SDE with multiple partners - watch for this

Saw something on a CIM recently that's worth flagging. Broker presented SDE for a business with two partners working full-time. Added back both salaries. The problem: SDE assumes one owner-operator. You add back one salary because you, the buyer, are replacing that person. But two partners working full-time? Maybe you're willing to work 80 hours a week. You physically can't work 120+. That second role needs a body and a paycheck after close. SDE was the wrong framework here. Two partners with real operational roles means this is an EBITDA conversation. You need to budget market-rate salaries for every role that still needs filling post-close. The earnings number in the CIM wasn't dishonest. It was just built on the wrong metric. And the wrong metric made a real cost disappear on paper. Simple gut check for any deal with multiple owners: what happens to their responsibilities after you close? If the answer is "I'll just do it all," pressure-test that hard.