Subscribe to Smart Business Dealmakers
May 19, 2022
The rise of cyber diligence
Aon Risk Services' William Shortt, along with Ice Miller's Reena Bajowala, Guaranteed Rate's Darin Hurd, Chicago Bears' Justin Stahl and Aon Risk Services Che Bhatia, on the rising importance of cyber diligence in M&A transactions. ...
By Adam Burroughs
May 11, 2022
Macro issues change the M&A math
Little Mountain Industries' Jonathan Hatch on the lower-middle-market manufacturing scene and how broader macro issues are affecting the deal math for firms such as his. ...
By Adam Burroughs
May 11, 2022
For Stu Clark, Acquisitions Are All About The Team
Premise Health's Stu Clark on his acquisition philosophy, what he looks for in teams and cultures, and his post-deal integration process....
By Adam Burroughs
May 11, 2022
Compass Earns Multiple Returns in Less than a Year
Compass Group Equity Partners goes into every investment with a 100-day plan. They’re ready and prepared to move quickly, which they did when they purchased Sunpro Solar in 2020. Compass’ playbook includes augmenting the team and building a board deck with metrics and key performance indicators and having a written strategic plan. John Huhn, founder and managing partner of Compass Group Equity Partners, talks about how that plan enabled Compass Group sell Sunpro with multiple returns in less than a year. ...
By Dan Pender
May 6, 2022
Family Values Play Role in Acquisition
When A.O. Smith bought Canada's Giant Factories in the middle of the pandemic, it was the end of a decade-long process....
By Dan Pender
May 6, 2022
Tips on buying distressed assets
General Management Group's Emmett McNulty on what to keep in mind when buying distressed companies....
By Adam Burroughs
May 6, 2022
Airline Hydraulics Corp. stays in its acquisitional lane
Airline Hydraulics Corp.'s Mark Steffens talks about the company's acquisition strategy....
By Adam Burroughs
April 28, 2022
Using partnerships to set up an acquisition
Hickory Farms CEO Diane Pearse talks about the company's recent acquisitions, broadening its brand and how the Wicked Good Cupcakes deal came to be. ...
By Adam Burroughs
April 22, 2022
An acquisition based on shared interests, approach
Gibson Brand President Cesar Gueikian talks about the Mesa/Boogie acquisition, as well as the direction of the Gibson brand and the many ways it's working to connect with its community....
By Adam Burroughs
April 14, 2022
Akoya Capital Finds Success With New Platform
Akoya Capital's Bob May talks about the formation of Beacon, its acquisitions, and how macro challenges such as labor are affecting the platform's progress....
By Adam Burroughs
April 8, 2022
M&A Human Capital Strategies
Aquila Equity Partners' Gary Lewis, along with Purple Squirrel Advisors' Carrie Schochet, Lockton Companies' Quinn Damon, Mission Veterinary Partners' Matthew Davis, Industrial Opportunity Partners' Philip Fioravante talk about lessons learned and best practices from growing portfolio companies in a labor-challenged environment....
By Adam Burroughs
April 1, 2022
Perimeter Manages Merger in Virtual World
Edward Goldberg, CEO of Perimeter Solutions, talks about securing $1.15 billion of development capital and, concurrently, merging with EverArc Holdings. ...
By Dan Pender
March 25, 2022
Don't lose yourself chasing a deal
RLXDatix's Jeff Surges, Entrinsic Bioscience's Stephen Gatto and Aon's Nick Surges talk about leveraging M&A, and the role of IP in value, in a hot deal market....
By Adam Burroughs
March 24, 2022
Athletico PT's Mark Kaufman on M&A lessons learned
Athletico PT Founder and Executive Chairman Mark Kaufman talks about the M&A lessons he's learned in his more than 30 years with the company....
By Adam Burroughs
March 11, 2022
Win The Deal Without Winning On Price
Coles Gray CEO David Cheney, along with Tucker Ellis' Jayne Juvan, Ampex Brands Family of Companies' Eric Easton, and Citizens' David Dunstan and James Irwin, talk about what truly differentiates winning buy-side transactions beyond the price....
By Adam Burroughs
March 4, 2022
Derek Nixon Talks Varel Energy Solutions' Sale to Bluewater Group
Varel Energy Solutions' Derek Nixon talks about the company's acquisition and how the deal sets it up to be the acquirer for years to come....
By Adam Burroughs
February 25, 2022
Ansir Junaid: Serial entrepreneur’s M&A lessons learned
SupplySide Group Chairman Ansir Junaid offers insights into his M&A experience and how the pandemic has affected dealmaking....
