EXIT DNA ACADEMY

Optimize YOUR BUSINESS for exit

We help founders design and optimize their businesses for maximum exit potential…

At Exit DNA Academy, we work closely with founders of successful businesses to actively and strategically plan for profitable exits by focusing on frameworks that give them options—including the option to sell, to run the business more efficiently for maximum profit, to create more freedom, or unique lifestyle goals. 

Whether you’re currently generating seven or eight figures in annual revenue and want to exit within the next 24 months, or you’re an earlier-stage startup wanting to position your company’s IP, assets, and infrastructure for a five to ten year exit plan…

Exit DNA Academy will position you for success, increase your exit opportunities, and maximize your company’s value to potential buyers.

 

Who are we?

I’m Mac Lackey and I’m a serial entrepreneur and angel investor.

Over the past 24 years, I’ve started, scaled, and exited six of my own companies (each sold for seven or eight figures), selling to both private and public companies here in the U.S. and internationally. I’m also an investor in over 50 startups.  

I’m the founder of ExitDNA Academy and the active “mentor” you’ll work directly with. I’ve also pulled in my personal team of experts (some of the best in the country) across the legal, technology, marketing, and finance domains to ensure you have access to my personal SWAT team.

Through ExitDNA Academy, I apply over two decades of experience in the startup world to coaching, mentoring, and guiding small groups of founders through the process of designing their businesses so they CAN be sold—at the same time maximizing value for all parties involved.

Sometimes those around you (partners, employees, board members, investors, etc.) have different timelines and/or agendas than your own. If you’re a founder who wants to optimize for exit, you need to understand these factors, create alignment where possible, and you absolutely need an unbiased advocate to help you navigate the process.

ExitDNA Academy is a 8-week program where you’ll dive deep into proprietary frameworks that help you gain confidence in the strategies you need to optimize your business for the lifestyle you want to create.

Our cohorts are limited in size (i.e. 8 spots per session) to ensure you get one-on-one attention from me and my team. You’ll receive specific, actionable advice and strategies to drive to your goals. You’ll also have the advantage of being supported by a cohort of your peers who are on a similar journey.

Want to maximize your exit potential?

APPLY NOW!

If you’re interested in joining ExitDNA Academy, complete the Academy application — 10 short questions relating to you and your business. Once we receive your application, we’ll either:

1) Determine you are a good fit for the academy, at which point we’ll schedule a call with you. Don’t worry — there’ll be no pressure to make an immediate decision. If you’re not ready to join right away, we’ll add you to the waitlist for a future session.

2) If we determine you’re not a fit right now, or that we aren’t confident we can help you, we’ll tell you so… as well recommend other people and resources who are a better fit for your situation.

MAC LACKEY

Entrepreneur and Angel Investor

An entrepreneur for over twenty years, Mac Lackey has built and sold six companies and raised over $75 million dollars in capital. Mac and his startups have been featured on CNN, The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, USAToday, and The New York Times.

ExitDNA Academy is a transformation program for Founders, but it’s not for everyone…

The Academy program is expensive. It requires hard work from you. And you’ll be held accountable for your progress (or lack of progress) both to me and to a small group of successful, high-performing peers.

Unless you’re committed to doing the work and willing to accept accountability for your own success, ExitDNA Academy may not be right for you.

 

THE IDEAL EXIT DNA ACADEMY MEMBER HAS:

  • A minimum of seven figures in annual revenue (or an active plan to reach that level within 36 months)

  • The in-house skills required to execute your vision

  • An openness to being coached / mentored

  • A desire to maximize your company’s value for yourself, your investors, and your future buyer

THIS PROGRAM IS NOT FOR:

  • People whose startup is still in the hobby or side-hustle stage

  • People looking to fix a business that is fundamentally broken

  • People who aren’t willing to work hard to create success

  • People looking for a magic bullet solution

The reality is, the closer you get to wanting or needing to exit, the harder it becomes to take the steps to maximize value. So if you EVER want to sell, now’s the time to put “exit” in your DNA…

And great news… if you design your business for an amazing exit, you can always choose not to sell and still enjoy the benefits of your newly optimized business. 

Interested in optimizing your business for exit?

APPLY NOW!

LEARN NEW WAYS OF THINKING

Step-by-step frameworks to help create clarity, alignment, confidence, and ultimately the strategies needed to optimize your business for exit.

COMMUNICATION

Weekly meetings in a curated mastermind format with Mac, his team of experts, and your founder cohort (your peers).

ACCOUNTABILITY

Peer group accountability and founder advocacy. There’s no agenda other than enabling your personal execution and results.

OPTIMIZE

Proprietary frameworks and real experiences to help you break out of “the grind” and infuse your business with ExitDNA to optimize your path.

Are You A Good Fit? Hear From Mac…

OVER 100 FOUNDERS ADVISED AND MENTORED

We work with Founders and Entrepreneurs who are ready to scale and optimize for meaningful exits.

Greg Harron | Director, The Variable

“Mac’s vision, success, and mindset have been an inspiration to me…”

Having been deep in the trenches, starting from scratch, and being resourceful enough to dig his way to the top, Mac brings a unique perspective to the startup process and the art of identifying opportunities for disrupting a market. He has the vision, wisdom, and mindset to get things done and knows what it takes to be successful.

Spencer Leuders | Founder, 24Foundation

“Extraordinary mix of skills, vision, and experience.”

Mac is a natural go-to for those new to startups and those well versed. Mac has lived it, done it, and knows the space extremely well. Above all, Mac is uniquely able to frame the future through his extraordinary mix of skills, vision, and experience.

Each cohort is extremely limited so you are working directly with Mac and a small group of your peers. Sessions include hands-on facilitation, group interaction, and one-on-one with Mac to focus on YOU.

 

During the 8-week academy, we’ll walk through the process below:

V.A.L.U.E.
Framework

1

This is our proprietary framework used to help you optimize goals, vision and execution. It is foundational work for ExitDNA.

Focusing on the Methods, Analytics, People and Systems you need in place so YOU aren’t the business. This is critical for scale, for creating maximum value and not getting trapped in your business.

2

M.A.P.S.
Sessions

Explosive
Leverage

3

Finding the 10x leverage in your model and implementing the CSF 90 framework (these often become your highest value selling points).

Empires are never built alone. We learn how to create teams to scale and to provide comfort to owners, investors and future buyers.

4

FĒNX
Teams

Leading 
People

5

As you scale, your leadership skills and approach will be a multiplier of success and it becomes critical to infuse the ExitDNA into your core team.

In our final segment, we focus on the cadence needed for execution and performance and the steps you will take to turn ExitDNA into a tactical exercise.

6

Business
Cadence

ExitDNA Academy

 

Scale-Focused Entrepreneurs Interested In Optimizing For Exit Value

 

ExitDNA Academy is not designed for pre-revenue startups or small business/lifestyle owners… it’s for scale-focused entrepreneurs interested in optimizing for exit value.

Inside the Academy, founders work hard in a series of hands-on, facilitated one-on-one, and small group sessions. Admission to the Academy is by application only. To apply for an upcoming cohort, click below and we’ll follow up with you directly.

There's no fee to apply and you're not committing to join by applying.

ACADEMY APPLICATION