The Arena Partners
Transferable Exit System™ - Exit Risk Assessment
Section 1 of 5 - Your Info
Step 1 / 5
Free Exit Assessment

How Ready Is Your Business to Sell?

Take 4 minutes to find out. You'll get a personalized Exit Risk Report showing exactly where your business stands - and what's between you and a premium exit.

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Company Name Required
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What industry is your business in? Required
Select the closest match
Trades / Mechanical
HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing
Construction / GC
General contracting, specialty
Industrial Services
Environmental, remediation, oilfield
Professional Services
Consulting, staffing, legal, financial
Healthcare / Medical
Clinics, home health, dental, therapy
Facilities / Property
Landscaping, janitorial, pest, security
Logistics / Distribution
Trucking, supply chain, warehousing
Technology / IT Services
MSP, SaaS, dev shops, cybersecurity
Other Service Business
Any service-based company
Annual Revenue Required Affects multiple range
Most recent full fiscal year
Under $5M
Smaller buyer pool, lower multiples
$5M – $10M
Entry of PE buyer attention
$10M – $25M
Strong market, competitive offers
$25M – $50M
Premium multiples available
Over $50M
M&A firm territory
How long has the business been operating?
Under 5 years
Limited track record
5 – 10 years
Established, some history
10 – 20 years
Strong credibility
20+ years
Deep market roots
Section 2 of 5

Your Timeline & Exit Plan

Understanding your timeline and readiness is one of the most valuable things you can do before going to market. Let's see where you stand.

When are you looking to exit or transition? Required High impact factor
The right timeline gives you room to prepare and go to market from a position of strength.
Within the next 12 months
Urgency is high - preparation is critical
1 – 3 years
Ideal planning window if work starts now
3 – 5 years
Time to do it right
5+ years or not sure yet
Early stage thinking
Owner's age range Required
Under 45
45 – 54
55 – 64
65 – 74
75+
Ownership structure
Sole Owner / Founder
100% - you make all decisions
Family-Owned
Multiple family members involved
Business Partners
Non-family co-owners
Inherited / 2nd Gen
Took over from a family member
Do you have a formal succession plan in place? High impact factor
A clear transition plan is one of the fastest ways to increase your multiple and improve deal terms.
Yes - fully documented and in place
Partially - some ideas, not formal
No plan in place
Not sure where to start
Section 3 of 5

Business Health & Operations

These are the four areas that have the biggest impact on your multiple. Strengthening any one of them directly increases your exit value.

How is your EBITDA trending? Direct multiple impact
Buyers pay for trajectory. Growing EBITDA is the single biggest driver of premium multiples.
Growing
Up 10%+ over the last 2 years
Stable
Flat or slight movement
Declining
Down vs. prior years
Could the business run for 90 days without you present? Key person factor
This is the exact question PE buyers ask during due diligence. Packaging your expertise into systems is the single biggest lever for increasing your multiple.
Yes - confidently
Strong management team, systems in place
Maybe - with some friction
It would struggle but survive
No - I am the business
Customers, decisions, operations depend on me
Does the business have documented SOPs? Valuation factor
Documented processes make your business transferable. Buyers pay premium multiples for operational clarity.
Yes - comprehensive and current
All key departments documented
Some - key areas only
Partial documentation exists
No - it lives in people's heads
Nothing formally documented
How concentrated is your customer base? Key value driver
Diversifying your client base is one of the fastest ways to increase your multiple. Buyers pay premium prices for balanced revenue streams.
Diversified
No single client over 10% of revenue
Moderate
Top client is 10–25% of revenue
Concentrated
Top client is 25–50% of revenue
Very Concentrated
One client is 50%+ of revenue
Section 4 of 5

Financial Clarity & Readiness

Clean financials and a clear picture of what you want are non-negotiable. This is where most deals fall apart - before they even start.

How clean and separated are your personal and business finances? Due diligence factor
Clean financials speed up due diligence and give buyers confidence. It's one of the highest-ROI preparation steps.
Completely separated
Clean books, no personal mixing
Mostly clean
Minor overlap that could be cleaned up
Somewhat mixed
Personal expenses run through the business
Very intertwined
Hard to separate what's business vs. personal
Do you know your current EBITDA number? Negotiation readiness
Yes - exact number
Roughly - ballpark figure
No - I'd have to look it up
I'm not sure what EBITDA means
Have you received any offers or inquiries about buying your business?
Yes - multiple approaches
Yes - one or two
No inquiries yet
Not actively looking yet
Have you worked with an M&A advisor or exit planner before?
No - this is my first time
I'm interviewing advisors now
Yes - good experience
Yes - disappointed in the result
Section 5 of 5 - Last Step

Your Mindset & What You Want

The deal you get isn't just about the business - it's about you. What you're willing to do, what you fear, and what success actually looks like.

When you think about life after this business - does that picture feel clear? Post-exit readiness
The most successful exits happen when the owner has clarity on who they'll be and what comes next. That's the real preparation.
Clear picture
I know what I'd do next
Some ideas, nothing concrete
Haven't formalized a plan
Blank page
The business is my identity
What's your biggest fear about selling? Shapes our approach
Getting a low offer
Not getting what the business is worth
Being taken advantage of
Wrong buyer, bad deal structure
Losing my legacy
Name, people, and culture dismantled
What happens to my employees
Team members who've been here for years
Who am I after this?
Purpose, identity, what's next
I don't have major fears
Approaching this with clarity
How committed are you to doing the work required to prepare your business? Makes or breaks outcomes
Fully committed
I'll do whatever it takes to get this right
Mostly committed
Open to it but want to understand the ask first
I want someone to handle it for me
Looking for a mostly hands-off approach
I don't want to change much
The way we operate is fine
What does a successful exit look like to you?
Be specific - what matters most? Price, speed, terms, what happens after?
Anything else we should know before your call?
● Assessment
0
Exit Risk Score
/ 100

Your business has real strengths - here's how to maximize them for your exit.

✓

Your call is confirmed. Your advisor has received your diagnostic report and will come prepared to address each of these areas specifically. Check your email for a copy of this report.

Section A
Executive Summary
Transferable Enterprise Value
Estimated % of full value you'd capture today
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Section B
Priority Risk Matrix
Section C
Full Category Breakdown
Section D
Your Actionable Roadmap