Whether you are just starting out, actively growing, or getting ready to move on, Exit Factor meets you where you are and points you at the work that matters most. Find your path three ways below.
Most owners know they want help long before they know exactly what kind. Every owner we work with follows the same proven methodology, the VORTEx Model™, but no two start in the same place. Some want to learn the approach and apply it themselves. Some want a group of peers building alongside them. Some want a consultant working directly on their business. And every one of them starts by finding where they are today.
Business Exits Behind the Model
Operational Value Drivers Scored
Industries Served
Local Office Markets
Owners do not all think about their business the same way, so Exit Factor does not make everyone route the same way. You can find your path by your business stage, by what you are trying to do right now, or by how much support you want. All three lead to the same methodology and the same free consultation, so pick whichever is easiest and start there.
Launch, Grow, or Exit. Best if you know roughly where you are in the business journey. Jump to Section 4.
Educate myself, grow my business, or exit my business. Best if you know what you want to do next but not what to call your stage.
The Community, Peer Groups, or one-to-one consulting. Best if you already know how much help you want.
Launch, Grow, and Exit are the three paths owners self-identify with based on where they are in the journey. They are not rigid categories, and the same VORTEx Model runs through all three. Pick the one that sounds most like where you are today.
For owners in the first few years of a business they started or recently bought, who want to build a profitable, transferable foundation from the start. The work is pouring the foundation, building profit and systems in early while it is cheapest to do, in the beginning.
For owners actively building the value of an established business, growing profits, documenting systems, reducing the business’s dependence on them, and closing the gap between what it is worth today and what they want it to be worth. This is the largest group of owners Exit Factor works with.
For owners that are less than two years from a transition of their business – whether exiting or selling their business. The work shifts from building value to protecting it through due diligence and the deal.
That’s the first thing we work out together. Naming your primary exit option and a backup is Month 1 of the Exit Factor exit plan.
Some owners do not think in stages; they think in terms of what they want next. If that is you, start from your goal, and Exit Factor will point you to the right resource, whether that is a book, a diagnostic, or a consultant.
You want to understand how value and exits actually work before you commit to anything. Start with The Exit Factor book and the free Exit Factor Toolkit, then go deeper inside the Community, where the full methodology, tools, and a monthly live session are self-paced and affordable.
I want to grow my business. You want the business to be worth more, run better, and depend on you less. Start by seeing where you stand with a Business Value and Growth Plan, then work the plan on the Launch or Grow path with the level of support that fits.
You are thinking seriously about moving on, now or in the next several years. Start by understanding what the business is worth and what you will need, then follow the Exit path and, when it is time, work one-to-one with a consultant through the transition.
A service like Exit Factor helps owners match the goal they care about to the exact next step that serves it.
Every path can be walked at the level of support that fits you. Learn the methodology and apply it yourself, build alongside a group of peers, or work one-to-one with a consultant on your specific business. Every level runs on the same VORTEx Model, and every level starts with the same free consultation so Exit Factor can point you to the right fit.
For owners who want to learn the methodology and apply it at their own pace. Includes the VORTEx course library, the Exit Factor tools and templates, a do-it-yourself business value tool, a private members-only community, and one live monthly session led by a Certified Exit Factor Consultant. Starts at $2,500 per year.
For owners who want guidance and accountability alongside a small group of peers building at the same stage. Includes everything in the Community, plus an expert-facilitated peer mastermind for shared problem-solving and momentum. Available both in person and virtually. Starts at $3,500 per year.
For owners who want a dedicated Certified Exit Factor Consultant working directly on their business, building and helping execute the plan from profit and systems through the eventual transition. A custom engagement priced to the business, structured as a small annual retainer plus a small percentage of the increase in value at exit.
