First Annual Business Owner Summit
Driving Growth | Building Value
Location
Houston Country Club,
1 Potomac Dr, Houston, TX 77057
Date
Thursday, February 13th, 2025
One Day. Content Rich. Actionable Insights.
The XPX Houston Summit is the premier event for business owners aiming to scale their companies, explore ownership transfers, or create enduring legacies. Walk away with strategies that drive growth, enhance leadership, and maximize company value. Hear from experienced professionals, engage with business owners, and build valuable connections.
Summit Program
Explore our speakers, sponsors, and more!
Tickets & Registration
Register now to take advantage of early-bird pricing, AND very special pricing for XPX members and sponsors, and an extra special combo package for EXIT XPO + XPX Atlanta Membership
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XPX Members $250.00
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Non-Members $350.00
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Owner $275.00
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Same Day / Walk-ins $475.00
Program Agenda
Registration, Coffee, & Networking
Breakfast / Welcome Remarks
Opening Keynote
All eyes in the markets are focused on the Fed and what they will do next and when they will do it. Come and hear the ideas of a 25+ year Fed watcher and amateur economist who happens to sell interest rate derivatives at Veritex Community Bank. In addition to an economic and Fed update, I will also talk briefly about interest rate risk management and some strategies that work well in the current market environment.
Jeff Smith
Learning Lab 1
What are the best ways to grow profits in your business? This interactive session will explore methods you can implement within your own organization to achieve sustainable profits and growth.
This panel brings together sales, operational, team building, organizational development, and exit planning experience. Collectively, they have helped hundreds of companies accelerate growth, build stronger organizations, and create the kind of companies they envision.
You will have the opportunity to learn techniques and tactics to overcome even the most daunting challenges your company faces. You will leave with actionable strategies that work.
Only 30% of businesses marketed for sale end up selling. Of those that do sell, 75% of owners regret selling their company one year later. Proper planning - well before the sale - prepares the company and its owner to maximize value and avoid regrets.
This panel unpacks the steps business owners should take to not only prepare themselves for exit, but also ensure their business continues to thrive under new ownership. The panel highlights the steps to add tangible value for a maximum business sale. We also show how much work is done by various professional advisors before a company is marketed for sale, to sell at maximum value and achieve the desired outcome.
How can you strategically reduce taxes on your business earnings and ultimately from the potential future sale of your business?
In this session, Daniel Brunello will dive into financial strategies to leverage the tools to reduce income and estate tax exposure for both your business and personal investment assets.
For more than 20 years, Daniel has provided sophisticated, tax-efficient investment advice to business owners around permissible investment structures and entities that provide significant tax savings. This session focuses on financial, not accounting or legal strategies.
Morning Break & Networking
Learning Lab 2
What impact do leaders have on an organization? Join us for a dynamic exploration of how strong leadership teams drive growth-oriented businesses and successful exits.
Drawing on real-world experience and case studies, Johanna and Sean share best practices for recruiting, aligning, and developing top talent within your organization. This session presents proven coaching and succession planning strategies. Attendees will leave equipped with practical insights to fortify their leadership approach, build a leadership pipeline, and set the stage for growth and eventually, a smooth, value-driven transition.
Have you considered what’s next for you and your business? The fact is every business owner will exit their business one way or another.
This session will help any executive who is thinking about starting or is in the midst of transitioning a business. Whether you are the owner or an advisor, you will gain insights into today’s M&A marketplace, and the drivers that increase or decrease value. You’ll also learn how private equity plays a role in M&A and get an inside look into the process and timing of selling your company when using an investment banker or a broker.
No matter how hard you try, it is nearly impossible for entrepreneurial families to separate the dining room table from the conference room table. As a result, you can’t make a business decision without impacting the family or a family decision without impacting the business.
Transitions are inevitable - they impact everything you own & everyone you love. You have a plan whether you like it or not. The default plan is crafted by bureaucracies, the other option is designed by you.
There is no shortage of professionals vying to assist business owners with various aspects of their lives. However, virtually none, are incentivized to lead the diverse team of specialists required to affect meaningful change.
