Is the business and its Founder ready for an exit?
Most exits are decided long before they happen by how much of the business still depends on its Founder. This diagnostic tests exit readiness across the three dimensions where transitions are typically won or lost:
Founder readiness, Governance readiness and Operating readiness.
Depending on your business, you will be offered to rate 30–45 statements across 3 dimensions on a six-point scale. You will receive an indicative score for each dimension, an overall readiness score, and a view of the areas most likely to require attention first.
No preparation required. Each statement is rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree), with a “not sure” option.
A few words about you and the company
Where should we send your results?
Your indicative scores appear immediately after this step. We use these details to send you your results and, if you request it, to arrange a results readout — a short structured conversation in which we interpret your scores in the context of your company.
Founder Exit Readiness Index™ — indicative profile
The profile below shows where your exit readiness appears strongest and where it is most likely to require attention. Read it as a direction and a shortlist of priorities to test, yet keep in mind this is not a final validated conclusion.
How is this scored?
Scores are calculated as the mean of applicable statements on a 1.0–4.0 scale: agree = 4, somewhat agree = 3, somewhat disagree = 2, disagree = 1. “Not sure” responses are excluded from the mean.
What this quick assessment is — and what it is not
This is a rapid, self-reported diagnostic. Its purpose is to highlight the areas that are most likely to require attention before a transition, and to give you a common language for discussing them with your co-founders and leadership team.
The scores it produces are an indicative direction only. They are not a recommendation, and they do not constitute a validated assessment. Responses reflect perception at a single point in time and are not evidence-tested, and the criticality of any individual gap can only be established in the specific context of your company — its industry, size, ownership structure and intended exit path.
A validated view calls for structured interviews. If you would like your scores interpreted and tested against the reality of your business, we would be glad to hear from you. A results readout walks you through the findings and validates them through a structured interview process.
From indicative scores to a validated view
Validation follows a defined three-stage process. Each stage builds on the previous, and each produces an output you can act on.
01 · Discovery
We interview the owner or Founder and the key executives.
The objective is to establish the intended exit path and timeline, the expectations held by each stakeholder, and which decisions still route through the Founder in practice.
02 · Assessment
We assess each functional area across 3 dimensions: Founder readiness, Governance readiness and Operating readiness.
We look into:
- leadership and succession readiness
- governance architecture and decision rights
- reporting and alignment cadence
- commercial resilience
- financial endurance
- process and knowledge maturity
Findings are evidence-tested against documents, data and management practice rather than taken on self-assessment.
03 · Delivery
We produce a gap and recommendations report, prioritised by criticality and by effort to close.
It comes with a sequenced readiness roadmap setting out the actions, owners and timeframes required to make the business transferable.