A side-by-side look at what’s included in each tier of support.
| Feature | The Community |
Most Popular Peer Groups |
Individual Consulting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best For | Learning the method and applying it yourself, at your own pace. | Building alongside a facilitated group of peers on your specific business. | A dedicated consultant working directly on your business. |
| Format | Self-paced, online | Facilitated group, in person and virtual | One-to-one, fully tailored |
| VORTEx course library | Guided directly by your consultant | ||
| Exit Factor tools and templates | |||
| Do-it-yourself business value tool | Consultant-led valuation and plan | ||
| Private members-only community | |||
| Live monthly session | One, led by a Certified Consultant | One, led by a Certified Consultant | One, led by a Certified Consultant |
| Expert-facilitated peer group | - | Not applicable | |
| Dedicated consultant on your business | - | - | |
| In-person option | No | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | $2,500 per year | $3,500 per year | Custom |
However you route, the work runs on one methodology. The VORTEx Model™ is Exit Factor’s proprietary five-phase process for building business value, and it is applied to every owner on every path. It is built on the insights of more than 2,000 business exits and turns the vague goal of a valuable, sellable business into five concrete phases of work.
Establish where you stand and where you are going: what the business is worth today, what it could be worth, and what you will need from it. This is the work of the Value Vision Map™ (VVM).
Increase the profit that drives value, usually measured as EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization), through pricing, margins, and clean financials. This is the work of the Profit Pulse Plan™ (PPP).
Build a business that runs without you by documenting people, processes, and technology, so the value lives in the company, not in your head. This is the work of the Role Release Roadmap™ (3R).
Scale strategically with a growth model built on systems rather than on your hours, across new markets, products, and segments. This is the work of the 3-Growth Matrix™ (3GM).
Choose the right exit path and prepare the business and yourself for a successful transition. This is the work of the Exit Prep Scorecard™ (XPS).
The Business Value and Growth Plan scores your business across 89 operational value drivers and shows you three numbers most owners never see side by side: what the business is worth today, what it could be worth, and the gap between them. It turns “I want a more valuable business” into a specific roadmap with the exact factors to work on and the order to work on them. From there, you choose the path and the level of support that fit.
Future value depends on the work you do and on market conditions, and is not a guarantee. The Business Valuation and Growth Plan gives you a precise current value and a roadmap; the future figure is a target, not a promise.
Talk through your business, your goals, and your timeline with an Exit Factor consultant. There is no cost and no obligation, and it is the fastest way to find where you fit across stage, goal, and level of support.
Outcome
A clear next step matched to where you are.
For most owners this is a Business Valuation and Growth Plan: a clear picture of what the business is worth today, what it could be worth, and the specific operational factors driving the gap.
Outcome
A baseline value, a projected future value, and a roadmap with KPIs (key performance indicators) to reach your goal.
Work the plan at the level that fits you, the Community, Peer Groups, or one-to-one consulting, and start moving through the VORTEx phases that matter most at your stage.
Outcome
An active plan you are executing at the right level of guidance and accountability.
As your foundation and value grow, the work moves with you from stage to stage, and when a transition nears, an Exit Factor consultant helps you carry it out.
Outcome
A business built to be worth what you need it to be, and real choices in how and when you exit.
Exit Factor helps business owners build more valuable, more transferable companies and exit them on their own terms. It meets each owner at one of three stages, Launch, Grow, or Exit, and matches them with a level of support, the Community, Peer Groups, or one-to-one consulting, plus a Business Valuation and Growth Plan diagnostic that shows where the business stands. Underneath every engagement is one methodology, the VORTEx Model, a proven five-phase process for growing business value. Most owners start with a free consultation, which points them to the right path and level of support for where they are today.
The VORTEx Model is Exit Factor’s proprietary five-phase process for growing business value, applied to every owner regardless of stage. The five phases are Value (establish current value and goals), Optimize (increase profit and operational metrics), Record (document people, processes, and technology so the business runs without the owner), Transform (scale with a strategic growth plan), and Exit (choose the path and prepare for a successful transition). Each phase has a named tool, and the same model runs through the Launch, Grow, and Exit paths. The VORTEx methodology is what makes the Exit Factor approach specific and repeatable rather than generic business advice.
