North Star programme: Growth optimisation, exit readiness and succession

ServicesFinancial advisory

North Star programme

A focused diagnostic and programme helping you step back from day-to-day decisions, define what success looks like and turn ambition into a practical roadmap.

What is the North Star programme?

Our programme connects what you want personally with what your business needs to do next. From optimising growth to getting ready for an exit, it helps owners and shareholders clarify their ambitions, align priorities and agree a practical way forward.

Through a focused diagnostic and workshop, we help you step back from day-to-day decisions, define what success looks like and turn ambition into a practical roadmap.
Improve business performance

Prepare for a future exit

Plan a leadership transition

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Forvis Mazars employee explaining the North Star programme

Who North Star is for

  • Owners and shareholders

    For owners and shareholders looking for clarity on growth, preparing for an exit, or planning for succession and the future of the business.

  • Businesses and management teams

    For businesses considering private equity investment and PE-backed management teams looking to clarify their ambitions and build a focused growth plan aligned with the investment case.

  • Private equity investors

    For private equity investors looking to identify and deliver value-creation priorities across their portfolio businesses.

Why business owners use North Star

  • You want to improve growth, profitability or performance, but need clarity on where to focus.
  • You want to understand your exit options and what would make the business better prepared.
  • You want to plan the next stage of ownership or leadership while protecting continuity.
  • Your shareholders or leaders have different ambitions, timeframes or views on the future.
  • You need a practical plan that connects personal goals with business priorities, whether across one area or a combination.

How the North Star programme can help you

North Star creates structured time to help an owner look at their ambitions, their business and the future together. An independent outside perspective helps surface blind spots, test assumptions and focus attention on the few choices that will make the greatest difference.

The result is greater foresight, stronger alignment and clearer timing for major decisions.

For PE-backed businesses, the emphasis is on growth during ownership: identifying commercial and operational priorities, agreeing the capabilities and investment needed, and translating these into actions with clear accountability and measures of progress.

A focused exit readiness health check can be added before a future sale; exit does not need to be the immediate focus.
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What to expect

  • Initial conversation: discuss your priorities, ambitions and known challenges, and confirm whether the programme is right for you.
  • Short pre-work: shareholders and selected leaders complete concise diagnostics, typically taking around 20 minutes.
  • North Star workshop: review different perspectives, connect personal goals to business priorities and agree the areas that matter most.
  • Practical output: receive a concise report setting out priority focus areas, recommended next steps and where specialist input could help.

The three areas of North Star

  • Growth optimisation

    Identify and prioritise the changes that strengthen growth, profitability and business performance. Align your commercial ambitions, leadership focus and delivery plans to build a business that supports your goals.

  • Exit readiness

    Understand your options for a future exit and what the business needs to do to prepare. Align shareholder objectives, timing and readiness priorities to strengthen value, reduce avoidable risks and preserve choice. The aim is a stronger business, whether or not you ultimately sell.

  • Succession

    Plan the future of ownership and leadership in a way that supports your ambitions and business continuity. Align personal, family and shareholder priorities, develop the next generation of leadership and agree a practical transition roadmap.

    • You do not have to choose a single route at the outset. North Star helps you explore how these areas fit together and decide which priorities matter most to you.

Optional deeper-dive support

Further support is shaped around your priorities. For Growth Optimisation, this could mean a closer review of commercial performance, finance or operations. For Exit Readiness, it could mean assessing preparation gaps and the actions needed before a future transaction. For Succession, it could mean exploring ownership transition, leadership continuity and the alignment of personal, family and business plans. The scope is agreed around the area or combination that is relevant to you.

When you are ready to move forward, we can bring the right Forvis Mazars specialists into your corner to support delivery.

Client case study

From personal ambition to practical action

"For me, North Star started with what sounds like a simple question: 'What do you actually want?' In reality, that was one of the hardest questions to answer.

The process challenged me to really think about what my 'future perfect' looked like personally and then connect that back to where the business was, where it needed to go and what the next steps should be. It helped bring together my personal ambitions, financial future and the future direction of the business.

What I particularly valued was that the support didn't stop once we had identified the direction. The team rolled up their sleeves and worked alongside us to help deliver the changes, bringing in additional expertise and resources where we needed them. It wasn't simply a case of being given a plan or signposted elsewhere. There was practical support to help us move things forward.

I hadn't gone into the process planning to sell the business, but within two years we had successfully exited and I had moved into a new global role. For me, the real value was gaining clarity on what I wanted, having a practical roadmap to get there, and having a team alongside us to help turn that direction into action."

Julian Barratt, CEO and Owner, SNG Barratt

Get in touch

Every business has different ambitions, challenges and priorities. If you would like to explore what your North Star could look like, tell us a little about your business and we will arrange an initial conversation.

Contact us about the programme

 

Key contact

FAQs

Who is the North Star programme for?

It is designed for owners and shareholders of privately owned businesses, including those considering private equity investment, as well as PE-backed management teams and investors supporting portfolio businesses. The focus may be Growth Optimisation, Exit Readiness, Succession or a combination. You do not need to be considering a sale to benefit.

Do I need to know my preferred outcome before starting?

No. The programme is designed to help you clarify what success means personally and then test what the business needs to do to support it.

Who should take part?

This depends on the ownership structure and priorities. For owner-managed businesses, the initial discussion is usually with the owner or shareholders, with selected leaders contributing where helpful. For PE-backed businesses, the scope and participants are agreed with the investor and management team, typically including the finance lead.

What do we receive?

The core output is a concise report setting out the priority focus areas, recommended next steps and potential specialist support.

How do the three areas fit together?

Growth optimisation, exit readiness and succession are equally important areas within North Star. Your priorities may sit within one area or span several. The programme helps you decide what is relevant to your ambitions and turn that into an agreed plan, without assuming a particular outcome.

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