Facebook COO: Small Business Is Web's Holy Grail
As Sheryl Sandberg courts Madison Avenue and Wall Street this week, she discussed Facebook's IPO fallout and wooing small business. Read more
Exit Strategies
Recent Exit Strategies Articles
Managing the Emotional Toll of Selling Your Small Business
Don't let your emotions--sorrow, anger, or a sense of loss--hijack the sale of your small business. Here are tips on keeping a level head. Read more
Why'd You Start Your Business? 3 End Goals
Before you do anything else, figure out why--in the first place--you launched your business. You need to know now what you want to get out of it. Read more
Entrepreneur Ben Lerer: 'I Realized I Had Been Going to Work the Wrong Way' 
When his father, Ken Lerer, sold The Huffington Post, Ben Lerer realized it's not all about the exit. Watch video
Is Your Company Suffering From Short-Term-itis?
Managing partner of Satori Capital Sunny Vanderbeck says an overemphasis on short-term results can cause relationships with key stakeholders to erode in a bu... Read more
Steve Case: IPOs Are Good for You
The founder of AOL makes a good case for why an IPO is often the best exit strategy for a company's founder. But Case has his reasons, and they may not be yo... Read more
How 'Confidential' IPOs Are Changing the Market
In April, the JOBS Act ushered in a new way to go public. It's already popular. Read more
Is the IPO Party Over?
The initial public offering has long been the ultimate goal of successful entrepreneurs. But now the decision to go public is much more difficult--and riskie... Read more
Forget IPO. The New Goal? Get Acquired
Economists might explain the decline in IPOs through market conditions. The start-up and venture capital communities see it differently. Read more
Wait, the IPO Party Is Just Getting Started!
An IPO could still be the right exit strategy--if your company fits the bill, or breaks the old rules. Read more
Best of Recent IPO Blunders
What is it about going public that inspires such boneheadedness in otherwise super-capable entrepreneurs? Here are the most notorious recent cautionary tales... Read more
What's the ROI on Your Company?
Before you approach an investor to fund your growth strategy, make sure you are able to articulate what they will receive in return. Read more
What Makes Method's Sale to Ecover So Different?
Acquisitions often fail. So what makes Method founders Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry believe the sale to Ecover could buck the trend? Read more
Hidden Benefit of Process
Why standardizing operations is crucial for scaling up--and cashing out. Read more
Private Again and On the Move
Life After the Inc. 500: Blackboard CEO Michael Chasen has loved every minute of taking his company public and then back to being private--while maintaining ... Read more
An Open Letter to Mark Zuckerberg
Inc.com columnist Phil Simon says Facebook could solve a few key problems with one simple solution: Charge users--they'll pay. Read more
4 Keys to a Successful Exit
Don't focus on an eventual sale. Instead, make sure you get these fundamentals right. Read more
No Succession Plan & an Uncertain Legacy
Life After the Inc. 500: An untimely death and no succession plan left Michelle Taylor at the helm of her mother's company, Betah Associates, with no oars. Read more
How to Explain Stock Options to Employees
Think it's not your job? Wrong. If your employees make a mess of their options, it hurts you more than you think. Read more
Do Stock Lock-ups Kill Hot Internet Companies?
Investors blame the stock slides at Zynga, Facebook, & Groupon on employee lock-ups. But the root of the problem goes much deeper. Read more
Why Fewer Start-ups Are Going Public
Don't blame Facebook: Start-up IPOs have been on the decline for a while. Inc. dug into the numbers to find out why. Read more
Inside Zynga's Fun House, Workers Say Games Are Over
After its stock takes a nosedive, former Zynga employees reveal disillusionment in the gaming giant's work force, while analysts paint a bleak picture. Read more
Apple Has Loads of Cash. Which Start-ups Might it Snatch Up?
Apple could make a huge acquisition. But entrepreneurs have an exit opportunity there, too. Here are some start-ups that may be on Apple's radar. Read more
Why It's Time I Pass the Torch
It takes courage to recognize when your company is ready for its next fearless leader. Read more
IPO Market Heating Up in July
Two months after Facebook's IPO disaster, a handful of companies surface with plans to test the market waters. Read more
Pandora's Sweet Sound of Success
It took a while for Tim Westergren to get his Internet radio business out of "perpetual start-up mode." Now it's a public company with 560 employees. Read more
IPO? No Thanks, Say Most Entrepreneurs
The JOBS Act was supposed to help companies under $1 billion in revenue go public and grow. But entrepreneurs say IPOs still don't make sense for them. Read more
Selling Your Company Won't Make You Happy
A veteran of two acquisitions offers a reality check for fellow founders, reminding them they shouldn't be in the start-up game just for the payout. Read more
4 Reasons to Love the Facebook IPO
Contrary to popular opinion, the IPO was good for the company and investors. And it certainly shouldn't scare you from going public. Read more
10 Best & Worst Ways to Spend a Fortune
Attention, Facebook millionaires: Money can buy happiness--if you know the right way to spend. (Hint: Skip the yacht.) Read more
How to Lead Your Company Through Change
Different employees react differently to change. However each feels about a new situation, you can help all of them adjust. Read more
Facebook's IPO Is Great for Start-ups
The biggest tech public offering in history is big news to the start-up world. Here's why its a win for innovation, user-experience, and the little guys. Read more
After Facebook: 6 IPOs to Put on Your Radar
Has Facebook reinvigorated the IPO market? Here are a few tech companies racing to go public--and what you should know about them. Read more
Can Your Business Survive Without You?
What would happen to your business if you were called away on an emergency? Here are three tips to ensure it doesn't miss a beat. Read more
Facebook Pulls Off Largest Tech IPO Ever
Ring the bells: It's a landmark day for Wall Street and Silicon Valley as the world's biggest social network becomes a public company. Read more
