Transitioning Accounting & Tax Practices: Succession Planning, Buying and Selling

This course discusses the main factors that contribute to a successful practice transition, guides potential vendors and purchasers through the process, and prepares participants for the issues they will face during a transition process. Topics addressed will be of interest for practitioners looking to sell or to acquire a practice.  Topics will include current trends in the profession: soft issues in practice transition; merger vs. direct sale; valuation: risk, earnouts, transition time; taxation: sale of shares vs sale of assets (client list); client retention: the fit between the current and incoming practitioner, client relationships, communication; ethics: technology, communication with clients.  Topics will include:

1. The Why’s of buying a practice/book of business
2. Why some practice/book acquisitions fail
3. Preparing for a sale
4. Options for starting the transition
5. Indicators of a desirable practice
6. Current trends
7. Practice values
8. Methods of transitioning
9. Tax implications of various transition structures
10. Stages of purchase/sale of a practice/book
11. Ethical and other practice issues including technology, and relationships and communications with staff and clients
12. When to involve a valuator/intermediary

Speaker: Melanie E. Russell, CPA, CA, CBV, CFE, CIM, CFF, ABV of Kalex Valuations Inc.