3 key takeaways for entrepreneurs and operators:

🔹 Recurring Revenue = Real Value:
For service businesses, having locked-in contracts or retainer agreements (ideally 6-12 months) significantly boosts enterprise value and buyer confidence. Project-to-project work is hard to transfer—buyers want a pipeline, not just relationships.

🔹 Owner Independence is Critical:
A business is far more attractive if the owner is out of the day-to-day and doesn’t control the key relationships or systems. Turnkey operations, clear SOPs (not just a stale Word doc!), and incentivized, committed teams are fundamental.

🔹 Get Real About Planning & Numbers:
Understand your financials deeply—don’t just outsource to your bookkeeper. Planning should focus on achievable 2-3 year roadmaps, not magical thinking. Know your margins, where your revenue comes from, and be ready to pivot or simplify your service offerings as you scale.

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Stress Test Before Q4 Hits

Q4 doesn’t forgive untested systems. Peak season brings compressed timelines, higher stakes, and no room for error. A half-day wargame—running your team through demand spikes, system outages, and people risks—can surface blind spots while there’s still time to fix them.

The payoff is simple: faster reactions, calmer decisions, and a team that knows who owns what before the rush begins. Don’t wait for Black Friday to be your stress test. Run the rehearsal now.

📘 Running Wargames: A Field Manual for Supply Chain Operators