Business Consulting & Advisory

Business Consulting & Advisory Services

Business planning is the foundation of future success.

In today’s fast-paced, competitive world, many businesses face unprecedented challenges. Maybe yours does, too? If you agree, then chances are you’re spending more and more time on human resource issues, payroll tax compliance, and sales and use tax than you are on revenue-generating opportunities and planning for future growth.

If you feel like your wheels are spinning, our Business Consulting & Advisory services can help.

With years of proven expertise in business planning, we make sure that business owners like you have the information – and insights – they need to remain competitive and ensure financial stability for you and your loved ones for years to come.

We combine industry expertise with time-tested solutions to develop a framework upon which to build your company’s success. Even better, when you leave the business planning to us, you can return to what you enjoy and do best – running your business.

Business Services

  • Budget development and management
  • Software implementation, conversion, and training
  • Cash flow management/planning
  • Management report development
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Exit/Succession planning
  • Process development and documentation
  • Internal control evaluation and recommendations
  • Job descriptions and organizational charts
  • Recruitment/training/staffing
  • Employee compensation, incentive, and bonus programs
  • Buy/sell agreements
  • Benchmarking

At Davis & Hodgdon Advisory Group (DHAG), we assist business owners seeking to be proactive and progressive in their management styles. Ultimately, this creates businesses that are not only profitable but can be transferred, when desired, to the next generation or sold to outside parties.


Davis & Hodgdon has exceeded our expectations as a business partner!

I met Matt Cleare in 2014 at a conference where he had been a presenter. The move to D&H was seamless as they identified and remedied the shortcomings of the accounting firm we left. They were also able to help us in the sale of one of our businesses.
Chuck Siegel
President/Owner, REPRO

We switched to Davis & Hodgdon in 2022 and gained an expert partner.

D&H looks critically at our wholesale floral business, offering guidance and advice to support us in the work we do. Our relationship with Matt Cleare and the team has modernized our financial practices, reinvigorated our business, and increased the overall value of our company.

Tom and Kim Jennings

Owner, Green Mountain Floral Supply

Client Accounting Services

Click here to learn more about how our Business Client Accounting Services/Convergent Accounting can help you take control of your finances so you can focus on your business.

Wealth Management for Business Owners

Click here to learn more about our wealth management and retirement plan solutions for business owners.

Many business owners have no idea what their business is worth; some may underestimate whereas others may overestimate – sometimes significantly.

Obtaining a third-party business valuation allows business owners to set a price that is realistic, yet still achieves maximum value. There are many reasons why a business owner might want to obtain a business valuation:

  • Selling a business
  • Obtaining seed money from investors
  • Annual or quarterly reports to investors
  • Divorce proceedings
  • Estate, gift and trust planning
  • Shareholder disputes
  • Litigation support for bankruptcy, fraud and business disputes
  • Mergers and acquisitions

Our team of Advisors is ready to assist you! You can expect:

  • Use of recognized and generally accepted methodologies to determine the value of your business assets – both tangible and intangible.
  • A detailed report that discusses methodologies, analyses, and conclusions for your specific needs.
  • An assessment of your business financials including financial history and future predictions.
  • A thorough examination of operational, management, and marketing issues.
  • An evaluation of every possible factor – internal and external – that could affect the valuation analysis.

We position business owners to sell or transition their company at the ideal time, for the best return possible, and to the right person or entity.

At DHAG, you will have access to a knowledgeable expert who is a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) and this makes all the difference. This designation means the professional fully understands the complex exit planning process and can guide you through it successfully.

All CEPA professionals must complete comprehensive training offered through the Exit Planning Institute (EPI). They are held to continuing education requirements and must abide by a strict code of ethical conduct that sets forth professional responsibilities to business owners, the public and their clients.

A CEPA can help you:

  • Articulate and align your personal, business, and financial goals
  • Achieve value acceleration
  • Maximize your business value
  • Identify and capitalize on timing opportunities
  • Resolve key issues by using wise guidance and solutions

Whether you intend to leave your business soon or stay involved for the long-term, you need a plan to make it a success. Our exit planning solution provides a roadmap that will help you work towards transferring your business when you want, for the amount of money you are seeking and to the person or group, you choose.

When Davis & Hodgdon Advisory Group manages your exit strategy, you will benefit from:

Advanced research and planning

Our team creates a comprehensive personal financial plan for you. They will help you figure out how much you need to retire successfully and create a roadmap to get you there.

Strategic advice

We develop strategies to increase the value of the business so you can sell it for the highest amount possible.

Proficiency in family business succession

We are well-versed in counseling business owners as they transfer company assets to family members. There are tax implications associated with gifting a business to a relative or selling it to them. Our skilled CPAs can guide you through this process.

Tax guidance

We are tax experts and we thoroughly understand all tax laws and alert clients to legislative changes as soon as they occur. This expertise allows us to ensure your business is structured in a way that takes advantage of all possible deductions.

Continuous communication

We will work closely with you throughout the process of creating your exit plan. As part of this process, we will continue to monitor, check in and adjust as necessary. Any time you have questions or need additional advice as we work on your plan, we are here to ease any concerns.

