Business Consulting

“Blue Trust’s Business Consulting team has been walking alongside our family business during our succession from Gen 4 to Gen 5. In the last six months, they have mapped out a succession planning timeline, helped our family gain a collective vision, and developed individual discipleship plans to prepare and equip the next generation.”

– Ashley Luse *
Luse Contracting Group

Whatever you do, do your work with all your heart, as for the Lord, rather than men.

Colossians 3:23

Blue Trust’s Business Consulting division leverages biblical wisdom and practical expertise to advise business owners as they seek to faithfully steward the companies with which they have been entrusted. We exist to serve business owners in the following ways:

Strategic and Financial Consulting
Succession Planning
M&A Transactions

Our Expertise

Whether you are preparing to sell your business, planning for the next generation of ownership, or in need of strategic financial advice, our Business Consulting team employs a highly consultative approach to assist with each of these needs.

M&A Transactions

Maximize Value & Impact

We assist our clients with internal and external transitions during periods of significant change at some of the most sensitive times in their business’s life.

During the M&A process, we focus on the following priorities:

Determining readiness for sale
Preparing for sale
Finding the correct buyers
Maintaining transactional pillars
Maximizing financial value

While serving as an M&A advisor, our work often includes:

Resolving partnership disputes
Advising leadership on transaction options
Facilitating sell-side marketing
Evaluating and negotiating third-party offers and private company investments
Managing the due diligence process
Negotiating definitive agreements
Facilitating final closing process

Succession Planning

The Value of Transferability

The business you have built is paramount in your life. The thought of transitioning it to another leader or owner may be overwhelming, but we are here to assist you. Our Business Consulting team specializes in addressing the critical considerations of succession planning that will support you, as well as your clients and team members.

Succession planning should always be a priority because an exit could occur with little or no advanced warning. Although a business may generate substantial profits or have impressive assets, its true value lies in its ability to continue thriving without the current owner in control. We have found that the following elements are imperative for a business to continue successfully.

A strong management team.
A healthy financial position with a diverse client base and dependable revenue streams.
Scalable and efficient systems and processes.
Independence from the current owner’s capital.

Shortcomings in any one of these areas will have a dramatic impact on transferability and diminish the enterprise value of the business. It is wise for business owners to consider these factors well before the transition of the business if they wish to maximize the transferability and value of the organization. Our team specializes in evaluating businesses and preparing for leadership transitions.

A thoughtful approach to a successful internal ownership transfer focuses on:

Wisdom – effectively transitioning the company’s embedded wisdom through a governance structure and strategic plan
Leadership – effectively transitioning the company’s leadership through continuity planning
Stewardship – effectively steward the company’s resources by developing ownership independence, setting clear expectations, and developing collective aspirations.

We ask the following questions to help our clients determine their purpose:

Developing collective aspirations for the future
Preparing financial forecasts to determine the viability of an internal transfer
Conducting continuity planning
Preparing and equipping next generation family members (or key leaders)
Aligning the interests of key stakeholders
Coordinating corporate and personal legal documents

Strategic and Financial Consulting

Enhancing corporate value requires intentional corporate action, significant advisor experience, and application of principled wisdom.

Our worldview reveals eight tenets that promote growth and value while reducing risk:

Legacy
Stewardship
Wisdom
Leadership
Human Productivity
Capital Allocation
Managing Uncertainty
Minimizing Instability

We help you enhance enterprise value, grow market influence, and avoid risks through:

Corporate Governance Advice
Business Division Assessment
Financial Modeling
Market Intelligence Review
Financial Position Analysis
Crisis Management
Leadership Team Development
Communication Plans

Family Businesses

A Holistic Approach

Our comprehensive approach goes beyond mere business consulting, delving into family dynamics, personal growth, and long-term vision alignment. By addressing all these aspects simultaneously, we help ensure the business is not just prepared for immediate challenges, but also positioned for sustained success across generations.

A Look at the Numbers

As a business owner, we want to help you know your exit options, be prepared for an unexpected or involuntary exit, and prepare for life after your business.

50%

of business ownership transitions are involuntary, forced exits

60%

of owners do not know their exit options

75%

of owners profoundly regret selling their business just a year after selling it

80%

of business owners have not engaged with or formed a transition advisory team

Statistics are from Exit Planning Institute 2023 “Exit Planning Is Not What You Think”

Our Distinctive Characteristics

Our Uncommon Perspective
We believe that principled wisdom and sound stewardship principles can be practically applied to build, sustain, and grow healthy, valuable companies.
Our Holistic Approach
Blue Trust’s significant experience with business enterprises and the often-accompanying unique needs of the family allow us to handle the complexity involved in these situations with a fully integrated team approach.
Our Stewardship Focus
Many business owners desire to be generous in and through their business but are often limited through their cash donations. We work with business owners to create strategies to be generous with both the financial and relational capital (e.g., employees, clients, vendors, and community influence) with which they have been entrusted, which furthers their ability to be good stewards.
Our Corporate Advisory Experience
The Blue Trust consulting team members have been hand-selected based on their expertise in working with family-owned and other closely held businesses in the middle market. Our advisors collectively have more than eighty years of experience working across multiple industry sectors and all stages of a company’s life cycle.

Meet the Team

See Bio

Brian Shepler

CEO

See Bio

Jeff Wernick

Managing Director, Business Consulting

See Bio

Rob Smith

Sr. Business Consulting Advisor

See Bio

Jono Allen

Business Consulting Associate

View Our Factsheet

Business Consulting

Whatever you do, do your work with all your heart, as for the Lord, rather than men.