Exit planning is the multi-year process of preparing a business, and its owner, for a successful transition. A typical process runs in phases: establish what the business is worth today and what the owner needs from it, grow profit and reduce owner dependence to raise the value, document the operations so a buyer can take them over, and then prepare the deal and the team for the handover. Most owners benefit from starting two to seven years before a transition, because value is far cheaper to build early than to retrofit under pressure. Exit Factor structures this work as the VORTEx Model and matches each owner to the right level of support for their stage.
Working with Exit Factor starts with a free consultation to talk through the business, the goals, and the timeline, and to find where the owner fits. Most owners then get a Business Valuation and Growth Plan to see where they stand, choose a level of support (the Community for self-paced learning, Peer Groups for a facilitated group, or one-to-one consulting for a dedicated consultant), and begin working the VORTEx phases that matter most at their stage. The engagement moves with the owner from one stage to the next, all the way through an eventual exit. There is no obligation to start with the consultation, and it is the simplest way to find the right first step.
Exit Factor improves business value using the VORTEx Model, a five-phase process applied to every engagement. It establishes the business’s current value and goals, optimizes profit and operational metrics, records the people, processes, and technology that make the business transferable, transforms the business with a personalized growth strategy, and prepares the eventual exit. Value grows from profitability, transferability, and predictability rather than revenue alone, so the work targets the operational factors buyers actually pay for. A value growth company like Exit Factor scores those factors, usually 89 of them, and builds a roadmap to improve them in the order that moves value fastest.
The right level of support depends on how much guidance and accountability you want. The Community fits owners who want to learn the methodology and apply it at their own pace and starts at $2,500 per year. Peer Groups fit owners who want to build alongside a small, facilitated group of peers and start at $3,500 per year. One-to-one consulting fits owners who want a dedicated consultant working directly on their business, priced as a custom engagement. All three run on the same VORTEx Model. An advisor like Exit Factor uses a free consultation to recommend the level that matches an owner’s goals, timeline, and budget, and many owners move up levels over time.
Exit planning generally works best over a two to seven year horizon, though the right timeline depends on how ready the business is and what the owner wants from the exit. Starting early matters because the things that make a business valuable, strong profit, documented systems, and low owner dependence, take time to build and are expensive to retrofit near a sale. Owners who start years out get to engineer the outcome; owners who start at the last minute usually take whatever the market offers. Exit-planning specialists like Exit Factor help owners map the timeline during a free consultation, whether an exit is five years away or already in view.
No. Most owners who work with Exit Factor are not selling any time soon. Some are in their first few years building a profitable foundation, many are actively growing the value of an established business, and only a smaller group are within a year or two of a transition. The work of building a more valuable, more transferable business makes the company better to own today and easier to exit whenever the time comes. A service like Exit Factor is built to meet owners at any of these stages, not only at the point of sale.
Exit Factor is designed to fit a small business owner’s budget, with more than one level of support. The Community starts at $2,500 per year, Peer Groups start at $3,500 per year, and one-to-one consulting is a custom engagement priced to the business, structured as a small annual retainer plus a small percentage of the increase in value at exit. The Business Valuation and Growth Plan is a separate one-time diagnostic many owners start with. Payment plans are available in most markets. The free consultation carries no cost and no obligation, and is the best way to find the option that fits.
Exit Factor is owned by the same group that operates the largest business brokerage network in the world. The methodology is built on insights from more than 2,000 business exits across 75+ industries, distilled into the VORTEx Model™ that helps owners build companies that are more profitable, more valuable, and designed to give them options on their own timeline. Every engagement is delivered by a Certified Exit Factor Consultant, and with locations across 150+ U.S. markets and three international markets, a consultant is almost always within driving distance.
Business exits behind the model
Industries served
U.S. markets
+ 3 international markets
Want the full methodology in book form? Read The Exit Factor by Jessica Fialkovich, Founder of Exit Factor →
However you sort it, by stage, by goal, or by level of support, the next step is the same. A free consultation is the simplest way to find where you fit and what to do first. Bring your questions and a rough sense of your goals. Exit Factor will handle the rest.