CBIA BizCast: Selling Your Biggest Asset

When Thomas Watson founded The Watson Group in 2013, he had a few motives. 

Overall, the goal has been to help improve career successes and lives. 

He had worked in private equity, running firms of various sizes for many years, and decided to open the talent solutions business on the side. 

“For me it was a chance to peek behind the curtain and also help [my private equity businesses] out in terms of business valuation,” Watson said. 

The array of services TWG offers complement each other and where Watson was dedicating most of his time. 

“Everything I do has got to be detailed,” Watson said. 

Exit Strategies 

As Watson chose to take a leap and focus solely on his firm, he’s spent a great deal of time helping set businesses up for long-term success with talent and optimizing operations. 

Recently he’s had more than a few inquiries with owners looking to sell their business.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 51% of business owners are over the age of 55. 

But Watson said what he’s finding is that business owners aren’t always aware about the ins and outs of the exit process or the role their business plays in their retirement plan.

“There is often a lot of work to be done to position a business for sale and to pull together all the materials you need.”

TWG’s Thomas Watson

He said business owners should really come up with a plan to sell their business at least three years before they are ready to. 

“There is often a lot of work to be done to position a business for sale and to pull together all the materials you need,” Watson said. 

“Sometimes they have a great team, but it’s not always the best team to take the company over.” 

Watson said small business owners sometimes have a figure in their head for retirement that isn’t practical. 

Finding Top Talent

As businesses struggle with finding and retaining top talent, TWG is among the firms playing an important role.

Watson said there is a fairly constant volume at the executive level. 

He has found pre-hire and post-hire assessments are extremely effective at helping leaders grow. 

“Certain strengths overused can become a weakness.”

“Certain strengths overused can become a weakness,” Watson said. 

He often helps balance those attributes to help a company find the right balance and fit with an existing company culture. 

“Reports give strengths and things to watch out for,” he said.

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