Getting Ready for the Public Eye? As IPOs become viable again, what can you do to prepare your company?

Not so long ago, IPO was considered a four-letter word. After the IPO bubble burst in 2001, there were so few small businesses that could go public that it seemed as though the opportunity was lost forever. But if the momentum building in 2007 is any indication, the curse may finally be lifted. This year, IPOs are on track to exceed--in both number and value--every year since 2000. According to Renaissance Capital's IPOhome.com, 114 companies had raised $26 billion by midyear.

Does that mean boom times are back? Not quite. "The market is good--it's not great, [but] it's not frothy," says attorney Peter Townshend, a partner in the private equity/emerging companies practice group of McDermott Will & Emery LLP. "Good companies that make sense and are meeting their milestones are able to go public and sustain themselves."