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April 17, 2025
Tackling ESOP Myths
By Adam Burroughs
David Solomon, a member at Levenfeld Pearlstein, sets the record straight on what an ESOP is, and what it isn’t.
January 31, 2025
The Challenges, And Benefits, Of Selling To An ESOP
Doug Bawel of Jasper Holdings on selling to an ESOP and how the change has affected his business and his employees’ lives.
December 19, 2024
Standing Out From The Pool Of Gray
Gore Range Capital's Ethan Rigel spoke on the Smart Business Dealmakers Podcast about the firm’s launch and its early fund experiences, highlighting what’s changed in company types and terms, as well as what being a helpful investor really means.
December 19, 2024
3 Ways a Fractional CFO Provides Unbiased Leadership
SeatonHill's Jack McGovern on how fractional CFO bring an outside perspective to companies pursuing M&A that center around three imperative areas.
November 14, 2024
Sports, Business And The M&A Arena
Andrew Berlin of Shield.AI, Berlin Packaging, Chicago Cubs and South Bend Cubs; along with Rob Sine of Blueprint Sports, on how strategic opportunities in asset diversification and the current economic climate are reshaping the landscape for athletes, institutions and franchises.
October 17, 2024
Announcing the Chicago Smart Business Dealmaker Award Winners and 2024 Dealmakers Hall of Fame Class
The Smart Business Dealmakers Dealmaker of the Year Awards recognize exceptional individuals in Chicago. See who we recognized!
September 19, 2024
Facing Financial Ups And Downs
Chartwell Financial Advisory’s Will Bloom on how financial conditions have affected M&A.
August 22, 2024
The Interest Rate Squeeze Impacts Buyers
Wind Point Partners’ Peter Leemputte on the challenges buyers face in a higher interest rate environment.
July 25, 2024
Internal Transparency, Communication, Central To M&A Strategy
rEvolution's Tony Lorenz on how internal transparency and communication are central to their M&A strategy.
June 20, 2024
How Financial Realities Are Affecting M&A Math
Keystone Capital's Bill Sommerschield on how financial realities are affecting M&A math.
May 16, 2024
Essential Leadership Traits For Uncertain Times
Brightstar Capital Partners Tom Meredith on how today's market conditions impact business leaders.
April 18, 2024
Higher Multiples Require Greater Buyer Scrutiny
MERK Capital Corp.'s Thomas Parro on how today's economic conditions are affecting buyers' approach to deals
March 7, 2024
Policies That Bring Big-Picture Metrics Down To The Factory Floor
Innovations in Nutrition and Wellness Former CEO Jared Leishman on programs designed to engage employees in achieving company goals.
February 9, 2024
Capital Costs And The Impact On Dealmaking
Monarch Collective's Suk Shah on capital options today and the effect on M&A
January 18, 2024
Hafeezah Muhammad On People and Analytics In Deals
Hafeezah Muhammad's company Backpack Healthcare recently acquired two companies. At the 2023 Chicago Smart Business Dealmakers Conference, she talked about how the business has supercharged its
January 5, 2024
Navigating The Journey From Diligence To Exit In Private Equity
Chief Outsiders' Slade Kobran shares some key considerations from PE operating partners that ought to be taken from diligence to exit, and the go-to-market strategies they’ve used to foster success.
October 13, 2023
Midwest Values Bouy Businesses When Fundamentals Are The Focus
The Chicago Smart Business Dealmakers Conference kicked off with insights and strategies for navigating the post-exit landscape, as well as the speakers' perspective on what's been a tricky M&A
September 29, 2023
Chicago M&A Honorees Named
The Smart Business Dealmakers Dealmaker of the Year awards recognize exceptional individuals who are shaping the landscape of business and innovation in Greater Chicago. The 2023 class of winners —
August 25, 2023
Take The Stigma Out Of The Exit Talk
CEOs are often hesitant to talk about exits because there's a stigma attached to it, says MATH Venture Partners Managing Director Mark Achler. "There's a concern that if you start to talk about an
July 21, 2023
Luke Haverhals' Company Is Working To Solve The World's Biggest Problem
Luke Haverhals, founder and CEO of Natural Fiber Welding, says he's an accidental entrepreneur. As the former chemistry professor at the United States Naval Academy tells it, he was fortunate to be in
June 16, 2023
Life After Selling
Jai Shekhawat founded Fieldglass, a cloud-based VMS platform, in 1999, grew it to be the largest vendor management software firm in the world, then sold it in 2014 for $1 billion. He's raised capital,
May 19, 2023
Biju Kulathakal On Launching Halo, Fundraising
Halo Investing is a platform for structured notes or, as the company's Co-Founder and CEO Biju Kulathakal puts it, defined outcome investing. "It's a financial product that's a $3 trillion market
April 21, 2023
How Redback's Famous IPO Almost Wasn't
Dennis Barsema on his experience with Redback, the issue that almost prevented him from taking the company public, and how his path eventually led him to teaching future entrepreneurs.
April 6, 2023
Suzanne Yoon On Launching Kinzie Capital Partners
Kinzie Capital Partners Founder and Managing Partner Suzanne Yoon on launching the firm.
March 24, 2023
FHN Facilitates Service for Underbanked Consumers
Jennifer Tescher on her company’s investments strategies and goals for assisting their partners during harsh economic times.
March 10, 2023
No "Risky Bets" When Investing In CEOs
The Edgewater Funds Senior Partner David Tolmie on what he looks for in an executive, investment red flags, preparing for exits and negotiating deal terms.
February 24, 2023
Hirewell's Matt Massucci Is Ready For The Next Challenge
Hirewell CEO Matt Massucci on the company's post-capital-raise growth, acquisitions, and how these changes are affecting the company.
February 10, 2023
Halo Investing Brings Structured Notes to the Masses
Halo’s vision and execution has propelled it to one of the top FinTechs in the U.S. That success also allowed it to easily raise capital to further its long-term goal of making structured notes accessible for just one dollar. Jason Barsema, co-founder and president, joined the Deamlamers Podcast to talk about how they built the company to where it is today and what we can expect in the future.
