Make sure you visualize what you really want, not what someone else wants for

you. Jerry Gillies

Can you honestly answer these 4 questions?
What would happen to my clients and my practice if I passed away or became
disabled?
Who would I consider as a business partner and possible successor to my
practice?
What steps do I need to take to meet my goals?
Do I have an answer when clients ask, What happens to us, if something
happens to you?
Practice continuity planning or succession planning is the process of creating and
implementing a long-term strategic plan to fit your emotional and financial needs,
with a focus on the well being of your family, your clients and your key
employee(s). It is not about selling the business. Rather it is for you to have an
orderly transition to effectively preserve your clients trust you have built over the
years. The overall goal is to establish continuity for your clients, optimize the
efficiency of your practice and give your family peace of mind.
It is ironic that financial professionals work with their business owner clients to
make sure they have a business transition or succession plan in place for when the
owner dies, but that many of these same advisors do not have a plan to provide for
the orderly transition of their clients when they retire or prematurely die. As a
matter of fact, in a recent LIMRA study, only 27% of producers surveyed have a
formal succession plan in place.
The outcome of not planning can be potentially problematic. As advisors approach
retirement age many decide to cut back on their hours to spend time with their
family, travel and do other things. The independent nature of our business allows
for a part-time retirement. However, those who spend less time in the business
without a succession plan tend to reduce the value of their practice over time, not
to mention overlooked opportunities with their client base. A key benefit in this
process is to leave the venture you have spent most of your life building as a
thriving enterprise vs. an organization on a downward spiral.
There are two critical parts to consider for proper practice continuity planning: 1)
the written plan to deal with your sudden death or disability. (In a sense, this is
your practices short-term disaster plan if anything should happen to you. You may
not have a bona fide successor named yet, but you should have someone named
to handle your clients in the case of your death or disability), and 2) the long-term,
planned succession strategy designed to maximize the equity in your practice and
the orderly transition to a chosen successor.
Any successful transition must preserve the continuity of the practice. It is critically
important that the succession be perceived as a process rather than an event. Its
not a matter of deciding to retire at 4:00 p.m. next Tuesday at which time your

successor will take the reins while you drive off into the sunset. Succession is a
process requiring planning, teamwork, and constant re-evaluation.
Many advisors do not realize that if they die or become permanently disabled with
no plan, then all their clients are reassigned according to the Home Office and/or
local management decisions.
You need to set a wide variety of goals and priorities in order to craft a truly
winning practice continuity plan. The best place to start is to visualize your future
and begin to do some of your own fact finding on the topic of retirement and the
next phases of your life and your business.

Key questions to consider:

Business Objectives:
How do you honestly answer the following from your best client, I love what you are
doing. You have helped me and my family over the years. What happens to us if
something happens to you?
What is your vision for the succession of your practice?
Do you feel it is important to have your child(ren) take over your practice?
How much of your practice, and what parts of your practice, do you want to survive
you post-transition?
How involved do you want to be with your practice post-retirement?
Professional Objectives:
Are there parts of the business you enjoy more or less than others? (i.e., relationship
management, case design, operations, etc.)
Do you enjoy mentoring or coaching others?
Are you interested in activities outside your practice such as public speaking,
participating in industry forums or influencing policy?
Personal Objectives:
How much longer do you want to remain in business?

 When do you want to plan to retire?

Do you want to stop working all at once, or to transition over time?
Have you taken any initial steps toward your retirement? (check all that apply)
Educated yourself on your health and other benefits after retirement
Analyzed your pension income options
Reduced your work hours/work effort in the past year
Identified a partner/successor
Reallocated your time to focus on high-value activities
What kinds of projects, activities, charitable/community work and other plans do you
have for retirement?
What will you do after you transition your practice?
Rate the extent to which you value the following pre-retirement and retirement strategies:

Practice Transition Strategies

Already
in Place

Circle your answer

(1=low value; 5=high value)

Inform my clients about my upcoming

retirement

Choose a successor or partner

Introduce my successor or partner to my

clients

Provide seamless service to my clients

through and beyond my retirement

Determine the actual value of my practice

Develop a plan to transition my practice to

my successor or partner

Continue to work part-time during

retirement

Finally, if you have not identified a successor for your practice, what is getting in the way?

Self-motivation
Taking the time to do it
Not convinced it is necessary
Identifying the right successor

 I am going to die with my boots on

Not sure