Succession Planning: Prepare for the Curveballs with Expert Advice from Business Leaders

When it comes to succession planning, there are always parts of the process that catch business owners off guard. In this one-hour webinar, the team from Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green PA will not only walk you through a must-know succession planning primer but also introduce you to business owners who have been through their own succession planning experiences. This lively discussion of practical, real-life business successions with the people who lived them will help you see the curve balls coming and know what to plan for regardless of the type of succession that may work for you.

Speakers

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  Matt Benson

  Corporate Attorney·Sheehan Phinney

  Previously with the firm Cook Little, Matt Benson joined Sheehan Phinney as a partner in 2022. He is a corporate attorney and advises his business clients on a variety of legal and business issues. Benson represents entrepreneurs of all types and at all stages of their businesses, from start-up to exit. He is Chair of the BOOST for Startups Practice Group at Sheehan Phinney. As Chair of the BOOST for Startups Practice Group at the firm, Benson works with startups and other privately held companies. He has counseled his clients on a variety of corporate matters, including entity formation, obtaining angel round financing, venture capital or other debt and/or equity financing, executive and employee compensation, contract issues, equity ownership matters, and exit strategy issues. He also advises his technology-related companies on a wide range of matters specific to them, including software licensing, licensing of intellectual property and website development matters. Benson also advises doctors, dentists and other healthcare professionals on a variety of matters, including ownership issues, the buying and selling of medical practices, and negotiating employment and other contracts with hospitals.

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  Emily Penaskovic

  Corporate Attorney·Sheehan Phinney

  Emily joined Sheehan Phinney’s Corporate Group after 7 years at the firm Cook Little and was elected a Shareholder in 2023. Her diverse corporate practice encompasses a broad range of transactional, securities and general corporate matters. She represents entrepreneurs and high-growth companies across the business lifecycle, from guiding founders at the earliest stages, to assisting with equity and debt financings through the growth stages, to negotiating later stage exits. Through Sheehan Phinney’s BOOST for Startups program, Emily helps local startups with their most critical legal needs and connects them with valuable resources. Emily has experience counseling companies in connection with entity formations and restructurings, capital raising, mergers and acquisitions, contract negotiations, and general corporate governance and strategic matters. Her practice also involves all aspects of trademark protection and intellectual property licensing, and during law school, Emily obtained a Certificate in Intellectual Property.

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  Bob Goldstein

  Founder, Former CEO and Current Board Member·Double Digits

  Double Digits is founded by Single Digits former CEO and current Board Member, Bob Goldstein. Goldstein’s professional journey spans over 25 years and is deeply rooted with entrepreneurial beginnings. A natural progression pivoting from the co-founder of Single Digits, an industry leader in technology infrastructure and Wi-Fi services – which began as a two man team in the early 2000’s and is currently headquartered in Bedford, NH with 500 employees. As CEO for 17 years, Goldstein led the company from the garage through its debt funded growth phase, to later closing three rounds of growth equity. In addition, the company grew to an industry leadership position through a combination of double-digit organic growth while sourcing and integrating 17 acquisitions between 2009 – 2019. Goldstein brought a clear style of open communication and metrics driven goals to build a leadership team that has taken them to new heights.

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  Thomas Rohlfs

  Founder·Controlled Fluidics

  In 2011, Thomas Rohlfs founded Controlled Fluidics in response to industry demand for higher-quality, lower-cost manifolds. He brings a wealth of knowledge about the design and manufacture of fluidic and microfluidic bonded manifolds that provides the highest quality products to Controlled Fluidics’ customers. His experience helps create precision plastic components for devices that do everything from acting as a patient’s temporary heart/lung to facilitating microgravity experiments on the International Space Station. Before Controlled Fluidics, Rohlfs was principal engineer and owner of Connecticut Plastics, where he oversaw sales and process development, and had served as a design engineer for multiple companies. Rohlfs earned his BS in physics from Providence College, his BS in mechanical engineering from Columbia University, and his MS in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan.

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  Joy LeBlanc

  President and Third Generation of the Family Business·A. J. LeBlanc Heating, Inc.

  As president of A. J. LeBlanc Heating, Inc., her career at the company began 40 years ago. Growing up in Bedford, her home was also where the business was operated from and still does today. After graduating from Clark University in Worcester, MA with a BA in Business Management with a minor in marketing, joining the business after college was not initially planned. In fact, it never crossed her mind. Only when knee surgery prevented job searching, she offered to answer the incoming phones for the business while recuperating. Now, 40 years and three generations later, the company is transitioning to include the Fourth Generation.     LeBlanc has strived to operate the business, just as the first and second generation did, by offering a commitment to honesty, craftsmanship and community involvement. Throughout the years, she advanced from customer service tasks, to office manager and now as President. Her main responsibilities include planning for growth, expanding services provided and handling all financial needs of the business. Supporting community events is of high importance. LeBlanc has routinely supported non-profit organizations like the Animal Rescue League of NH, Rotary Clubs, Youth Sport teams and Veterans Count to name a few.

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