For owners
Planning your succession without your team finding out
Many owners only want to talk about succession once it's settled. How to search discreetly, when confidentiality ends, and why your team should hear it from you in the end.
· 6 min read
The worry makes sense: once people in the business hear that you're looking for a successor, employees wonder whether their jobs are safe. Customers and suppliers get nervous, and some competitors start listening. That's why many owners take the first steps quietly. That's legitimate. What matters is that discretion is a phase, not a permanent state.
1. Start small: who gets to know first
At the start, a small circle is enough: your family, your tax adviser, your bank and an adviser such as the chamber's succession service. These conversations are confidential and help you work out value, timing and your preferred solution before anyone in the business hears about it.
2. Search anonymously
On marketplaces such as nexxt-change, listings appear without a name. Interested buyers see sector, region and size, but not which business it is. A short anonymous profile, often called a teaser, works the same way. Only someone seriously interested who signs a non-disclosure agreement gets the full information memorandum with name and figures.
3. Meet outside the business
First meetings are best held at your tax adviser's office, in a meeting room or in the evening, rather than in the workshop. If a site visit is needed, it can happen outside working hours, or the visitor can be introduced as an adviser or a customer conversation. Stay truthful, though: lies come back to you later.
4. Involve key people early
Almost every business has one or two people it can't run without: the master craftsperson, the workshop lead, the office manager who knows every customer. Serious buyers will ask about them. Think early about whether to take these people into your confidence before everyone else. Often they are possible successors themselves, see Finding a successor.
5. When confidentiality ends
At the latest once it's clear who is taking over, your team should hear it from you, not through rumours. In an asset deal there is also a legal duty: if the business passes to a new owner, employees must be informed in writing beforehand about the timing, the reason and the consequences. They can object to their employment transferring within one month (§ 613a BGB, in German).
The best announcement comes from you and your successor together. It says what stays, what changes and when. It shows that you're handing the business into good hands. How to shape the time afterwards is covered in Planning succession calmly.
In short
- Starting discreetly is fine; a small circle of trusted people is enough.
- List anonymously; name and figures only after a non-disclosure agreement.
- Think about key people early.
- Tell your team yourself before the handover; in an asset deal, in writing and in good time.
This article is an overview, not legal advice.
Glossary terms: Non-disclosure agreement, Teaser, Business profile, Succession marketplace, Transfer of undertaking, Asset deal.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to tell my employees that I'm looking for a successor?
Not about the search itself. But if the business passes to a new owner in an asset deal, employees must be informed in writing beforehand about timing, reason and consequences (§ 613a of the German Civil Code).
How do I list my business anonymously?
Through marketplaces such as nexxt-change or via the chamber, with an anonymous profile. It names sector, region and size, but no name. Details only follow after a non-disclosure agreement.
What does a non-disclosure agreement cover?
That buyers treat all information about your business as confidential, use it only to assess the takeover and don't pass it on. It often also says they won't approach employees or customers directly.
When should I tell my team?
As soon as it's settled who is taking over, and before rumours start. Ideally together with your successor, in person, with clear statements about what stays the same.
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