North Carolina

Need help planning your business's move into the next generation?

To ensure your business survives into your successor's hands, the state of New York has created Ownership Transition Services (OTS) to help. OTS, a program of Empire State Development, the state's economic development agency, will assist entrepreneurs with succession planning by explaining all the available options, including mergers and acquisitions, estate planning, valuation, employee stock-option plans and more.

The process will start with a pre-screening interview to determine your company's needs, followed by a meeting with a consultant who will help determine your best path. These two sessions are free, but if you decide to have OTS create a written succession plan, the cost is $500.

The program is available to all businesses in New York. To find the OTS office nearest you, call (212)803-2401.

This article was originally published in the August 1999 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: North Carolina.