By Adam Burroughs
February 25, 2022
Paul Larson highlights real estate trends investors should watch in 2022
Larson Financial Holdings CEO Paul Larson talks about his company's 2021 in real estate, the trends that affected the market then, and how he sees real estate investment playing out in 2022. ...
By Adam Burroughs
February 25, 2022
How to address SALT in your deals
Clearview Group's Brian Davis, along with Calvert Street Capital Partners' Brian Guerin, Nemphos Braue LLC's George Nemphos, The Courtney Group's Alan Macksey and ICSG Holdings & Incorp Industries' Peter Vrettakos, spoke at last year's Baltimore Smart Business Dealmakers Conference about addressing SALT issues in deals, the current buy-side environment and best practices for closing acquisitions....
By Adam Burroughs
February 18, 2022
The material impact of ESG on M&A
Ancora's David Sowerby, MASCO's John Sznewajs and Cendrowski Corporate Advisors' Harry Cendrowski, talk about ESG, the M&A landscape, where corporations and private investors have made the biggest changes, and what to expect next. ...
By Adam Burroughs
February 18, 2022
The value and risk of relationships
BCD CEO Jeff Burgess, along with BMO Harris' John Chalus, BDO Consulting's Robert Berdanier and Tecum Capital's Matt Harnett, discuss the nuances of selling and buying a company, and how to conduct due diligence and successfully negotiate deal terms in this new normal. ...
By Adam Burroughs
February 18, 2022
The growing concern of cyber security in deals
Moore & Van Allen's Todd Taylor, along with Aon's Michael Laskowitz, Greg Draddy and C.J. Dietzman, explore cyber security in M&A: asking the right questions, protecting data and IP, and making sure your company is ready for dealmaking....
By Adam Burroughs
February 4, 2022
Swift, seamless integration a priority in high-volume deal environment
Amedisys' Kris Novak, along with Probo Medical's Jay Burkhardt, Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP's Tyson Bickley and LBMC's Lisa Nix, take a deep dive into how a public company and a PE-backed business have adapted their acquisition strategies in this new normal....
By Adam Burroughs
January 27, 2022
Stephen Vitale finds opportunity in chaos
Pyrotecnico's Stephen Vitale talk about his busy M&A year, one that saw the company acquire five businesses....
By Adam Burroughs
January 14, 2022
How to diligence the human side of a transaction
RSM US LLP Ian O'Brien, Thunderbird LLC's Phil Kretekos and Wintrust's Adam Fuchs talk about the human side of buy-side transactions....
By Adam Burroughs
November 17, 2021
Factors Influencing Transactional M&A
KPMG’s Stephen Guy, along with Venable’s Charles Morton, Robert W. Deutsch Foundation’s Mac MacLure and Sachs Capital’s Andrew Sachs look at state of M&A, factors influencing the buy-and-sell-sides, and what you need to do to ensure a closed deal in this new normal....
By Adam Burroughs
November 17, 2021
Doing double diligence during COVID
TGI Direct's Monica Weaver, Dickinson Wright’s Bill Rosin, Emagine Entertainment’s Paul Glantz and Huntington National Bank’s Eric Dietz talk about transacting during the pandemic, as well as adjustments buyers should make when acquiring a company during disruptions....
By Adam Burroughs
November 12, 2021
Preparing Your Health Care Company for Post-COVID Deals
RSM's Matt Wolf along with IVX Health’s Douglas Ghertner, HUB International’s Blake Wiedman and Ursa Health’s Dr. Robin Clarke talk about preparing your health care company for any deal in a post-COVID environment....
By Adam Burroughs
November 12, 2021
Drafting Your Acquisition Playbook
HBD Industries Tom Pozda, along with The Huntington National Bank’s Mark Slayman, Salon Lofts’ Chris Greenfelder, Copper Run’s Andrew Hays and Huntington’s Chad Lowe, offer tips an insights on how to prepare for buy-side transactions....
By Adam Burroughs
November 5, 2021
How capital sees companies during a disruption
Marcum LLP's Greg Skoda, along with U.S. Banks’ Alan Zang, Walnut Ridge’s Michael Moran and U.S. Acute Care Solutions Executive Chairman Dominic Bagnoli, explore building unique capital stack structures to fuel growth....
By Adam Burroughs
November 5, 2021
Buyers tread carefully through COVID uncertainty
RSM US LLP's Kyle Petch, along with BMO Harris’ Robert Harrod, Go Riteway Transportation Group’s Bob Zanotti and Johnsonville Holdings’ Dan Scalia on preparing for transactions in a post-COVID world. ...
By Adam Burroughs
October 20, 2021
Learning the ropes: acquisitions in a family business
Taylor Burke-Gilman and Lauren Burke-Devere on how they got involved in the family business, their transition into leadership, and what they’ve learned so far about acquisitions....
