Perth IT reseller Steve Surleff, approaching retirement two years ago, hit on an innovative way to secure his business's future and sleep easier at night.
He offered the business he built and nurtured, Stellar Systems, to his staff. Surleff, 56, decided to sell
40 percent of the solution provider to three key employees to tie their fates to the business.
That decision enabled Stellar to navigate the choppy waters that afflicted WA as it went through a boom-bust resources cycle this year while more than doubling turnover to $1.7 million.
He says the flash of inspiration came while worrying about the future, sitting on the beach two Christmases ago. "I realised that this could not go on and I had to rid this fear from my life," he says.
"The business was much bigger than me now and the younger guys were the driving force and becoming the face of my business."
The seeds of transition were already planted in the business through the existing profit-share scheme that paid the past year's bonuses as instalments the following year.
Surleff had an independent valuation drawn up to kick off a process that went back and forth with staff for 18 months, during which time advice on all sides was sought, agreements were drafted, consultants engaged and tax and financial planning undertaken before sale documents were signed last June. If he had to do it again, he says he "would make sure it happened faster".
"The buy-in has probably been the best thing for the future of the business," Surleff says. It gave Surleff stability and breathing space to plan five years into the future.
Looking to next year, Surleff sees a second "dotcom boom" looming as technologies such as virtualisation and storage kick in.
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