What does it actually look like to put the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®) credential into practice?
That was the focus of the Exit Planning Institute’s® (EPI) recent Ask Me Anything webinar, which brought together CEPAs, Joe Strazzeri, Renee Russo, and Jon Chen, to share how the credential has shaped their work with business-owner clients.
What Does it Mean to be a CEPA?
The Value Acceleration Methodology™ (VAM) is built around a simple but powerful idea introduced by EPI Chairman Christopher Snider in Walking to Destiny: exit planning is good business planning. That idea shaped much of the webinar discussion and helped explain why VAM resonates across advisory disciplines.
For Joe, a veteran CEPA, former Exit Planner of the Year, and member of EPI’s Thought Leadership Council, that concept was a turning point.
Rather than thinking about exit planning as a conversation that begins only when an owner is ready to leave, he saw it as a way to improve the business regardless of the eventual outcome.
“I had to hit stop and replay it in my mind and let that hit me,” Joe says. “It changed the way I give advice to clients. You don’t have to exit, you have to pretend like you’re going to, which gives you the opportunity to exit or keep it and make tons of money.”
That distinction matters because it reframes exit planning as a long-term strategy rather than a one-time event. It gives advisors a way to help business owners build value and create options, whether they plan to transition soon or continue growing for years to come.
The discussion also emphasized that becoming a CEPA can change how advisors think about their role. For Renee, 2026 Exit Planner of the Year and a member of the EPI Thought Leadership Council, the designation expanded her perspective beyond traditional business systems to the more personal side of advisory work.
“I realized I needed to have the most important conversation: who they are, what they want, and what this business means to them beyond the money,” she says. “Money doesn’t have a soul. But the business owner and their life and their legacy do.”
The work of a CEPA starts with Value Acceleration, including understanding the person behind the business. CEPAs work with business owners to build more transferable companies and clarify goals, define success, and make decisions that support the future that they want.
How Has Your Practice Changed Since CEPA?
During the webinar, Joe, Renee, and Jon also spoke directly about how the CEPA designation changed the way they work day-to-day with their clients and other advisors.
For Jon, Chief Catalyst at Blue Tide Catalysts, the credential has provided a new way to approach conversations with business owners. He says that all of his conversations with clients now focus on creating value and reducing owner dependence.
“It’s hard to get them to let go, but if you can remove owner dependency, it increases the value of the business by two to three times,” he adds. “That changes the conversation immediately. It helps justify the work, it helps build the business, and at the end of the day, it’s about helping people walk to their destiny and achieve their dreams.”
That connection between execution and value is one reason the Value Acceleration Methodology gives advisors a stronger position with business owners. It provides language that they can understand and a clearer view of how Value Acceleration and exit planning lead to measurable business outcomes.
The webinar also reinforced the importance of collaboration in successful value acceleration and exit planning.
“This is really a team sport. There are so many great experts, and my job is to find the best people I can bring to my clients to help with exit strategy, tax savings, building the business, everything,” Jon says. “The second big change is that I’m focused on giving the wisdom away. Even if (the owner or advisor) doesn’t work with me, if I can help change their mindset and help them understand what they need to do to extract value, then that’s good enough for me.”
Missed the Webinar?
For advisors looking to strengthen their approach to exit planning, the CEPA credential is a gateway to collaboration and creating significant outcomes for owners.
To hear the full discussion and revisit the panel’s insights, view the webinar recording through EPI’s Webinars page. Webinar recordings are available to CEPA Plus and CEPA Mastery members after they take place.
To learn more about the CEPA credential, fill out the form below or visit EPIMembership.com. For more insights into value acceleration and the role of a CEPA in a business owner’s long-term strategy, read more from the EPI blog.
About the Certified Exit Planning Advisor Credential
A Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®) is a professional credential for advisors who wish to engage with business owner clients through the exit planning process using the Value Acceleration Methodology™. Through the CEPA credential, advisors can provide new offerings for clients and stand out from their non-CEPA peers, all while gaining access to education, resources, and a vast network of like-minded professionals.
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