Always in-house expertise

DHAG’s Managing Partner, John W. Davis, CPA, CEPA, CFP® earned the prestigious CEPA designation after completing the EPI program in Chicago, IL. He joins an elite group of advisors who have received this designation and is pleased to offer his 35 years of public accounting and business advisory expertise to clients.

Our team of financial professionals adheres to the highest standards of our industry and delivers the highest quality work.

This includes our Mergers/Acquisitions group. They recognize that the opportunity to buy or sell a business doesn’t come along every day. Whether you are looking to acquire a business or sell the company you have built over numerous years, tremendous value can be gained or lost in the acquisition or sales process. A well-planned merger or acquisition (M&A) can accelerate financial success and provide access to new markets, technologies, skills and resources. It is critical to have an experienced team on your side – helping you identify opportunities and mitigate risks. Working with our specialists will maximize value and minimize any unforeseen surprises.

Our team understands the critical processes and key value drivers involved with M&A transactions. We bring broad cross-industry expertise to help you successfully navigate your organizational transaction, helping you drive value before, during and after your transaction. M&A can be a complex undertaking and the DHAG team will work diligently to help you identify opportunities, minimize risks, create value through negotiations, and structure deals that achieve your business and personal objectives.

We can help with the initial valuation process to achieve the most tax-efficient structure of the sale and coordinate with other professional advisors involved.

The professionals at DHAG often become intricately involved in structuring the sale of privately held companies. While the sale of a privately held business will involve many different professional advisors, our preference is to be the “quarterback” of the process, keeping everyone moving forward in the same direction.

We can offer the following services with management and leaders on the buying, selling, or merging of companies:

  • Succession and exit planning
  • Due diligence
  • Deal structure
  • Entity selection
  • Financing alternatives

A successful merger or acquisition can help your business reach new heights of success and the experienced guidance of a top-notch M&A team will ensure a successful transition.

If you’re looking to buy, sell, or merge your privately held company, DHAG can guide you towards the most advantageous business decisions. We can demonstrate how tax planning strategies can be beneficial in maximizing value and minimizing any unforeseen surprises.

We are available to speak with you about some of the typical steps you can expect in the sale of a privately held business.

No two families are quite the same and that is why our team provides tailored solutions once we learn about your family’s goals.

It is often easy to see the joy wealth brings to one’s family: the delight of travel, fine art, or the perfect home … the ability to support causes you care about and leave a legacy to … the comfort of meeting each family member’s needs.

Outsourcing your family business’s needs can be a solution for wealth preservation, lifestyle management, consolidated reporting, technical advice, customized solutions, critical thinking, and the highest level of personal attention and discretion.

Whether it’s streamlining administrative tasks for your family, preserving wealth for children or simply meeting compliance obligations, we can fine-tune a plan that will help you meet those personal and business objectives.

We offer family business consulting services to help both start-up and experienced offices with best practices, internal controls, family governance, cyber security, litigation support, and more.

Our team is made up of professionals who possess extensive family business experience and recognize the many complexities of the responsibilities that come with a family business. They can involve investment management, structuring your philanthropy, tax planning, residential and vacation home ownership, structuring a new boat purchase, as well as insurance and risk management. There may be scores of professionals managing your business activities in addition to your personal employees.

In order to gain a deep understanding of your unique challenges and family office structure, our team begins their assessment by asking a lot of questions. The better we understand your one-of-a-kind situation, the more we can help.

Our Family Businesses Services group offers:

  • Business planning to prepare your business for transition
  • Succession planning
  • Estate planning
  • Business valuations and structures
  • Mergers/Acquisitions
  • Family governance
    • A well-established, clear family governance structure is an essential part of every family-owned business. Solid governance will achieve discipline among family members, prevent conflict, and ensure the continuity of the business
  • Development of a Family Constitution
  • Family Council Meetings
  • Periodic assemblies of the entire family
  • Establishing an independent board

It is more important than ever for organizations to remain proactive in preventing fraudulent activity through effective management of fraud-related risks and the management of anti-fraud controls.

Fraudulent activity is on the rise and every organization is at risk. Internal and external threat actors are taking advantage of increased opportunities to commit and conceal fraud as organizations implement new technologies, increase reliance on third-party vendors, and re-design internal control structures.

Our team of Certified Public Accountants, Certified Fraud Examiners and other specialists are experienced in assisting our clients with the following solutions:

  • Fraud Prevention
  • Fraud Risk Assessment
  • Fraud Examination and Investigation
  • Corporate Investigations
  • Transaction Reconstruction
  • Forensic and Investigative Accounting
  • Bankruptcy Forensic Examinations
  • Internal Controls Consulting
  • Damage Assessment
  • Discovery and Litigation Support

Bret Hodgdon, Managing Partner at DHAG, is a Certified Fraud Examiner in Vermont. In his work, he often finds a need for better financial controls and segregation of duties. Protecting your business comes down to the act of staying proactive against evolving risks. We can help you do exactly that.

Resources

We offer a variety of helpful resources for businesses.

Select the options on the right to view each type of resource.

Copper Leaf Financial is an affiliated and separately registered entity.


Do something wise today

Schedule a time for a free consultation.