How to Become a Business Owner Through Acquisition » Succeed as Your Own Boss

Would you like to go from resume to income?

Are you a corporate refugee looking for a new path to financial freedom? I have the answer. The next ACT CEO summit It’s for you. It is a three-day virtual conference taking place from January 22 to 24, 2026 that will guide senior women leaders over 45 years of age to become entrepreneurs through acquisitions. We will teach you how to buy an existing business or franchise. This conference focuses on the practical knowledge needed to become a confident owner from day one: financing, legal aspects, technology, training and essential services that make a business run.

“Women with decades of leadership experience are decisive and creditworthy. They don’t need another job in corporate America; they need a clear path to wealth creation through entrepreneurship,” said Melinda F. Emerson, summit host and founder of SmallBizLadyUniversity.com. “This event will demystify what it really takes to buy a business, including how to pay for it and the tools, lending partners, experts and community to make ownership a reality.”

Our goal is 500 qualified attendees in the US and Canada. Programming is designed specifically for women who want to move from leadership to ownership and do so with systems, teams, and revenue in place from day one.

Why now: from experience to ownership

There is a growing group of women in their 40s, 50s and 60s who have managed budgets, built teams and delivered results for large organizations. They are values-driven, financially savvy, and ready for the next act that rewards their hard-earned experience. The obstacle is not capacity; It’s clarity and access: what businesses are worth starting? How do you evaluate a franchise versus an independent acquisition? How is financing prepared for lenders? How do you handle the diligence, legal, insurance, technology and HR challenges of inheriting a team?

The next ACT CEO summit will answer those questions head on. Instead of telling attendees to start from scratch, the summit will show them step-by-step how to acquire an existing operation with customers and cash flow and how to structure the transition so the company can help pay for itself.

Who is this summit for?

• Yessenior professional women (45+) in transition; laid off, underemployed, consulting or planning a strategic exit from the company.
• Operators who want assets, not another job, and women who value systems, measurable results and clear deadlines.
• Leaders who want a faster route to business results.
• Women open to franchise ownership or independent acquisitions in service companies, businesses, home services, studios, professional practices and more.

What you will learn
Over three days (10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET daily), attendees will learn how to:

• Compare independent acquisitions versus franchise ownership and choose the right path based on budget, time and skills.
• Obtain and evaluate real listings from brokers, resellers, franchise consultants and marketplaces using red flag checklists.
• Navigate the financing matrix (SBA, franchise lenders, CDFI, ROBS, and seller financing) and create lender-ready packages.
• Conduct due diligence on operations, people and finances so you don’t buy a problem.
• Create a ready-to-own technology stack for CRM, e-signature, invoicing and payroll, and understand legal and insurance basics.

In short, the summit turns the experience into a clear ownership plan that you can start executing immediately.

Day 1: Choose your lane and create a deal flow
Opening day sets strategy and builds momentum. Attendees map personal constraints, such as time, money, and skills, against opportunity types such as independent acquisitions, franchise concepts, and franchise resales. Sessions will explain the difference between the owner-operator and manager with operations leader models and the week-to-week time commitment each requires. Programming moves on to finding deals, how to work with brokers and consultants, how to read a listing in minutes, and what questions expose reality quickly. Expect an attendee-only digital resource center with transaction flow checklists, etc.

Day 2: Money and risk: financing and due diligence
Financing is where many potential buyers get stuck. Day 2 provides a practical roadmap for financing your business, seller financing, SBA loans, franchise lenders, CDFIs, business start-up rollovers. Attendees will learn how to become the qualified buyer sellers want: The day then moves on to due diligence: operations (what really happens daily), people (retention, payroll, contracts), and numbers (earnings quality, add-ons, customer concentration, seasonality). More tools will be added to the attendee-only digital resource center, including a diligence worksheet and a list of quick-access providers for specific professional support, including technology, legal, tax and insurance tips.

