CEO Lessons Learned From Scaling And Selling A Business To Walmart

So you want to scale and sell your business for a high valuation in just 2–3 years? It’s an ambitious goal, but it’s possible if you get the fundamentals right. In fact, it’s exactly what I and my team achieved by doubling a telemedicine company in two years and selling it to Walmart.  But here’s the reality: That kind of exit won’t happen unless you are intentional by doing these eleven things right.

In this weekly article series, I’ll share the hard-won lessons from the journey – building/reinforcing the foundation, creating a high-performance culture, driving clarity and maintaining financial discipline. You’ll also learn how to expand your business, prepare your business for sale, and thrive post-acquisition. Plus, I’ll share what it’s like to integrate with an extremely well-run Fortune 1 company and lessons learned that can accelerate your integration.

Here’s what you can expect each week for the next 11 weeks:
1.        Reinforcing/Building the Foundation – Ensuring your business model can rapidly scale without breaking.
2.        Intentional Culture – Creating a performance-driven culture that is centered on collaboration, kindness and execution.
3.        Clarity Above All Else – Getting laser focused on who you are, what value you provide, what numbers matter most, and how to avoid getting distracted.
4.        Financial Discipline – Optimizing for value: Fueling growth while also preserving equity and flexibility.
5.        Market Expansion – Unlocking New Growth Streams: Finding and leveraging new opportunities with confidence.
6.        Operational Speed – How to accelerate how fast your company operates and in turn  performs.
7.        Personal Balance – Often overlooked, but how to maintain your sanity and health throughout the process, and why it is critical to do so.
8.        Preparing for Sale – Getting your business ready for buyers and due diligence.
9.        The Sale Process – Understanding buyer motivations and also discovering and reinforcing your organization’s value beyond the financials.
10.       Lessons from Walmart – Learning how best to succeed both organizationally and individually as part of a large, public company.
11.       Final Reflections – From CEO to Strategic Advisor: Transitioning your role and continuing to add value.

Each article will be packed with actionable tips and insights, distilled for busy CEOS and entrepreneurs like you. Stay tuned – your own large exit could be closer than you think.