Smart Business Magazine, March 2018

18 Smart Business Pittsburgh March 2018 A S P I R E 2 0 1 8 C O N F E R E N C E P A N E L S P E A K E R S JEFFREY J CONN Clark Hill PLC PETE DECOMO ALung Technologies Inc DR MATTHEW D DIANDRETH M S Precision Dental Specialty PATRICK D DUGAN Wabtec Corp AUDREY DUNNING CGI DAVID EICHENLAUB Confluence Advisors LLC to provide data and showing up with surprises often damages credibility more materially than the straight financial impact of any particular negative disclosure Business owners should also never do a sale alone Theres no way for an owner to provide their full attention to the business while running the process of selling it Something has to give and it is usually the underlying performance of the company Lieberman says In addition if you think its too early to start planning for business succession whether thats a sale transfer outside investment etc you may end up being too late says John T Welsh vice president of wealth strategy at BNY Mellon Wealth Management While the succession planning never stops when transferring or selling a business trying to do so in the most tax efficient manner has a definite sweet spot he says BUILDING TRUST SEEING CLEARLY M A requires trust between investors and business owners For example Howard W Hoddy Hanna III chairman at Hanna Holdings Inc and Howard Hanna Real Estate Services uses his lenders as allies before a transaction even if the company isnt borrowing from them Weve actually backed off of investments we were going to make before on their advice he says There is a misconception that investors are in it for a quick return Denove says As such entrepreneurs sometimes miss out on opportunities or critical timing JOHN T WELSH What are common misconceptions that entrepreneurs and business owners have of potential investors that make it more difficult to earn their support Its a big misconception that the bank needs to be kept in the dark but we try to bring our banks into our process We rely on these partners to be part and parcel of the business decisions we make every day HOWARD W HODDY HANNA III CHAIRMAN HANNA HOLDINGS INC HOWARD HANNA REAL ESTATE SERVICES Owners have always been in control of the business and believe they will be treated as an employee to be controlled by the investor I dont think I will make a good employee not realizing that in many instances the investor is looking at them more as a true partner with a valued opinion JOHN F HERUBIN MANAGING DIRECTOR EDGEPOINT CAPITAL INVESTORS DEALMAKERS ENTREPRENEURS AspirePIT