Essential Resources for Forming a New Business Entity

The design of your a new business model is similar to an architectural blueprint. In this page, you will find useful resources to get you started. Nowadays, there are more entity options than ever before. It is for this very reason that it’s important to choose thoughtfully.


Entity Choice

Choosing the optimal entity type for your new business entity or non-profit organization is the first step in forming your business. You will need to carefully consider foundational elements of your business, which you can do by answering this short list of questions.

You need to think about these questions; depending on your priorities and answers to them, certain entities will be more suitable than others.

We have a particular passion for and experience with cooperatives, Public Benefit Corporations, and other steward owned or shared ownership models.

  1. Who will own the business—today, a year from now, and ten years from now?
  2. How will ownership be reflected in terms of decision-making and economic interests?
  3. How much flexibility and protection will leadership need to pursue the entity’s social or environmental mission?
  4. What do you want your entity choice to say about the business to your customers, employees, investors, and community? How will it reflect your brand?
  5. How will you capitalize and finance the business?
  6. Where do you anticipate doing business?
  7. How will you properly incentivize and motivate your employees?
  8. Have you considered sharing ownership with employees or other key stakeholders?
  9. What is your anticipated exit strategy for the business? Or, do you intend to build a business that will grow and continue to operate indefinitely?
  10. What is your personal exit strategy?

Additional resources to help you pick the right entity for your business

Most of our clients have similar questions. We’ve created these helpful guides for the top 5 most common topics.