After the acquisition closes, the U.S. entity is capitalized and staffed enough to support an executive role, and his qualifying year abroad is documented. Premium processing can compress the decision, but he cannot direct the U.S. operation before approval.
The sequence is close, staff, file, then move
The qualifying parent-subsidiary relationship must exist when the petition is filed, the twelve months of qualifying employment abroad must be complete, and the evidence must show that the U.S. role will be primarily executive rather than operational. Staffing is relevant, but no fixed job title or headcount automatically establishes executive capacity.
Filing before the evidence supports those elements may result in a request for evidence or denial; that outcome should not be predicted as inevitable. Premium processing provides the response period stated in the current official program, but it does not permit the founder to begin running the U.S. company before authorization.
Hypothetical example: a Hope orthotic-device manufacturer has signed an acquisition agreement but has not yet hired the U.S. production supervisor. The first review places each event on a sequence: close the transaction, document the related entities, install the manager who will handle operations, then file for the executive.
The signed agreement is not a substitute for an existing organization. The founder should decide whether to delay the transfer until the supervisory layer is real or revise the commercial launch timetable; he cannot begin directing the American operation as an L-1 worker before approval.