Business continuity is not the same as estate planning

Estate documents answer who inherits and who decides. Continuity answers how work keeps moving while those decisions catch up to reality. One without the other leaves families legally empowered but practically stranded.

The three-day problem

Courts and probate move slowly. Payroll does not. Stillago focuses on the three-day to three-week window where someone needs to stabilize cash, communicate, and prevent reputational damage.

Bring your advisor into the loop

Fractional CFOs can coach completion and freshness without needing to read private narrative-so your legal stack and your operations stack both strengthen over time.

Two clocks run at different speeds

Estate administration can take months. Payroll is weekly. Customer expectations are daily. Continuity planning exists in the fast clock: it is the bridge between an event and the moment legal authority catches up. If you only optimize the slow clock, you still leave your family in operational free fall.

Owners sometimes believe a will “handles everything.” Wills handle disposition and authority over time. Continuity handles cash movement, communication, and operational triage in the gap. Both are necessary; neither replaces the other.

What to bring to your attorney-and what belongs elsewhere

• Bring: ownership structure, key contacts, and instructions that affect legal interpretation.
• Keep operational: vendor portals, payroll approvals, and customer escalation trees-updated frequently.
• Review annually: continuity should track reality; estate documents should track intent.

For week-one operations, read what families need in week one. For role clarity, see designated person versus executor. CFOs should connect the stack to CFO continuity beyond spreadsheets.

Document the “until counsel catches up” plan

Name interim decision rules: who can sign small contracts, who can pay urgent invoices, and what thresholds require waiting. Interim rules should be conservative to protect everyone involved, but explicit enough that the business does not freeze.

If you have co-founders, document how conflict is resolved if opinions diverge during a crisis week. A short dispute ladder prevents public chaos.

Revisit both layers annually

Pick the same month each year: update continuity for operational drift, then schedule estate counsel if intent changed. Pairing the reviews makes it harder to forget either layer.