Question 01
What is my business actually worth?
A defensible, well-documented valuation built from real cash flow, real comparables, and real market context — critical before selling, fundraising, divorce, succession, or partnership change.
Lago Vista, Texas · CPA · CVA · MAFF
Helping business owners understand what they're really worth — and what to do next.
Michelle Hillman is a Central Texas CPA, Certified Valuation Analyst, and financial forensics expert helping business owners move forward with clarity through their biggest financial decisions.
20+
Years of expertise
CPA
Licensed in Texas
CVA
Certified Valuation
MAFF
Financial Forensics
Lago Vista · Lake Travis
Texas Hill Country
Michelle Hillman
CPA · CVA · MAFF · MBA
Meet Michelle
The financial strategist business owners want in the room.
Michelle Hillman has spent more than two decades helping Central Texas business owners navigate the financial decisions that actually move the needle — buying or selling a company, restructuring for growth, preparing for litigation, planning a confident exit.
She isn't a tax preparer who happens to talk strategy. She's a strategist with one of the most credentialed accounting practices in the region — and a gift for making complex financial topics finally make sense.
Business ValuationFinancial ForensicsTax StrategyLitigation SupportBusiness Consulting
A signature conversation
Financial questions worth asking.
The questions clients bring to Michelle are rarely about accounting. They're about what to do next.
Question 02
Am I paying more tax than I legally should?
A proactive, year-round tax strategy designed around your entity, your industry, and the moves you're planning — not a once-a-year scramble in April.
Question 03
Should I buy or sell now?
An honest financial reality check on the deal in front of you — valuation, structure, tax consequences, and what the numbers say about timing.
Question 04
Am I financially prepared for litigation?
Financial forensics, expert testimony, and decision-grade analysis built to stand up under cross-examination — and give you and your attorney a clear picture early.
Question 05
Can my bookkeeping tell me more?
Yes — and it should. We translate your financial statements into a clear story about margin, cash flow, risk, and the levers you can actually pull this quarter.
Question 06
What happens to all this if something happens to me?
Succession, estate, and continuity planning that protects what you've built — for your family, your partners, and your team.
Organized around real decisions
Business decisions that actually matter.
We don't organize the practice around accounting categories — we organize it around the real-life moments business owners actually call us about.
Growing Your Business
When the business is growing faster than the spreadsheet, Michelle builds the financial picture you need to make confident decisions.
- Financial Analysis
- Cash Flow Strategy
- Long-Range Planning
- KPI & Margin Review
Protecting Your Business
Proactive structures and clean documentation so the IRS, an auditor, opposing counsel, or a buyer's diligence team find exactly what they should.
- Tax Strategy
- Audit Support
- Financial Forensics
- Compliance
Knowing What Your Business Is Worth
Defensible valuations and decision-grade analysis for the moments that change everything — selling, buying, dividing, transferring.
- Business Valuation
- Exit Planning
- Litigation Support
- Succession Planning
Flagship Specialty
Business Valuation, done right.
A business valuation is one of the highest-stakes numbers in your financial life. As a Certified Valuation Analyst with deep financial forensics experience, Michelle delivers defensible, well-documented valuations built to hold up — in negotiation, in court, and in front of the IRS.
Buying a business
Selling a business
Preparing for investors
Divorce proceedings
Estate & gift planning
Partnership disputes
Succession & transfer
Litigation & expert testimony
Engagement process
- 01DiscoveryGoals, deadlines, the decision in front of you.
- 02Financial Deep DiveNormalize earnings, scrub the books, build the real picture.
- 03Market & MethodologyIncome, market, and asset approaches — applied with judgment.
- 04Defensible ReportA clear, well-documented narrative built to withstand scrutiny.
- 05Strategy ConversationWhat the number means — and the move it points toward.
The strategist's read
Five questions we ask of every P&L.
- Why did margin compress in Q2?
- AR is up 22% — is this a collections issue?
- Owner draws rising while cash declines — why?
- Which vendor contracts are due to be re-bid?
- If we sold today, what would the multiple say?
Numbers tell stories
Your financial statements are a roadmap — not a report card.
