The Exit Planning Institute (EPI), a leading authority on exit planning for advisors, business consultants, and business owners, has announced a strategic partnership with SkillStacked Strategies. The collaboration, revealed on September 18, 2026, aims to bolster the resources available to advisors within EPI's network, particularly those holding the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) credential. By integrating SkillStacked's fractional family office model, the partnership seeks to address a critical gap in the exit planning market: the need for specialized expertise without the overhead of expanding internal teams.
SkillStacked Strategies, founded by Skylar Dean, a CEPA and financial planner, offers an on-demand team of specialists in areas such as finance, operations, marketing, artificial intelligence, estate planning, and personal planning. This bespoke fractional family office approach allows advisors to deliver advanced planning services to their clients—primarily main street business owners—by leveraging a flexible bench of experts. According to Josh Koza, director of strategic relationships at EPI, "Skylar's background as a CEPA gives him a firsthand understanding of what advisors need to deliver Value Acceleration well, and that shared foundation makes this partnership a natural fit for our community."
The implications of this partnership are significant for the exit planning industry. As business owners increasingly seek holistic strategies to transition out of their companies, advisors must be equipped to handle complex, multifaceted challenges. SkillStacked's model enables CEPAs to scale their services efficiently, tapping into specialized knowledge that might otherwise be cost-prohibitive or difficult to source. Dean emphasized this dual role: "Our goal is to work with CEPAs on both sides of our business—some as the specialists that we connect with financial advisors and others as advisors, who are looking for a team of experts to support their clients." This symbiotic relationship could accelerate the adoption of value acceleration methodologies, which focus on building transferable value in a business long before a sale.
EPI's Strategic Alliances program, which includes this new partnership, is designed to support advisor development and member engagement through educational content, programming, events, and collaboration. By adding SkillStacked to its roster of trusted collaborators, EPI reinforces its commitment to providing advisors with the tools and expertise needed to navigate the exit planning process effectively. For business owners, this means greater access to comprehensive, coordinated advice that can maximize the value of their life's work.
The partnership also highlights a broader trend in professional services: the rise of fractional and specialized support models. As advisors face increasing pressure to differentiate themselves, alliances like this one offer a competitive edge by combining credentialing with on-demand expertise. EPI, formed in 2005, continues to set the standard for exit planning education, and its CEPA credential is the most widely endorsed program of its kind worldwide. For more information about EPI's Strategic Alliances, visit the EPI website. To learn more about the organization, follow EPI on LinkedIn.
