Succession planning is a process of preparing a structural plan to protect a company against the ill effects of staff turnover. The unexpected and unplanned exit of a business can have disastrous effect on their business. With a family owned business one of the biggest reasons to create a succession plan is to avoid ambiguity during the succession. Ambiguity increase risk and risk opens the door to all kinds of problems. They procrastinate, this is probably the biggest problem people have when they approach succession planning in their business. Some of the family owned business lack strategy, they might have a way they approach their daily to do list, they have to start with a goal to create value for their business. Thinking strategically properly understand succession planning for the long haul, think long term, which small businesses don't usually do. Most family owned do not have an approach to valuation, they should be using more than one method for a full picture of their business's value. Valuation changes as the business changes, whether growth, profitability, sustainability or even transferability.