Searching as a Couple

investor profile

January 12, 2021

by an investor from Babson College in Boston, MA, USA

Husband-and-wife teams searching for, purchasing and then running a business, is a special variation on selecting a partner for a search. Searching with a partner is one of the key decisions a searcher must make before heading down the path to leading a company as CEO for a decade or more. Searching with your spouse can create a fulfilling career and a very strong work/life balance – for both of you.

In my own case, Debby joined me as CFO a year after I purchased my search company and we worked together for 20 years. I could think of no better partner to have along the journey as an operating CEO. While it is not a viable choice for most couples, it is worth examining some examples of searchers who have attained work-life balance and the magic of 1+1=3 that an ideal spousal business partnership can deliver. So, why don’t more searchers pair up with their spouse to search and operate a business?
You can read more in my blog post here: https://jimsteinsharpe.com/contemplating/searching-as-a-couple/

Please let the community know your thoughts and comments below!

Search On!!! Jim Sharpe

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commentor profile
Reply by a searcher
from Harvard University in Palo Alto, CA, USA
very thought provoking article! I imagine when this type of couple search works, it would be a wonderful arrangement. On the other hand, I can see that a lot stars would have to align like the skillsets of the couple need to be complementary, the career interests and phases are similar etc.
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Reply by an investor
from University of Pennsylvania in Washington, DC, USA
Great post Jim - I recently invested in a husband/wife searcher team and talked to a few others that are in the middle of searching. There is some data that shows partner searchers have better returns - would be interesting to see any data if husband/wife partners did even better!
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