Day 3: Own the transition
Buying the asset is the first step; growing the business is the victory. Day 3 focuses on the procurement plan: customer communication, supplier relationships, team alignment, cash and accounts receivable discipline, and a simple weekly dashboard. You’ll learn how to design an operational cadence that your new team can follow. The day concludes with reviews of actual listings, identifying red flags and asking the right questions. More will be added to the attendee-only digital resource center, including templates, an announcement email, a vendor registration script, etc.

What makes the Summit different?

• Our experts and panelists will turn the jargon into practical steps
• Live Bidding Practice so you learn how to read listings quickly and accurately
• Actionable deliverables so you leave with scripts, checklists, and a calendar, not vague inspiration.
• Join the next ACT CEO’s Facebook page to build community and accountability so peers can compare notes and share presentations.
• Selected partners who are relevant in finance, legal, technology, payroll and human resources, insurance and more.

What attendees can expect:
By Saturday afternoon, attendees should be able to articulate a short list of sectors that fit their budget, timeline, and leadership style; maintain a portfolio of agreements with prioritized scope and monitoring; Put together a lender-ready package and be prepared to schedule your first conversations with potential sellers, brokers, and financing partners, and create a plan to begin your research and approach a seller, team, or lender with confidence.

The promise is simple: replace guesswork with a plan, move forward, and build a team.

Sponsor Opportunities

The next ACT CEO summit It is also a customized environment for sponsors whose products and services drive small business ownership. This audience is ready to buy, from finance and legal to technology, payroll, insurance and training.

Select sponsor benefits include conference and thought leadership positions, brand recognition, social media promotion, session subscription leads and resource downloads, inclusion in attendee-only Content Vault, and registration reporting.

“Sponsors have a unique opportunity to connect early on with high-intentioned future owners – women who are ready to invest in financing, legal, technology, training and operations from day one,” Emerson added.

A practical path for senior women leaders

Many experienced women leaders don’t need to be convinced that they can run a business; They need a risk-free path that respects their time and capital. Entrepreneurship through acquisition provides exactly that: the opportunity to buy a proven operation, often with the help of the seller during a transition, and scale it with hard-earned leadership skills. For some, a franchise is the best option: branding, training and marketing support from day one, with barriers that reduce uncertainty. For others, purchasing an independent business with high growth potential might be the best option.

The summit is not intended to romanticize ownership; Your goal is to put it into practice. Attendees learn the actual weekly hours required, the difference between operator and supervisory roles, and how to structure deals so the economy works in real life, not just in spreadsheets. They leave with a clearer idea of ​​where their strengths generate the most value and where to look for outside help.

How to get the most out of the summit

Attendees are encouraged to come with a target budget range and an honest weekly time availability; a short list of sectors of interest, such as home services, healthcare, pet care, professional services, education, fitness, specialty retail, or light manufacturing; and an open mind to learning, plus an accountability partner to compare action plans after each day.

Participants should plan to implement a step after each session as small actions combine to move forward.

Logistics and Event Registration
Dates: January 22 to 24, 2026 (Wednesday to Friday)
Time: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Eastern Time, daily, with breaks
Format: Virtual; Sessions will be recorded for registered attendees.

Details: Event details and registration.

Sponsors: Sponsorship information

About SmallBizLadyUniversity.com
SmallBizLady University, founded by Melinda F. Emerson, offers education and hands-on training to help professionals start, grow or buy small businesses. Programs cover marketing and sales, finance, operations and entrepreneurship through acquisitions. Training combines live events, online courses, webinars, blogs, and e-books with step-by-step templates, worksheets, and community, especially for women leaders who are ready to take on their next act. Learn more at SmallBizLadyUniversity.com.

The upcoming ACT CEO Summit is a timely and focused response to senior women who are ready to move from resumes to revenue, from leadership to ownership, and from uncertainty to an actionable plan. With clear instructions, vetted partners, and a community committed to action, attendees will end the week with more precise criteria, credible funding avenues, and a plan to make their next act a reality.

Register today!