Business Structure

• 1Is your business legally structured as a proprietorship, a partnership, a regular corporation also called a C-corporation, a Sub-chapter S-corporation or a limited liability corporation?Top 100 question
• 2Do you effectively have a managing partner or owner, or salaried manager who oversees day-to-day operations of the business?
• 3How many members are on your company’s Board of Directors?
• 3aHow many of those Board members currently own and operate their own business, or did own and operate one?
• 3AbDo one or more of your Board members have legal expertise?
• 3BbDo one or more of your Board members have finance expertise?
• 3CbDo one or more of your Board members have marketing or sales expertise?
• 3cDoes the Board of Directors exist as a true advisory body, or does it primarily exist to fill legal requirements?
• 4Has the legal status of this business changed in the last three years?
• 4aWhat was the prior legal status? A proprietorship, a partnership, a C-corporation, an S-corporation, or an LLC?
• 4bWhy did you change it? Was it for:?
• 5Counting you and your spouse, if you have a spouse, as one owner, how many current owners of this business are there?Top 100 question
• 5aIn the last three years, has the number of owners increased, decreased or stayed the same?
• 5bIn the last three years, is (are) the individual(s) who owns the business the same person (people) or has (have) the person (people) changed? Disregard any change in marital status over the last three years.
• 5cDoes another business or a non-profit organization have some ownership in this firm?
• 5dIn the last three years, have you divided your business into two or more businesses or sold a substantial share of it to someone else?
• 5eIn the last three years, have you purchased another business or a substantial share of one, and integrated it into this business?
• 6Not counting work sites, such as a construction site, how many locations does this business have?Top 100 question
• 6aAre all the locations in the same state, or are they in more than one state?
• 6bDo you have one or more locations outside the United States?
• 6cIs this business operated primarily from the home, including any associated structure, such as a garage or a barn?
• 6c1Do you have a room set aside in your residence for exclusive use as a business office?
• 7How many days are you typically open for business?
• 7aAre any of these half-days?
• 7bWhich is the typical half-day that you are open?
• 7cAre you typically closed:?
• 8What are your usual hours of operation? What time do you open?
• 8aWhat time do you close?
• 9Do you have any employees, not including yourself, whose primary job is to direct, manage, or supervise the work of other employees?Top 100 question
• 9aAbout how many employees is it whose primary job is to manage or supervise others?
• 9bHow many of your employees perform managerial or supervisory tasks from time-to-time, but primarily do other things?
• 10A(exclusive job responsibility) Handling government rules and regulations, licenses, and related paperwork.
• 10B(exclusive job responsibility) Marketing and/or sales.
• 10C(exclusive job responsibility) Personnel or human resources.
• 10D(exclusive job responsibility) Accounting, bookkeeping, or finance.

Volume 4, Issue 7, 2004
ISSN 1534-8326

William J. Dennis, Jr.
NFIB Research Foundation