Answer Box (TL;DR)
TL;DR: Episode 53 is a practical playbook for founders and operators who want a business that’s actually “bankable.” Jeff Glick (OCFO) explains why clean financials, consistent reporting, and margin visibility protect valuation long before you ever decide to sell, and how poor infrastructure can force lower multiples, longer earn-outs, or deal friction. For high earners, the deeper takeaway is simple: build value early to create better options later.
Key Takeaways
- “Bankable” starts inside the business: Buyers and lenders don’t just evaluate the product, they evaluate your financial infrastructure (timely, accurate, consistent reporting and controls).
- Weak reporting shows up as valuation risk: If you can’t produce credible quarterly reporting and margin detail, buyers may discount your multiple or stretch payouts into earn-outs.
- Margin visibility is a value lever: Many owners say “we’re 50% margin,” but can’t explain which projects/products are 75% vs 25%, that’s lost profit and higher perceived risk.
- Fixing finance is an investment, not an expense: Jeff gives a simple ROI frame, spending to reduce operational risk can produce outsized returns at exit.
- Start 12–24 months before a transaction: Due diligence often asks for 1–2 years of financial statements and tax returns, plus a clean bridge between book and tax reporting.
- Life-driven investing matters for owners too: The episode touches on separating “near-term cash needs” (college) from “long-term capital” (retirement) to manage sequence-of-returns risk.
Key Moments
00:00 – Intro: What makes a business bankable
01:08 – Meet Jeff Glick
01:48 – Jeff’s background: CPA, Wall Street, CFO, and fractional finance
03:34 – What “bankable” really means for a business
05:48 – Building value from the inside
08:49 – How long owners should prepare before a transaction
10:11 – Internal finance teams vs. outsourced fractional support
11:41 – What buyers and private equity firms are looking for now
12:51 – Lessons from the 2008 financial crisis
17:03 – Why different buckets of money need different strategies
19:22 – Jeff’s version of a rich life
20:16 – Lightning round begins
24:30 – Advice to his younger self
24:41 – How to connect with Jeff
Episode Summary
Most business owners think “bankable” is something you become right before a sale. Jeff Glick argues the opposite: bankability is built long before you go to market, and it shows up directly in valuation, deal terms, and buyer confidence. In Episode 53, Dan Pascone and Jeff break down what buyers and lenders actually want to see: timely, accurate, consistent financials, clear reporting, key metrics, and enough margin visibility to understand what’s really driving profitability.
Jeff explains how due diligence exposes operational risk. If a buyer asks for three years of quarterly reporting and you can’t produce it, or you can’t explain the spread between high-margin and low-margin jobs, your business looks riskier. Risk gets priced. That can mean a lower multiple, longer payout terms, earn-outs, or the buyer demanding you rebuild infrastructure after closing (on their timeline, with their leverage).
The practical solution is “building value from the inside.” That means improving policies and procedures, tightening internal controls, and upgrading reporting so you can track margins by product, project, or team. It also means creating a clean bridge between book vs. tax numbers, so tax returns and financial statements don’t raise red flags during diligence. Jeff’s guidance on timing is clear: if a transaction is even a possibility, start 12–24 months in advance so your numbers can tell a confident story.
The episode also shifts into personal finance: Jeff shares how the 2008 crisis impacted his family, and Dan reinforces a life-driven framework, investing different buckets of money based on when you’ll need them. Bottom line: bankability is not just for selling a business; it’s how you create options, reduce stress, and protect outcomes, both in your company and your personal plan.
Transcript
Dan Pascone (00:00) Dan Pascone CEO of Tailored Wealth and host of the Making Sense of Your Money podcast… This is episode number 53 and today I’m joined by Jeff Glick of OCFO… to break down what makes a business truly bankable…
Dan Pascone (01:08) All right, Jeff, thanks for joining the Making Sense of Your Money podcast…
Jeff Glick (01:48) Sure, so Jeff Glick, CPA… [career background] …now I work with OCFO… bookkeeping accounting and fractional CFO for startup and emerging businesses, those that want to get bankable.
Dan Pascone (03:58) …If you were advising a business owner on how they become bankable, what are the steps they need to go through…?
Jeff Glick (04:22) …make sure that your accounting and financial records are timely, accurate, consistent… track key metrics and benchmarks… And what happens is if you go through due diligence… and you’re not tracking margins… if you think you’re worth 10X… they might offer you six times because there’s an operational risk… or it’s going to be a five year payout…
Dan Pascone (05:48) …How do they build value from the inside before they ever get to the place where they’re taking it to the outside…?
