How A Certified Business Broker Differs

A certified business broker, also known as a Certified Business Intermediary, is a professional selling businesses who has been awarded "certification" from the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA) after meeting the organization’s requirements. Those requirements include:

1. Education: The requirement is to complete a minimum of 60 class hours with courses covering business brokerage subjects. Included in the curriculum, offered by the IBBA, are mandatory classes on ethics, financial analysis, pricing/valuation and legal and tax implications. Of the total class hours, 16 can be dedicated to courses taken on an elective basis by the applicant.

2. Examination: All applicants are tested on their knowledge gained in the coursework throughout the educational process, and are required to score at least 70% in order to past the tests. A comprehensive exam also is administered at the end of the coursework, with the passing grade of at least 70% required.

3. Experience: The minimum requirement is that the candidate has at least three years of experience in business brokerage during the past ten years, and is actively involved in either the deal-making process or managing others who are listing and selling businesses and negotiating transactions. A college degree or related work experience might be substituted for two of the three years of experience required.

4. Code of Ethics: All applicants must become familiar with the IBBA Code of Ethics and agree to adhere to all 20 articles in the code.

5. Conference attendance: Another requirement for the award is to attend at least one IBBA conference for professional development.

The IBBA enforces the use of the certified business broker designation. A business broker who falsely claims to have the certification either in conversation or by including the designation on printed or online marketing materials, even while working to gain that status, may lose the opportunity to receive the “certification” and might be subject to other sanctions. Additionally the certification might be withdrawn if a business broker fails to pay money due to the IBBA, fails to maintain the code of ethics in his or her practice, or doesn’t meet other requirements for a certified business broker in good standing.

It is useful for a professional to have the designation of certified business broker in order to reinforce his or her credibility and qualification to list and sell businesses.  Among the thousands of business brokers and agents throughout California, only 112 were certified business brokers at the end of 2009.

About the Author: Peter Siegel, MBA is the Founder of www.BizBen.com (established 1994 - 7000+ California businesses for sale, 200 new listings daily) and the Director of the BizBen Network (16,000 business buyers, 4,000 small business owners, 1,800 California business brokers & agents). He consults daily with business buyers, business owners, small business advisors, business brokers and agents on selling and buying California small businesses. He is also the author of three books on the topic of how to buy and sell California small to mid-sized companies. For a FREE consultation on the best way to buy or sell a California business, phone Peter Siegel direct at 866-270-6278.

Posted on April 1, 2011  |   Email This Blog Post   |   Print This Blog Post   |  All Contributions From Peter Siegel, MBA