SELLING, WITH CLARITY
For managed service providers and outsourced IT support businesses, explain the obligations behind monthly invoices. Separate support, security services, projects, hardware and licence resale so retention and delivery costs can be assessed together.
Start a confidential conversationWHAT A BUYER NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND
Build a customer schedule showing signed services, monthly fees, renewal and termination terms, onboarding dates and churn. Separate pass-through licences from service revenue and explain pricing changes. Recurring invoices do not establish recurring margin if vendor charges, support hours or unpriced commitments have increased.
Compare ticket volumes, resolution effort, after-hours coverage and projects with staffing and vendor costs. Document service-level commitments and unresolved disputes. Explain workload caused by technical debt or incomplete onboarding. A quiet ticket period should not be presented as permanent efficiency without supporting operating history.
Inventory customer agreements, vendor terms, software rights and relevant privacy/security obligations for counsel. Begin with summaries and redacted evidence. Never put passwords, API keys, live credentials or unnecessary customer data in marketing materials or initial enquiries. Agree a secure access-transfer process separately if a transaction proceeds.
Map solution design, change approval, incident management and client relationships. Prepare documented coverage and knowledge transfer. Review vendor-partnership and customer-consent questions without assuming transferability. A buyer must understand which services the team can sustain and where ongoing seller involvement is needed, before agreeing transition terms.
PREPARING FOR A SALE
Use this as a preparation checklist. An initial inquiry only needs your contact details and a brief introduction; keep sensitive records for a later, agreed review.
Explore business valuationFROM PREPARATION TO HANDOVER
Our business-value focus is approximately CAD5–50 million, not an annual revenue threshold. The preparation questions are editorial guidance; they do not establish a valuation, buyer interest or transferable approval.
Begin with a non-sensitive introduction. Keep customer identities, employee information and detailed financial records for a later, agreed review.
A LITTLE MORE CLARITY
No. Retention, profitability, obligations, vendor costs and key-staff dependence matter. Hardware and licence resale should not be treated as equivalent to retained service earnings.
Access is not a default step. Start with redacted evidence and obtain legal, security and customer-authorisation review before any controlled access. Never send credentials through an initial enquiry.
BEFORE THE NEXT CHAPTER
Practical reading for owners thinking about what comes next.
YOUR NEXT CHAPTER STARTS HERE
Start with a confidential conversation about selling your business. A few details are all we need to begin.
A confidential first conversation
Space to explore your options
No commitment to list your business