Generating an Operating Agreement

Overview

An Operating Agreement is a foundational legal document that defines the ownership structure, management rules, financial arrangements, and decision-making processes for your LLC. StartGlobal provides a guided wizard that walks you through seven steps to generate a customized Operating Agreement for your business. Once generated, all members can review and access the document directly from the portal.

Before You Begin

1. Navigate to the Legal Section

1. What to do: Click "Legal" in the left sidebar navigation.

2. What you will see

   The Legal section with tabs: Home, Business, Members, Policies (may be disabled), BOI Filing, and Closing.

2. Start the Operating Agreement Wizard

1. What to do: Locate the Operating Agreement section and click the button to begin generating your agreement.

2. What you will see

   A multi-step wizard opens with a vertical stepper showing 7 steps on the left side: Business Details, Basic Setup, Members, Financial Settings, Decision Making, Changes, and Review. The first step is highlighted as the current step.

3. Step 1: Business Details

1. What to do: Enter or confirm your business name, formation state, business address, and the purpose of your LLC. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   Form fields pre-populated with information from your business formation. Review and update as needed. Completed steps show a green checkmark in the stepper.

4. Step 2: Basic Setup

1. What to do: Select your management structure (member-managed or manager-managed) and set the fiscal year. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   Options for management type with explanations of each, and fiscal year configuration.

5. Step 3: Members

1. What to do: Add or confirm each member of the LLC, including their name, address, role, and ownership percentage. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   A list of members (pre-populated from your formation data if available). You can add, edit, or remove members. Ownership percentages must total 100%.

6. Step 4: Financial Settings

1. What to do: Define capital contributions for each member, profit and loss distribution rules, and distribution preferences. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   Fields for each member's initial capital contribution and rules for how profits and losses will be allocated.

7. Step 5: Decision Making

1. What to do: Set voting rights, quorum requirements, and rules for major decisions. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   Configuration options for how votes are counted (by ownership percentage or per-member), what percentage is required for approval, and any special provisions for major decisions.

8. Step 6: Changes

1. What to do: Define rules for admitting new members, transferring ownership, and dissolving the LLC. Click "Continue" to proceed.

2. What you will see

   Options for how membership changes are handled, transfer restrictions, and dissolution procedures.

9. Step 7: Review

1. What to do: Review all the information you provided across the previous six steps. Make any corrections by clicking on the relevant step in the stepper. When everything is correct, click the "Submit" or "Generate" button.

2. What you will see

   A summary of all your selections organized by section. After submission, a toast message appears: "Excellent! Your operating agreement is being generated. You will receive it shortly."

10. Access the Generated Agreement

1. What to do: Return to the Legal section after the agreement has been generated.

2. What you will see

   A timeline view showing your generated Operating Agreements with timestamps. Each entry has a "Download" button to save the document and options to resend invitations to members.

What Happens Next

• After you submit the wizard, StartGlobal generates a customized Operating Agreement based on your inputs. The document is typically available within minutes.
• All members listed in the agreement will receive notification.
• You can download the agreement at any time from the Legal section.
• If you need to make changes later, you can generate a new version of the Operating Agreement by going through the wizard again.
• Note that the Policies tab in the Legal section becomes enabled once an Operating Agreement has been generated.