Jeff Glick (06:15) …policies, procedures, internal controls… timely, accurate and consistent reporting, tracking metrics… [margin example] …If you spent $200,000 to fix it, that’s a 30X return…
Dan Pascone (08:49) …How long does it typically take to kind of get these things right…?
Jeff Glick (09:30) …at least one year, maybe two years in advance… due diligence… one to two years of financial statements… tax returns… reconciliation or a bridge between the two…
Dan Pascone (11:41) …What trends have you seen recently with respect to M&A activity…?
Jeff Glick (11:55) …they look for sophistication of technology… download it… do some analysis… algorithms… managing expenses… risk areas…
Dan Pascone (12:51) …the impact that the 2007 and 2008… crisis had on you personally…
Jeff Glick (13:17) …it all went down 30%… put our funds into two buckets, college and retirement… turned [college funds] all into cash… then you start thinking, what’s the next crash…
Dan Pascone (17:03) …life-driven investing… different buckets of money for different objectives…
Jeff Glick (19:22) …I’ve owned three houses. I lost money on two of them. Go figure. It’s timing.
Dan Pascone (19:22) …what does your version of a rich life look like?
Jeff Glick (19:41) …see my family a lot… travel with my wife… having grown up in the Bronx, I’ve lived a good life…
Dan Pascone (24:41) …if our listeners want to connect… how can they find you…?
Jeff Glick (24:41) …OCFO.com… LinkedIn… email me at Jeffrey at OCFO.com
Dan Pascone (25:03) …You can find our podcasts along with our newsletter and YouTube channel all for free at makingsenseofyourmoney.com. And as always, prioritize your version of a rich life.
Resources & Citations
- Making Sense of Your Money (Podcast + Newsletter Hub): https://www.makingsenseofyourmoney.com/
- Podcast Archives: https://yourtailoredwealth.com/podcasts/
- Tailored Wealth: https://www.yourtailoredwealth.com/
- OCFO: https://www.ocfo.com/ [SOURCE NEEDED: confirm Jeff’s bio link]
- Deal readiness note: If you want authoritative deal-readiness references added (SBA, AICPA, or lending underwriting guidance), share your preferred source list and I’ll align citations accordingly. [SOURCE NEEDED]
FAQs
What does it mean for a business to be “bankable”?
A bankable business has financial infrastructure that a lender or buyer can trust: timely and accurate accounting, consistent reporting, tracked key metrics, and clean documentation. Practically, it means your business can survive diligence without confusion, delays, or credibility gaps that create perceived risk.
How do clean financials protect valuation before a sale?
Because risk gets priced into deal terms. If you can’t produce credible reporting or explain margins, buyers may lower the multiple, add earn-outs, or require longer payouts to compensate for operational uncertainty. Clean financials reduce uncertainty and help your numbers tell a confident story.
What’s the fastest “inside” improvement that increases bankability?
Margin visibility. Many owners know average margin but don’t know which products, projects, or clients are highly profitable vs. low profit or loss. When you can identify the 75% margins and the 25% margins, and explain why, you can fix pricing, execution, and staffing decisions in a way that improves cash flow and reduces risk.
How far in advance should a business owner start preparing for a sale or major transaction?
Jeff recommends at least 12 months, and often 24 months, because diligence typically requests one to two years of financial statements and tax returns. That runway also gives you time to build a clean bridge between tax and book reporting and improve processes without disrupting operations.
What’s the difference between “a lifestyle business” and a business built for exit options?
A lifestyle business can be perfectly valid, but it’s often built around the owner’s presence and informal reporting. A business built for exit options invests in systems, controls, and reporting so performance can be understood and repeated without the owner doing everything. That repeatability is what creates transferable value.
How should business owners think about investing when they have near-term obligations like college?
Dan highlights a “bucket” approach: money needed in the near term (like college within a few years) is typically managed differently than long-term retirement capital. The key risk is sequence of returns, if you need the money soon, a market drawdown can hurt more because you don’t have time to wait for a recovery. Your strategy should match your timeline and goals.
Next Steps
Browse the full podcast library: Visit Tailored Wealth Podcast Archives to find episodes on taxes, equity comp, retirement strategy, and decision-making.
Want a plan that connects business value + personal freedom? Explore resources at makingsenseofyourmoney.com and keep building toward your version of a rich life.
Related Internal Links
- Making Sense of Your Money (Content Hub)
- Tailored Wealth Podcast Archives
- Tailored Wealth Website
- Podcast on YouTube