Define the consulting role before the deal closes
A transition agreement works best when the boundaries are explicit.
Selling the company does not always mean leaving on closing day. A buyer may ask you to remain available as a consultant while customers, employees, and key relationships transfer.
That can be sensible. It can also become an open-ended obligation if the role is not defined before the purchase agreement is signed.
Start with the work itself. Are you introducing customers, advising the new CEO, supporting a regulatory handoff, or helping with a specific integration project? Then define the expected hours, location, term, availability, and reporting relationship. “Reasonable assistance” sounds harmless until the buyer and seller have different ideas about what reasonable means.
Decision authority matters just as much. A consultant should know whether the job is to recommend or decide. Employees also need to know who is in charge. If the former owner continues giving operating instructions, the buyer may have legal ownership but not practical control.
Compensation, expenses, confidentiality, intellectual property, termination rights, and liability should be addressed in the consulting agreement. Any restrictive covenants should be evaluated separately with counsel. If part of the purchase price depends on post-closing performance, confirm how the consulting role interacts with that calculation.
The objective is a clean transfer of knowledge, not an indefinite extension of ownership without the corresponding authority.