

Six places your business may still need you

We look at six areas. The weakest one matters most, because that’s where anyone taking over will look first.

  • The work

    Can the work get done properly without you?

  • The customers

    Do your customers deal with your people, or only with you?

  • The numbers

    Can someone else read and run the numbers?

  • The decisions

    What waits for you, and what stops when you’re away?

  • The outside relationships

    Do the bank, suppliers and landlord know anyone but you?

  • The licences

    Whose name are the licences and certifications in?

When it runs without you, you get to choose

Our mission is to help you build a business that runs without you, so you can choose what comes next.

  • Keep it, with managers running it

    Keep the business and the income. Your managers run it day to day.

  • Bring in a partner

    Bring in a partner who can share the running, the risk or the growth.

  • Hand it to family

    Pass it on without handing your family a business that still needs you.

A business that runs without you

opens more doors

  • Sell to your employees

    Sell to the people who built it with you, for example through an employee ownership trust.

  • Sell to a buyer

    Sell a business that can carry on without you. Buyers pay for what they can keep.

  • Step back at your own pace

    Work two days a week, or three months a year, and choose later.

Read about each option

How Corefield gets you there

Start with the free Check. Stop after any step. Each one has a fixed fee, agreed before we begin.

See how it works or compare the services

Then we prove it.

At the end of the work, you leave for three weeks, completely out of reach. The business carries on, and we keep a record of each day.

That signed record shows your family, your managers, your bank or a buyer that the business really does run without you. A score can only predict that. Time away shows it.

About the Three-Week Test

Three weeks awayAn example, for illustration
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Business as usualSomething came up, and it was handledSomething waited for the owner
  • Day 2 Supplier price rise approved by the operations lead. Held
  • Day 6 Unusual job quoted by the estimator from the written method. Held
  • Day 9 A rush job needed a price. Nobody felt able to decide. Waited
  • Day 13 Machine fault fixed by the shift technician from the records. Held
  • Day 17 Bank asked for figures. The bookkeeper sent them. Held
Every day is logged. What held and what waited are both written down, and the owner and managers sign the log.

The slow parts take longer than you think

So the best time to start is well before you need to.

A buyer or bank checks the businessa few months
Closing the gaps they find9 months to 2 years

When a buyer or a bank checks your business, they usually find the gaps within a few months. Closing them usually takes nine months to two years. A second person may need years to qualify for your licence. Customers need time to trust someone new. Records need a year or two of history. None of that can be rushed.

What you can count on

These promises go into every agreement we sign.

  • Your business stays private

    What you tell us stays between us. Your staff speak to us in confidence, and nothing they say is quoted with their name.

  • Fixed fees, agreed first

    You know the fee before any work starts. We never take a cut of a sale and never bill by the hour.

  • Honest scores

    Fees pay for the work, not the result. If something didn’t improve, the report says so.

  • Proof you can check

    If it can’t be shown, it doesn’t count. That rule is the same for every client.

  • We know our limits

    We don’t value businesses or give tax, legal or financial advice. We work alongside the people who do.

  • We’ll say if we’re not right for you

    If the timing is wrong or the business isn’t a fit, we’ll tell you, and point you to someone who can help.

Read our promises

Who we work with

Businesses that run on skilled, scheduled work.

Field service and maintenance. Equipment service and repair. Licensed trades. Heating, cooling and refrigeration. Machine shops and fabrication. Marine service. Food processing and cold storage. Industrial supply. Equipment dealers and rental.

Our paid work is usually a good fit when:

  • the business brings in about $1 million a year or more;
  • at least three people work in it besides you;
  • you’d like real choices within the next one to five years.

The Handover Plan and Handover Program usually suit businesses from about $2 million a year.

Smaller than that? The Handover Check is still free, and your report will show you what to work on first.

Questions owners ask us

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