Most business owners look at their financials and see a quiz they're afraid to fail. Michelle reads the same statements and sees the next three decisions — what's working, what's quietly leaking, and what to do this quarter.
Every engagement begins with translating your numbers into a clear, plain-English story about the business you're actually running.
Credentials
Experience that stands up in the boardroom — and the courtroom.
Michelle's credentials aren't decorative. They're the reason her work holds up in high-stakes transactions, IRS scrutiny, and complex litigation.
MBA in Finance
Graduate-level training in corporate finance, valuation theory, and strategic decision-making.
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Licensed in Texas. The professional standard for accounting, tax, and assurance work.
Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA)
Specialized credential for defensible business valuations across transaction, tax, and litigation contexts.
Master Analyst in Financial Forensics (MAFF)
Advanced training in forensic investigation, dispute analysis, and economic damages.
Litigation Expert
Experience supporting attorneys and testifying on valuation, damages, and financial matters.
Audit & Financial Modeling
Big-picture audit experience and the modeling chops to stress-test the assumptions behind any plan.
Business Valuation Specialist
A deep practice in transaction valuations, ESOP work, succession, and shareholder disputes.
Professional Speaker
Frequent speaker for professional groups on valuation, forensics, and business strategy.
Services framed around outcomes
What working with Michelle actually delivers.
Every engagement is scoped around a result, not a task list. Pick the outcome that sounds most like the next chapter of your business.
01
Know Your Numbers
Translate your books into a clear financial story you can actually act on.
Talk this through
02
Protect Your Business
Tax strategy, audit support, and forensics that keep you ahead of risk.
Talk this through
03
Build Long-Term Wealth
Entity, owner-comp, and planning structures aligned with the life you want.
Talk this through
04
Navigate Complex Decisions
Buy, sell, partner, divide — decision-grade analysis when stakes are highest.
Talk this through
05
Reduce Tax Burden
Year-round proactive planning, not a once-a-year reaction.
Talk this through
06
Prepare For What's Next
Succession, exit, estate, and continuity planning done with intention.
Talk this through
A signature philosophy
Complex doesn't have to feel complicated.
Business valuation. Financial forensics. Multi-entity tax strategy. These are genuinely complex topics — but the decision in front of you doesn't have to feel that way. Michelle's gift is turning a 60-page report into a 10-minute conversation that tells you exactly what to do next.
- Plain-English explanations of high-stakes financial concepts
- Visual frameworks that make the tradeoffs obvious
- Decision-grade recommendations — not just a pile of data
- Direct access to Michelle, not a rotating account manager
Decision framework
"Should I sell now or wait two years?"
Sell Now
- + Lock in current multiple
- + Favorable cap gains rate
- − Earnings still climbing
Wait 24 Months
- + Higher EBITDA base
- + Cleaner books at sale
- − Market timing risk
Run the valuation first. Then decide.
Central Texas, rooted
Built for the business owners of Lake Travis, Austin & the Hill Country.
Michelle lives and works where her clients do — among the small businesses, family operations, professional firms, and growing companies that line the Colorado River and spread across Central Texas.
Lago Vista Austin Lake Travis Hill Country Colorado River Cedar Park Leander Marble Falls
Educational resources
Plain-spoken guidance from a strategist's desk.
Practical perspectives on valuation, tax strategy, financial forensics, and the decisions that shape healthier, more valuable businesses.
Business Valuation
What your business is actually worth — and the 5 mistakes owners make estimating it.
7 min readRead
Tax Strategy
The proactive tax moves Central Texas business owners should make before year-end.
5 min readRead
Financial Forensics
When financial forensics belongs in your legal strategy — and when it doesn't.
6 min readRead
Start the conversation
The next big decision deserves a strategist in the room.
A 30-minute conversation is the simplest way to see if Michelle is the right financial partner for what's in front of you. Tell her where the business is — she'll tell you honestly how she can help.
Business valuation Financial forensics Litigation support Tax strategy
What to expect
- 01Tell Michelle about the business.
- 02Talk through the decision in front of you.
- 03Leave with a clear next step.
Lago Vista, TX · Serving Austin, Lake Travis & the Hill Country.