THE MASTERMIND FOR OWNERS WHO WANT MORE PROFIT, EFFICIENCY AND TIME
Improve the value of your business in 12 months without figuring it out alone.
Join an Exit Factor Peer Mastermind Group.
Over 12 months, you'll work through Exit Factor's proven VORTEx model step-by-step alongside a facilitator and peer group who will challenge you, encourage you and hold you accountable.
Less than 2 in 10 businesses ever successfully sell. Let's make sure yours is one of them.
How It Works
A focused year with a small group of owners
Most owners assume that when they're ready to step back, a buyer will be ready too. The numbers tell a different story.
You've spent years, maybe decades, building something real. A majority of your net worth is likely tied up inside it. And yet less than 2 out of 10 businesses that go to market ever actually sell.
That gap isn't about how smart or hardworking you are. It's that no one ever showed you what makes a business transferable, and the day to day never leaves room to work on it.
So you do what most good owners do:
You grow revenue.
You work harder.
You tell yourself you'll figure out the exit when you get there.
Here's the hard part: revenue is not the same as value.
A business that depends too much on you is difficult to sell, no matter how profitable it looks on paper. And “someday” is not a plan.
This is not your fault. The skills that build a business are not the same skills that let you exit well. Nobody hands you that playbook. That's exactly why we built this.
A business can be built, on purpose, to do three things: run more profitably, depend less on you, and be ready to sell when you decide the time is right. Those three drivers are what turn years of hard work into real, transferable value.
You'll work through each of Exit Factor's proven VORTEx model step-by-step alongside a facilitator and peer group who will challenge you, encourage you and hold you accountable.
The Five Phases of Exit Planning
Designed for small to mid-size business owners, the model provides a step-by-step system to scale operations, increase profitability, reduce owner dependency, and build real, transferable value.
Value
Define your exit goals, understand what your business is worth and identify gaps.
Optimize
Get your financials in shape and maximize profitability.
Record
Systemize operations and build a team that saves you time.
Transform
Develop personalized growth, sales and marketing strategies that deliver growth.
Exit
Ensure a successful exit by carefully choosing the correct path, positioning and team to implement your plan
The Outcome
Mastermind members leave with
Meet Your Facilitators
Built by owners, for owners.
Nicole Emerick
Managing Partner,
Exit Factor of Western Chicagoland
There's a myth that's quietly costing business owners: that exit planning is something you do at the finish line. It's not. It's a way of running your business today: one that makes it more profitable, more enjoyable, and eventually more sellable. The hard part is that most owners don't know where to start, don't have much time and therefore aren't able to create lasting change on their own. That's where a mastermind comes in. You get a clear, proven path and real accountability so you can focus on implementing change one step at a time instead of trying to figure it out all at once, and alone.
Thano Emerick
President,
Exit Factor of Western Chicagoland
Nicole and I spent over 2 years looking to buy a business. After analyzing dozens, we noticed a pattern: most of the businesses weren't sellable at all, let alone at the asking price. It was hard to watch the repeated cycle of devoted owners feeling disappointed, burned out and out of options. These were good people who had poured years into building something real, but no one had ever shown them how to make it transferable. It doesn't have to be like this. Little shifts implemented one-by-one today add a lot of value and give you more options later.
Questions
FAQs
I'm not planning to sell for years. Isn't this premature?
That's actually the best reason to start now. Here's why the owners who wait usually pay for it:
Value is built over years, not weeks. The earlier you start, the more time compounds in your favor. Owners who wait until they're ready to sell have already left the biggest gains on the table.
Life doesn't always wait for your timeline. Health, a partner, an unexpected offer, a shift in the market. The owners who exit well are the ones who were ready before they had to be.
A more sellable business is a better business to run today. More profit, more freedom, less depending on you. You feel the benefits long before you ever sell.
What's the format of the Mastermind and where is it held?
We plan to host one virtual and one in-person cohort starting the week of September 14, 2026.
I've never had a business valuation. Do I need my numbers ready first?
In some cases it makes sense to have a valuation or exit assessment first as a baseline you can work from, but it is not required to join the Mastermind. If you want to discuss whether a valuation or exit assessment makes sense for your specific situation, please reach out.
What's the investment?
$3,500 for 12 months . For additional one on one support, please send us a message.
Who is this not a fit for?
Businesses earning less than $500,000 per year in revenue.
People who cannot commit to joining at least 10 out of 12 meetings.
Those who don't like peer input or sharing real numbers in a confidential space.
Businesses in a live deal.
Apply for More Information
Tell us a little about you
Share a few details and we'll reach out with next steps for the Western Chicagoland cohort.
Eventually every owner will need to exit their business. The only question is whether they'll be ready.
The Exit Factor Mastermind gives you the plan, process, and people to make sure your business is one of the few that actually sells, on your terms.