Jessica Fialkovich, Founder Exit Factor
Name: Jessica Fialkovich
Company: Exit Factor
In less than three sentences tell us about your company and what you do.
We help small businesses increase their profit, efficiency, and, ultimately, value so they can be sold for the maximum price.
What does BEING a FoundHer mean to you?
Being a FoundHer first an foremost, means being a servant leader to my stakeholders: my customers, employees, and partners. But as a woman entrepreneur, it also means setting an example of servant leadership for other aspiring female entrepreneurs.
How do you support other female founders and women in business?
One of my main goals with Exit Factor is to get more women to believe that their companies are sellable and set them up for an exit. Women-owned businesses are a minority of exits and one of the reasons why that I have found -- is because most women do not believe that they have built something of value.
What is something you do differently from the industry standard?
I started out in traditional business brokerage and mergers/acquisitions. I have overseen more than 750 sales of small businesses in that space. But what most of my industry did not do is teach owners how to prepare for their exits. It is estimated that only 13% of all U.S. businesses are ever sold, the rest go out of business. And the difference between why some sell and why some don't isn't a big secret - it's just not talked about. With Exit Factor I'm peeling back that curtain and talking about that 'secret.'
Have you sold a business? If so, how did you know when it was time to sell? What were the steps you took to make it happen? What advice would you give to someone looking to sell?
Besides being an exit strategist professionally, I have personally sold four businesses and purchased another eight. When I sold my first business, I literally made the decision to sell overnight because of burnout. That experience was what led me to what I do today and my number one piece of advice for all entrepreneurs is to have exit options for your business at any time, not just when you are pursuing a sale.
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