Is your business built to last? Five questions every Surrey business owner should be asking

At our Mole Valley Chamber of Commerce Business Breakfast networking event on 20 May 2026, guest speaker Vicky Simpson, COO and Consultant at Clerion Consultants, delivered a compelling and at times uncomfortable presentation that every business owner in Surrey — and beyond — should hear. Her message was clear: most businesses don’t fail because of bad trading. They lose value, momentum, or control because of things that were simply assumed to be sorted.

Drawing on real-world case studies and her 35 years of experience in law and business consultancy, Vicky walked the room through five critical questions that cut right to the heart of business resilience. Here’s what she had to say — and why it matters for your business.

The uncomfortable truth about SMEs

Vicky opened with a striking statistic: 78% of SMEs either don’t have a shareholders’ agreement, or have one that is no longer fit for purpose. Compounding this, on average a business will face three legal issues a year, yet will only seek professional advice 25% of the time. As Vicky put it, “You don’t know if you don’t know.”

For businesses in Surrey — many of which are fast-growing SMEs and owner-managed firms — this is a significant risk. The good news? Most of these vulnerabilities are entirely avoidable with the right structure in place.

Five questions every business owner should be asking

Vicky challenged the room with five questions that serve as a practical health check for any business:

1. If your co-owner died tomorrow, what actually happens to their shares?

   Without a shareholders’ agreement and appropriate life cover in place, the shares of a deceased co-owner could pass to their family — who may have no interest in, or understanding of, your business. Do you have the funds to buy them out quickly? Is there an insurance policy in place to enable that? If not, your business could suddenly have an unwanted shareholder at its most vulnerable moment.

2. If you were incapacitated, who has legal authority to run the business?

   Vicky referenced the high-profile example of TV presenter Kate Garraway, whose husband’s incapacitation left finances frozen and the business unable to function — because no Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) was in place. A business LPA is entirely separate from a personal one and is something many business owners in Surrey overlook entirely.

3. Could your contracts survive a dispute, or would they work against you?

   From employment contracts to supplier agreements, Vicky highlighted how defective or outdated documentation regularly exposes businesses to significant risk. She shared the story of a business valued at £13 million that was preparing to sell, only to discover at due diligence that its shareholders’ agreement — drafted using a generic online template — was wholly defective. The result? Significant restructuring costs and tax exposure at the worst possible time.

4. If a key person left today, could you still access your critical systems?

   One of the most striking stories of the morning involved a growing business that exited its CTO without first auditing what systems that individual controlled. Every critical password — banking, platforms, client systems — sat with one person. The business couldn’t pay staff, couldn’t pay suppliers, and couldn’t transact with customers. “The cost ran into millions,” said Vicky, “all because nobody had documented it.”

5. If a buyer looked at your business today, what would concern them?

   Whether you plan to sell in two years or ten, the time to prepare is now. Due diligence will surface every governance gap, every missing agreement, and every undocumented process — and fixing those things under time pressure is exponentially more expensive. Vicky’s advice: build a business that is exit-ready even if you never actually exit.

The common pattern — and why it matters

Across every case study Vicky shared, one theme emerged: the business owner believed things had been sorted. Documentation existed, but was defective. Agreements were in place, but had never been reviewed. Trust between partners was strong, but nothing was written down. Advisers were involved, but working in silos.

As Vicky noted, businesses go through cycles — commercially and personally. A shareholders’ agreement drawn up when two university friends started a business together looks very different once one of them is married with children and the other is approaching retirement. If it hasn’t been reviewed, it may no longer reflect the reality — or protect the people — it was intended for.

What good looks like: the four pillars of a resilient business

Clerion’s diagnostic framework looks at four key pillars that underpin a structurally sound business:

Structure

Governance, ownership and decision-making are documented, not assumed. Shareholders’ agreements, articles, LPAs, and authority maps are all in place.

Relationships

Contracts protect the business proportionately, key client concentration is understood, and adviser relationships are coordinated rather than siloed.

Assets

IP is identified and protected, insurance is appropriately calibrated, and digital continuity is documented and accessible — not locked inside one person’s head.

Vision

Exit or succession plans are written down, founder dependency is being actively reduced, and revenue quality is improving.

Digital continuity: don’t be the business that couldn’t transact

One area Vicky explored in depth was digital continuity — something that is frequently overlooked until it becomes a crisis. Clerion’s Be Prepared digital vault product is designed to ensure that if a founder, director, or key person is suddenly unavailable, the business can still function legally and operationally.

From banking access and system credentials to key contracts, insurance schedules, and crisis playbooks — having everything documented and securely accessible is not just good practice. In the event of an unexpected departure, incapacity, or death, it could be the difference between a business surviving or collapsing.

What this means for businesses in Surrey and Mole Valley

Surrey is home to a thriving community of independent businesses, professional services firms, and growing SMEs — many of which operate as owner-managed businesses where one or two individuals carry the weight of the entire operation. This is precisely the profile Vicky was speaking to.

For businesses in Mole Valley, Dorking, Leatherhead, and the surrounding area, the risks Vicky described are entirely real and entirely local. Whether you’re a two-director consultancy, a family-run firm, or a growing tech business preparing for exit, the message is the same: the gap is not in the intention — it is in the structure.

The Mole Valley Chamber of Commerce exists to help local businesses connect, grow, and thrive — and events like this morning’s breakfast are a key part of that. If you missed this session, you can find out about upcoming Chamber events here.

Take the next step

Vicky and the team at Clerion offer a structured diagnostic process — a 60 to 90 minute conversation that gives business owners a clear, plain-English report identifying risks, gaps, and recommended actions, prioritised by urgency and impact. There is no jargon, no obligation, and no pressure.

If you would like to explore whether your business is truly built to last, you can get in touch with Clerion Consultants directly:

Website: www.clerion.co.uk
Email: info@clerion.co.uk
Phone: 0208 088 3612

This article was produced by the Mole Valley Chamber of Commerce following our Business Breakfast event on 20 May 2026. To join the Chamber and access future events, networking opportunities, and business support, visit our website or contact us here.

CHECKOUT MOLE VALLEY CHAMBER EVENTS HERE

Are you a local business in the Mole Valley District and interested in joining the chamber? Find out more here.