Brian Zapf

About Brian Zapf

In 2019, my dad told me he had cancer. A few months later, we learned something else: the medical practice he’d built for 40 years was unsellable.It had a great reputation, loyal patients, and steady profits. But everything rested on one name on the door—his. No one could step in. No one would buy. After four decades of work, he walked away with almost nothing transferable.That moment shook me. I’d spent my career in Fortune 500 finance helping other people grow and sell their businesses. But I’d missed what so many founders miss: if your firm can’t run without you, it can’t sell.I started Flight Financial to make sure what happened to my dad doesn’t happen to other owner-led firms.Today, I work with founder-led law firms—typically estate planning and business law practices in the $2M–$10M range—who are tired of doing everything themselves, tired of unclear financials, and tired of building something that’s not giving them life back.They don’t always want to sell. But they do want the option. To step back. To take a real vacation. To bring in a partner. To stop working nights and weekends.I call it stewardship over heroics.What I do:→ Strategic CFO Advisory — Financial clarity, forecasting, and decision support so you can lead with confidence→ M&A Advisory — When it’s time to transition or sell, I help you maximize value and protect what you’ve built→ The Law Firm Steward — My weekly newsletter: case files on escaping founder-dependency and building a calm, sellable firm. Subscribe at flight.financial/thelawfirmstewardWhat others say:\"We had someone in a CFO-type role—and they didn’t give me even one-twentieth of the clarity I got from one call with Brian.\"- Business Law Firm Owner, FL\"I didn’t sign up to sell my firm—I just wanted my life back. But halfway through, I realized I was finally building a business that could run without me.\"- Estate Planning Law Firm Owner, GAWant to talk?Start with a Stewardship Session—a focused conversation about where your firm stands and what it would take to build something that doesn’t depend on you. Schedule yours here: https://calendly.com/flightfinancial/stewardship-session.Or subscribe to The Law Firm Steward to get your first case file: flight.financial/thelawfirmsteward

Experience

1. Founder CFO & m & a Advisor

   Flight Financial

   Dec 2021 — Present · Wesley Chapel, FL, US

   Flight Financial is a strategic CFO and M&A advisory firm that helps founder-led law firms build businesses that don\'t depend on them—and hold real value with or without them.

Education

• Indiana University - Kelley School of Business

  MBA, Double Major: Finance & Accounting; Minor: Management

  2008 — 2010

• University of Michigan

  BA, Political Science/Economics

  2002 — 2005

Skills

• Corporate Finance
• Analysis
• Investment Banking
• Negotiation
• Microsoft Word
• Budgets
• Finance
• Private Equity
• Microsoft Office
• Accounting
• Medical Devices
• Divestitures
• Leveraged Finance
• Healthcare
• Business Development
• Strategy
• Private Placements
• M&a Experience
• Strategic Planning
• Project Management
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Microsoft Excel
• Powerpoint
• Due Diligence
• Financial Reporting
• Tmt
• Management
• Financial Analysis
• Leadership
• Cross-Border M&a
• Business Strategy
• Lbo
• Venture Capital
• Contract Manufacturing
• Valuation
• Public Speaking
• Financial Modeling
• Forecasting
• Corporate Development