First of all congratulations on getting to where you are! I've been involved on both sides of deals and it's always an exciting time.

Start by making 100% sure that all partners are committed to the exit. You can't have a partner get cold feet midway, or try to make their own terms with a buyer behind the back of the other selling partners.

Ideal broker... tough question. I know a few good ones but that depends on a lot of factors. Where you and your target buyers are located, for example, because negotiation is face to face.

Fee structure: it's going to be a fixed fee plus success fee as a commission.

You're doing the right thing getting a broker, an experienced M&A expert will do a lot of work better than you would and get a better price probably.

Somebody in your company who has access to all data and the CEO's ear, needs to dedicate themselves to this for half a year.

I'd be happy to share tips, names, etc on the phone.