By Adam Burroughs
October 15, 2021
Protect your blindside in a deal
Jim Nickel and Steve Bigari, along with Jeffrey Ford, Dale Killmeyer and Ryan Olsta offer tips on how acquirers can avoid the blindside risks in a deal....
By Adam Burroughs
October 15, 2021
Is ESG the next big thing for middle-market M&A?
Nick Fink and Amantia Muhedini, along with Michael Gatewood, discuss ESG and whether it's the next big thing for middle-market M&A...
By Adam Burroughs
September 30, 2021
The importance of evaluating the people fit in a deal
Conforms CEO Pat Bartling, along with Hays Companies' Kristine Olson, Borgman Capital's David Bartelme, and Executive Search Partners' Nick Curran on evaluating the people who drive post-acquisition growth....
By Adam Burroughs
September 24, 2021
Weighing organic vs inorganic growth
CK Power's Clayton Costello and PFI Holding Company's John Dolan, along with Commerce Bank's Tom Harmon, RSM US LLP's William Spizman and Capital For Business' Tim Buening on how acquisitions fit into a growth strategy....
By Adam Burroughs
September 24, 2021
Leverage your strengths when competing for acquisitions
Robin Industries' Mark Fischer and Millcraft Paper Co.'s David Hegeman, along with RSM US LLP's Brian Adkinson and Truist Bank's Andrew Rutherford dig into building an acquisition playbook....
By Adam Burroughs
September 17, 2021
Ignoring cybersecurity in M&A could be a multi-million-dollar mistake
BKD’s Cyber Division Director Cy Sturdivant offers his view of the current cyberthreat environment, what cybersecurity means in practice, and just how troubling digital threats are for players in the M&A world....
By Adam Burroughs
September 17, 2021
Anatomy of distressed investments
James Loughlin, Mike Teplitsky, Robert Berdanier, Robert Diehl Jr., and Vlad Slapak dive into investing in distressed companies, as well as how to analyze your company’s people, operations, and finances to understand if you need to restructure....
By Adam Burroughs
September 3, 2021
How relationships factor into M&A financing
Dan Counsell, president and CEO of White Family Investments, talks about financing M&A transactions and how relationships factor into the a deal’s lending equation....
By Adam Burroughs
August 19, 2021
Sehrish Siddiqui talks ESG and private deals
Sehrish Siddiqui, Corporate and Securities Partner at Bass, Berry & Sims talks about how ESG matters have started to work their way from the public sphere and into private deal diligence. ...
By Adam Burroughs
August 19, 2021
Supply chain issues and the threats they present in M&A
David Iwinski, managing director at Blue Water Growth, talks about the supply chain issues between U.S. and Chinese companies, how they’re affecting M&A transactions and offers strategies for rooting out supply chain risk ahead of, and during, a transaction. ...
By Adam Burroughs
August 13, 2021
How to secure a premium value for your company
Tom Zucker, Mark Jones and Art Anton discuss the factors that most often lead to securing a premium valuation....
By Adam Burroughs
July 16, 2021
Inside Ampex Brands’ Acquisition of Au Bon Pain
Eric Easton, CFO at Ampex Brands, and Jayne Juvan, M&A chair at Tucker Ellis, discuss Ampex’s acquisition of Au Bon Pain — how the process went down, the challenges they faced and how Ampex intends to leverage this new opportunity. ...
By Adam Burroughs
June 25, 2021
There’s more to a deal than the money
Kevin McCarthy and Scott Buschmann talk about Kian Capital Partners' T Sportline deal and how they see the balance of 2021's M&A market playing out....
By Adam Burroughs
June 25, 2021
Brian Rassel: People make the deal
Brian Rassel, a partner at Huron, on his approach to analyzing the people aspect of a deal....
By Adam Burroughs
June 18, 2021
Jonathan Herrick pursues growth at Benchmark
Jonathan Herrick, a St. Louis entrepreneur who’s now CEO of Benchmark, talks about its most recent acquisition of Contacts+, as well as what’s in store for 2021....
By Adam Burroughs
May 28, 2021
What to know when buying businesses in the cannabis industry
Jamil Taylor and Kevin Slaughter discuss the unique considerations that need to be made when buying businesses in the cannabis industry....
By Adam Burroughs
May 21, 2021
Joe Mirabile adds acquisitions to United Safety & Survivability Corp.’s strategy
Joe Mirabile sees acquisitions as accelerators for the growing United Safety & Survivability Corp....
By Adam Burroughs
March 31, 2021
Tami Longaberger on being on the other side of the investing table
Tami Longaberger talks about her time as an operator informs her approach as an investor, what she’s seeing in the secure data ecosystem space, and the future of the Longaberger Co. brand....
By Adam Burroughs
