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277 - Planning Your Exit: Building a Business That Doesn’t Need You with Aaron Mills

The Cash Flow Contractor

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Want to build a construction business that runs without you? In this episode, Aaron Mills shares how accurate financials and strategic systems can transform your company from owner-dependent to highly valuable and sellable. Learn how one electrical contractor grew from $30M to $90M in four years while the owner reduced his involvement from 60 hours to just a few hours per week.

What You’ll Learn

  • How to transform messy financials into strategic tools for growth
  • The importance of WIP schedules and how they reveal hidden profit opportunities
  • Why pricing increases often meet less resistance than you expect
  • How to strategically remove yourself from day-to-day operations
  • The exact systems needed to triple net profits while working less

Time Stamps

  • 00:55 - Episode Intro
  • 02:32 - Financial Resource Optimization
  • 04:15 - Challenges in Construction Financials
  • 05:29 - Case Study: Electrical Contractor
  • 06:48 - Growing Broke: Understanding Revenue Pillars
  • 14:21 - Controller vs CFO: Roles and Responsibilities
  • 22:25 - Exiting the Business and Personal Success Stories
  • 28:51 - Understanding the WIP Schedule
  • 31:41 - Dissecting the WIP Schedule
  • 36:03 - Training Project Managers
  • 44:28 - Challenges in Implementing WIP
  • 46:03 - The Importance of Systems
  • 49:16 - Daaxit’s Free Strategy Session
  • 50:30 - Core Values and Asking for Help
  • 50:55 - The Story Behind Daaxit
  • 51:47 - Episode Outro

Snippets from the Episode

  • "If your financials are on a roller coaster month to month—if you're making a whole bunch of money one month and losing a whole bunch the next—then your financials are inaccurate and you need some help."— Aaron Mills
  • "When you're going to sell your business, it's so much more attractive if you're not in the business running it every day. You want a business that operates by itself."— Aaron Mills
  • "A controller's reporting the history; the CFO bridges the history to the future with the business owner and the vision."— Aaron Mills
  • "I just took my first two weeks off. I didn't answer my phone. This spring, this summer, I've been going to my kids' sporting events for the first time ever, and I have the best relationship with my wife ever."— Construction Business Owner (Client Success Story)

Key Takeaways

  • Your financials should be strategic tools, not just tax documents
  • WIP schedules reveal hidden profit opportunities when properly analyzed
  • Raising prices on unprofitable clients is often easier than you think
  • Building a business that runs without you increases its value dramatically
  • Different revenue levels ($5M, $10M, $20M+) require completely different systems
  • Project managers need monthly financial reviews to maintain profitability
  • A business that runs without you provides both financial and personal freedom

Resources

  • ⁠24 Things⁠ Construction Business Owners Need to Successfully Hire & Train an Executive Assistant

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    278 episodes

    #MBA #Business #Benali #Construction #Profit #Cashflow #Systems #Marketing #Contractors #IT Management #SOP