Services

We take a holistic approach when it comes to determining the optimal financial portfolio for each client. Through our business services, asset management, captives, and management solutions, we are able to use the best of the best from each niche market to provide our clients a well-rounded solution to meet their financial goals.

Click on the list below to discover more about each one of these services.

Business Services

Ascension Enterprise Solutions LLC (AES) draws on our vast experience and core capabilities of research, benchmarking, modeling, analysis and strategy development across multiple industries to help our clients determine the best way to move forward with precision and confidence.

Clients rely on us to define clear, practical solutions for their challenges and opportunities while seeking our support during their transition, ensuring they have the relevant capability and commitment to change.

Strategy

Ascension addresses the critical questions facing senior executives and develops blueprints for growth and increased shareholder value. We apply demonstrated insight and expertise to achieve an organization’s business goals, whether that involves realigning overarching corporate strategy, or identifying how individual business units can make the most impactful contribution to the entire organization.

Our understanding of market trends and drivers, along with deep industry expertise and analytical firepower, enables us to develop actionable strategies that create measurable long-term value for organizations. We leverage our experience and knowledge to uncover hidden opportunities to provide evidence-based analysis executives need to make informed decisions.

We also work with senior executives to establish a framework for sustained innovation and growth. This can be anything from an incremental product enhancement to capitalizing on market opportunities, to seismic shifts in a company’s direction and focus.

Strategy Execution

Successful strategy requires an integrated set of choices and strong commitment to change across all levels of the organization. We help our clients make these strategic choices by implementing our process from Goals, Portfolio Priorities, Business Model, Organization to Action.

Our implementation work covers all or part of the strategy implementation depending on our clients' ongoing situation. As a practice, we work with our clients to co-create the right solutions for them and help them achieve their strategic ambitions.

Our approach is distinctive and is characterized by simultaneous work across four key dimensions: defining the strategic plan, securing value delivery, building organizational capabilities and generating commitment to change (if needed).

Mergers & Acquisitions

Ascension provides extensive expertise throughout the transaction support services life cycle – from initial target acquisition screening and commercial due diligence through post-acquisition integration support. We call on this experience to realize synergies of transactions. We also help clients identify the true value of an opportunity by combining our meticulous financial analysis with the deep industry knowledge required to understand how the shifting market landscape can impact potential deals. Ascension’s team provides the insight required to orchestrate complex M&A transactions.

Sustainable Financial Growth

Ascension will address the concerns facing companies in establishing financial planning guidelines for their company’s growth. A company’s growth rate and financial policy are linked.

Ascension’s approach for financial growth is to:

  • Identify the company’s financial goals
  • Analyze those goals and determine difference between goals and current financial state
  • Recommend actions needed for the company to achieve its desired financial goals

Ascension addresses the following questions:

  • Defining short-term vs. long-term as pertains to goals
  • Defining Corporate Financial Planning
    • A financial plan is a statement of what must be done to achieve company goals.
    • Financial plans combine capital budgeting needs vs. the analysis of operational returns
  • Identifying what Financial plans should contain
    • Link investment proposals and financing choices available
    • Work through best investment and/or financing options
    • Provide financial predictability if certain events take place
  • Identifying the elements of a Financial Planning Model
    • Sales Forecast
    • Pro Forma financial statements
    • Projected capital spend
    • Financial requirements
    • Economic assumptions
    • Balancing item (financial planning assumptions required from a mathematical perspective)

Ascension will determine the key growth drivers for the company. Growth should not be the goal, but it should instead be a consequence of the company’s chosen decisions and projects to fund.

Asset Management

Ascension Enterprise Solutions LLC (AES) provides our clients with asset management by working with each client to provide full-service financial planning solutions. We work with our clients to assure their long-term plans are met. Clients will obtain results for their tax-planning needs, their estate-planning concerns and design, their risk management, and their appropriate portfolio management to maximize returns to achieve their financial goals.

Financial Goals

Our clients’ financial goals are evaluated and the appropriate strategy is developed. During the development stage we expect our clients to become aware of the expectations they are trying to achieve and a road map of how to achieve those expectations. They know that, as their needs in life change, we are with them at every turn to adjust the wealth management needs, the investment strategy, and the managing of their portfolio while mitigating risk. Our approach is personalized to our clients’ goals.

