Explaining Business Sales to Employees

If you’re considering selling your business anytime in the near future, one of your primary concerns might be the way your employees will feel about this news. Many business owners, even those who might be looking to move on, are dedicated to the well-being of their employees and naturally worry about them being in good shape following a business sale.

At Utah Business Consultants, we’re here to help with this and all areas of business valuation and sales. And while we fully understand these concerns, there are actually a few possible reasons why a business sale might be good for the employees of the business – here are a few to consider, and that you can consider passing on if you decide to sell so no one panics.

New Owners and Impressions

In many cases here, the impression employees or even selling owners have when a sale is taking place seems straight out of a movie script. A new, big bad boss comes in to take over, and immediately fires everyone and completely cleans house to make his or her impression felt right away.

Simply put, this isn’t how things tend to go in reality. In fact, the opposite is commonly true: New business owners will be invested in gaining the trust and loyalty of the existing employees, and will go to great lengths to keep them on staff. New owners are often largely dependent on the expertise and advice of the employees who were present before they arrived, and this actually can lead to increased job security for existing employees rather than the other way around. Some of the most experienced and valuable employees could even be in line for increased wages or perks.

Career Advancement

In some cases, the entity purchasing a business is a larger one that could be looking to expand the scope or size of the business after the sale. In these cases, existing employees might have significant opportunities for career advancement, including some that may not have been present previously. This can be an area you emphasize significantly to employees if you have any who are concerned about their futures, particularly if you know there are expansion plans in the cards with the new owners.

New Growth

And in some other cases, new owners mean new innovation and growth. Some owners, while great to their employees, may simply be running out of energy to run the business or ingenuity to keep it fresh and profitable. New owners, on the other hand, could have unique new ideas to revitalize the business, which could both bring about career opportunities and make employees more engaged.

For more on how to speak to your employees about a business sale, or to learn about any of our exit planning or business valuation services, speak to the staff at Utah Business Consultants today.