The Intent
You want to know whether the business has actually increased in value, not just become busier or more exhausting to run.
How I Solve It
I do not compare revenue or profit alone. I reapply the 25 Factors Affecting Business Valuation year over year to identify what has changed structurally. I focus on Factor #6: Utility, Sustainability, and Scalability, Factor #13: Management Capability & Workforce, Factor #14: Client Base, Factor #24: Risk, and Factor #25: Opportunity.
The 5 Senses Inspection Report is revisited to determine whether improvements are embedded in systems and behavior or still dependent on owner effort.
Experience
It is vital because "Is my business more valuable than last year?" is not a mechanical calculation. It is a real-world judgment about risk, control, sustainability, and transferability — and that judgment is where 10–15 years of owner-operator and valuation experience, your gut–brain axis, does the heavy lifting.
Why It Is Not Mechanical
On paper, valuation appears formula-driven. In reality, governance rights, risk concentration, growth durability, market conditions, and stakeholder dynamics materially affect value.
Where Experience Changes the Number
Decisions around normalization, premiums, discounts, projections, and defensibility require judgment formed through lived ownership, negotiation, and financial accountability.
Why the Gut–Brain Axis Matters
The brain performs disciplined financial analysis. The gut recognizes unrealistic narratives, hidden leverage, emotional distortions, and deal risk. Together they produce conclusions that withstand scrutiny.
Protecting Financial Lives
The final number affects wealth, control, solvency, tax exposure, and long-term relationships. Requiring 10–15 years of serious hands-on business and valuation experience ensures the answer is fair, defensible, and durable. See my Experience page.
The Result
You receive a clear answer as to whether the business is genuinely more valuable, and why.