Risk Management

We will work with clients to ensure they are properly covered. We will evaluate your potential risks and design possible solutions to mitigate your risk and avoid catastrophic results to your financial goals. We have partners who can assist in forming a private insurance company to manage risks via Captive Insurance.

Portfolio Management

Our clients will obtain accountability and transparency through the investment process. We will earn your trust by having our advisor develop a deep understanding of your financial goals and provide the strategy personalized to achieve your financial objectives.

Tax Planning

Ascension will work with the clients’ accountant or CPA to evaluate opportunities to potentially save money. By evaluating the current tax structure we can develop an investment portfolio that is a coordinated effort between the client's CPA and other advisors to maximize portfolio growth.

Estate Planning

Ascension will assist in understanding each client’s entire financial picture in order to develop a plan for the client’s estate. The estate planning process will consider the client’s will, estate taxes, trust, and desired legacy they wish to leave behind. Our process will work with the client’s attorney and CPA to provide the necessary provisions to provide benefits for loved ones while achieving tax efficiency.

Captives

What is a Section 831(b) Captive?

A Section 831(b) Captive, which has been around since 1986, is a risk management tool that allows a privately held operating company to create its own Property and Casualty Insurance Company to effectively manage corporate risks not currently realized.

What is Specialized Risk?

A Specialized Risk is a risk that is low in frequency and high in severity.

Many of our clients are under the belief they are fully covered by their traditional Property and Casualty Insurance Company. There are various reasons why these risks haven’t been covered:

  • Too costly for business owners
  • Coverage is not offered by traditional Property and Casualty firm
  • Business owners decide to fund informal self-insurance with an out-of-pocket structure

This strategy allows our clients to add additional supplemental insurance coverages to their current Property and Casualty policies.

What are the Types of Policies?

The established Captive insurance company will provide unique coverages that are low frequency but high risk (specialized risk).

  • Loss of key vendor
  • Loss of key client
  • Adverse regulatory or legislative changes
  • Loss of business license
  • Mechanical breakdown
  • Defense cost reimbursement

How We Assist You

Our team of best-in-class experts do a full-blown analysis on current risks not covered, that could be covered, by the Operating entity we review. This Risk Exposure Analysis will outline why AES recommended to implement this strategy and what specific risks our clients are currently exposed to. The newly created company will determine the appropriate ownership structure for the created Captive insurance company for various planning opportunities.

We work with our best-in- class independent strategic third party team to provide you with the following:

  • Assessing your risk and determining if you qualify for a Section 831(b) Captive
  • Assisting with the underwriting and pricing process
  • Determining the appropriate structure to mitigate risk
  • Assisting with the implementation of the Captive
  • Managing the Captive mechanisms
  • Assisting with records retention and tax return required documentation

Advantages of Captives

Captives provide the operating company with a cost-effective risk management tool. In addition to the primary objective being risk mitigation, the Internal Revenue Code Section 831(b) provides a significant advantage to small insurance companies like a captive. The Captive does not pay federal income tax on the premiums it receives; the premiums paid from the operating company to the newly formed insurance company are a tax-deductible event on the Operating company’s books under Section 162 of the Internal Revenue Code. In addition, the premiums held by the Captive can be invested and additional wealth gains are possible. We can provide additional information during our meetings with you.

During our meetings, we will discuss the appropriate structure of the Captive and how it can fit into wealth accumulation, wealth transfer, and overall risk mitigation of our client’s business and personal portfolio.

Management Solutions

Ascension Enterprise Solutions LLC helps our clients to effectively identify their business management challenges and then meet their objectives. We will strategically redefine business goals, by defining the functional requirements, and efficiently implementing the designed organizational and operational modifications to ensure success. We are creating the value proposition and committing to effectively implement the excellence desired. We are a solutions provider.

Corporate Strategy

We will work with the top management to understand alternatives, clarify tasks, and analytically quantify solutions. The appropriate strategy at the corporate and/or business units level must be designed.

Growth and Profitability

We will innovate profitable growth through identification of key drivers and identification of profit margin obstacles and solutions. The analytics required will be reviewed with top management and the implementation roadmap agreed upon.

Merger and Acquisition

We provide the analytics, strategy, and execution to drive the merger, acquisition, or divestiture.

Business Process Management

We will work to design, model, execute, monitor, and optimize the business processes to assure the best possibility of hitting the corporate objectives.