Jean-François Trudel’s first 100 days after selling Invessa

All entrepreneurs dread having to announce to their employees that they are selling their business.

To prepare for this moment, Jean-François Trudel, President of Invessa Insurance and Financial Services, pre-recorded the message he wanted to deliver to his employees when he would announce that he had sold his company to Synex Business Performance.

After announcing the change, what should entrepreneurs do next? What are the days like after this important milestone in the founder’s life? Trudel told Insurance Journal the steps he took in the 100 days following the announcement of the sale of his brokerage firm.

The first challenge Trudel faced was to show his employees that what he stood behind his promises to them. “Doubt sets in among the employees after you’ve thanked everyone. The announcement of the sale was very well received because the employees saw that the company had a secure future. After the doubt, you need to confirm the plan. We had to show we will walk the talk," he says.

Then people from both companies learned to work together, Trudel adds. "Many opportunities were created for our people as the teams were put in place. Invessa completed an acquisition during this period. Invessa employees were promoted to Synex. So there was a combination of strengths that quickly materialized, particularly in terms of agreements with insurers, our bonding departments and our expertise in commercial insurance. All of this allowed Invessa's resources to be put to good use,” says the man who remains a minority shareholder but still holds a significant stake in the company he sold.

Always have gas in the tank

When should an entrepreneur start preparing for an exit? Trudel says he has been considering this eventuality since the day he started his career as a broker.

"It's not something you think about every day, and it has to be prepared well in advance,” he explains.

His planning process accelerated over the past five years. The key element to keep in mind is that the better positioned entrepreneurs are to sell, the more comfortable they will be with the post-sale situation.

To illustrate his point, he gives the example of driving a car on Highway 20 between Montreal and Quebec City. Drivers who wait until the fuel gauge is at E have no choice but to stop and buy gas. However, if the gauge is at 1/3 around the midway point, the driver can choose whether to fill up or not.

"Entrepreneurs need to make sure they are in a good position to sell. I hear a lot of firms’ markets have dried up. That's when they become vulnerable. They need gas in the tank to be in a good position to sell their business," he explains.

Trudel says he was approached by several large brokerage firms that wanted to buy his business. "In the end, I decided who to sell it to. If I had no gas left in my tank, maybe I would have gone with the first one that came along. I wanted to avoid that. With Yan Charbonneau, CEO of Synex, we settled the whole thing in 20 minutes, because being well prepared, it was easy,” he says.

Letting go brings peace of mind

The first 100 days after the sale of a business is marked by another challenge for entrepreneurs, Trudel continues. They go from not having to answer to anyone to a post-sale world where they must.

“I was apprehensive about it," he says. I was afraid of getting caught up in the details. That quickly passed. You have to accept that some financial decisions are no longer in your hands. I'm here to preserve the company's culture, but I'm not holding on to the rest.”

All the same, Trudel is still very involved in Invessa. This was a condition of the transition agreement, but beyond that he promised his employees that the company's culture would remain the same, he says. He participates in the management and sales committees, but is less and less involved in operational decisions.

Above all, by selling his business Trudel has achieved peace of mind, he says. He has shrugged off the worry and pressure that comes with being an entrepreneur, mentioning in passing that entrepreneurs have been shouldering a very weighty emotional burden since the beginning of the pandemic. In his case, the deal was to be announced on April 1, 2020. It was delayed for almost a year due to the health crisis.

“Clearing your mind is a great feeling," he says. “I was afraid I wouldn't be able to disconnect. When you sell, it's because you're ready to move on to another stage of your life. The transition happened a lot faster than I initially thought it would.”

Avoiding regrets

Trudel openly admits that the ability to step back after the sale is a big issue for entrepreneurs. After completing a dozen transactions, he has come to realize that when deals fail, it is often because the seller clings to the company and becomes miserable.

"The joy you get from looking at the money flowing into your bank account doesn't last long: 24 hours at most. Regret lasts a lifetime," he notes.

To avoid regrets, entrepreneurs need to visualize a new life. Fortunately for Trudel, he enjoys a wide range of leisure and pastimes. He plays hockey, goes snowmobiling, owns a cottage and a condo in Florida, and more. On top of that he greatly appreciates his family and social circle. "I don't have time for everything,” he says.

The entrepreneurial side does not disappear, he says. It can be tempting for entrepreneurs who have sold their business to look at their bank account and try a new entrepreneurial venture, he points out.

“You have to stop," he says. “Being an entrepreneur is very draining, although I think I could bounce back tomorrow morning as an entrepreneur if all my assets were taken away.”

Considering himself an operations, human resources and floor guy, Trudel finds it exhausting to have these concerns on his mind for 35 years, no matter how much he loves his employees.

"It was enough. For Invessa to remain an important company, I had to think about how to take it to another level. To do that, you have to ask yourself the right questions. Can I do it? Do I have the profile to do it? Do I have the energy?” Trudel felt he could answer yes to the first question, but not the other two.

"So, there was no point in being stubborn. Especially because part of my life plan was to sell my business. I knew what the deadline was," he explains.

Never overvalue your organization

He has one piece of advice for entrepreneurs thinking about selling their business: Never overvalue their organization. “Some people think it's worth $10 billion when it's not worth a nickel. You have to see the situation as it is, from a bird’s eye view,” he says.

Preparation is crucial. "When you sell your business, you're not in the driver’s seat anymore. Just sit back and enjoy the ride,” he says.

For entrepreneurs who sell, 80 percent of the preparation is on the individual level, he continues. "You have to get a sense of your own values.”

The remaining 20 percent concerns the business. Entrepreneurs who can choose their buyer have an advantage, Trudel points out. :P&C brokerage is an industry where most entrepreneurs can afford to choose their buyers. They need to make sure they stay in that position!” he says.