The Last Time I’ll Address This Concern

The other day I was speaking with the partners of a two-owner firm in the New England area, who, as many have after another tax season, pledged never to go through another 1040 rush like the one just passed.

I’m sure the brutal New England winter of 2015 which left mounds of snow and ice until mid-April most likely exacerbated the annual aggravating ritual of software glitches and last minute tax rulings and expedited their decision to seek a succession plan.

In any event I outlined the way our process worked regarding seeking an affiliation and when I explained that unlike a real estate sale, the buyer firm in fact is responsible for our fee, one of the partners shook his head in objection.

“You can’t be impartial,” he said. You represent the buyer. It’s in your best interest to do a deal any way you can.”

Trust me, this is far from the first time I’ve heard that one. So I point blank told him, that if it bothered him that much I could easily arrange for him to write the check to us in lieu of the buyer client.

He apparently didn’t appreciate my tinge of sarcasm.

But in all seriousness here’s what I told him.

First, we are not going to usher them into a bad deal. I explained that if someone is asking $500K for their house and they get an offer of $300K they will most likely walk away. I doubt very much they would knowingly enter into a merger deal that severely undervalues their firm or puts them at a disadvantage. It also doesn’t exactly burnish our reputation in the profession for helping facilitate a bad deal.

Second, we just don’t throw any buyer and seller firm together like a speed dating exercise. I’ve heard too many horror stories from once or twice burned firms who were put into meetings with potential partners who had absolutely nothing in common with regard to culture or clients.

Picture the conversation during an awkward blind date and you sort of get the picture. We qualify them thoroughly prior to the matchmaking process.

Lastly I said that we work with both parties both before and after the close to help ensure a smooth transition – we don’t just take our money and run as unfortunately too many others in our line of work tend to do.

I would love to report that what I considered faultless counters to his argument swayed them instantly.

But they promised to at least think about it.

I suppose that’s a start.