Lunch & Networking
Lunch Keynote
Dr. David Flint is a professor, author, mentor, musician, world traveler, and as an entrepreneur, a habitual risk taker. He is the author of Think Beyond Value which presents the V-REEL™ Framework, a practical resource for any organization seeking to think critically through ideas and shape sound strategy.
Dr. Flint has engaged in entrepreneurial activities since the early 1980s across multiple industries and is presently involved in board, leadership, or advisory positions across business endeavors in software applications, real estate, and insurance. David serves on the board of several not-for-profit organizations with both domestic and international activities and is passionate about helping businesses, entrepreneurs, and individuals succeed.
All participants will receive a complimentary copy of Think Beyond Value
Dr. David Flint
Learning Lab 3
What role does technology play in the overall success and future of your business? Join us for a dynamic discussion by technology and cybersecurity experts on how to strengthen your technology and security strategy to scale efficiently and prepare for a successful exit.
This session will address key topics like determining the right security level, choosing the optimal software, navigating cloud versus on-prem decisions, and managing both internal and external teams. Get the insights you need to future-proof your business!
You need a team to properly prepare yourself and your business for sale, conduct and complete the sale, and then transition to your next chapter. In this session, we’ll cover the types of key advisors you will need for best planning and strategy in this process.
The composition of the team is not the same for every business owner. The panel will discuss how these advisors collaborate to align personal, financial and business goals, maximize business value, and ensure a smooth transition. Discover how to select the team for your situation and key additional members to leverage various aspects needed to achieve your desired exit outcomes.
Business value isn’t just measured by the price you could get for your business, but also by the life it allows you to lead and the time it affords you to focus on what matters most to you.
Maximizing the value of a business is not typically a quick-fix scenario and entails far more than just financials. This experienced panel will discuss key components of how businesses are valued by buyers and KPIs to consider when determining the value of your company. You’ll leave with a stronger understanding of how customer base, economies of scale, talent base, product or service mix, innovation, vision, technology, and access to capital can make the difference between a 2x and a 10x multiple.
Learning Lab 4
Throughout the day, you’ve gathered a lot of insights, action items, and notes to take back to your business. But, how do you turn what you’ve learned into action?
A great exit strategy is great business strategy! According to the Exit Planning Institute, “Intangible Capital” drives 80% of business value. Learn how business operating systems are used to grow the capabilities of the leadership team, move the business forward every 90 days, and create a consistent playbook for which buyers will pay a higher multiple.
This panel of EOS Implementors will show you how to create a 90-day playbook for you and your team to optimize the value of today.
The majority of M&A transactions never cross the finish line. Deals fall apart for many reasons, but discovering skeletons in the closet during due diligence is a common “deal killer.”
Business owners can minimize the risk of a deal unraveling by proactively cleaning house. This session reviews the internal investigation process that uncovers the information about a company that ultimately influences the sales price. Just like a home inspection by a potential buyer, a potential buyer of a business dives deep into the crevices of your business. Working with a team of professionals, business owners can discover not only the strengths but also the weaknesses of their company before the discounts start flying. Maintenance and “repair” activities can then be designed to make the company more valuable or decrease risk.
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Only 30% of businesses marketed for sale actually sell, and 75% of sellers regret their decision within a year.
Proper exit planning—well before the sale—helps maximize value and prevent regret. Business owners can take steps to keep more money, protect those they care about, and secure their legacy. A strong advisory team ensures exit strategies align with the seller’s goals.
This panel explores the critical steps owners should take to prepare for exit and ensure their business thrives under new ownership. It also highlights how advisors add tangible value before a sale to maximize price and minimize regrets.
Networking / Refreshment Break
Closing Keynote
To many business owners, consistent revenue growth might seem like the holy grail, covering for weaknesses, generating cash flow, demonstrating market strength, and creating value. As is often the case, however, perception can be quite misleading. In reality, revenue growth can exacerbate weaknesses, consume cash, damage customer experiences, and erode value. Why is that, and what’s the difference between good and bad revenue growth? Join us to explore the interdependencies of revenue and the rest of the organization, learn from some actual case examples, and discuss the type of revenue growth that is guaranteed to create value.
Ken Sanginario
Reception & Networking
Coming Soon
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