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April 3, 2025
Economic Development in Massachusetts and the Greater Boston Region
Kicking off this year’s Boston Smart Business Dealmakers Conference, Steven Kelly, CEO of Timberline Construction, and Janak Joshi, Chief Digital Officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, explore the dynamic landscape of economic development in Boston and the state....
By Dealmakers Staff
March 27, 2025
Navigating Global Trends and Local Impacts in Missouri
Dustin Allison of Greater St. Louis Inc., Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge of the St. Louis Lambert International Airport, and John Manetta of Bank of America, in a panel moderated by Bank of America’s Marilyn Bush, analyze the economic indicators, infrastructure developments and investment strategies shaping St. Louis' future. ...
By Dealmakers Staff
March 17, 2025
Driving Company Value
Panelists John Lewis and Christopher Brodman of Metz Lewis Brodman Must O’Keefe, Rob Carskadden of 3 Rivers Capital, George Pilafas of Continuim Equity Partners and Patrick Patterson of Level Agency pull back the curtain on what drives growth in today’s deal-driven market....
By Dealmakers Staff
February 6, 2025
University of Michigan’s Warde Manuel on The Business of Athletics
In this episode of the Smart Business Dealmakers Podcast, Warde Manuel, University of Michigan’s Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics, talks about hiring top talent, maintaining culture, funding in the age of NIL, and how much running an athletic department is like running a business....
By Adam Burroughs
February 6, 2025
Positivity reigns as dealmakers expect a bullish M&A market despite continued macroeconomic challenges
Dealmakers offer their perspective on the M&A environment and how they see the deal year wrapping up....
By Adam Burroughs
January 16, 2025
Artificial Intelligence and its Impact on M&A
MelCap Partners Analyst Christopher Sfeir talks about how AI empowers firms to navigate the complexities of M&A more effectively, enabling transaction advisers to save time and focus on optimizing deal outcomes....
By Christopher Sfeir
December 13, 2024
Leveraging Social Media in Venture Capital
Carrie Colbert of Curate Capital, Aquila Mendez-Valdez of Haute in Texas and Darek Woodward of ROI Ventures talked with Smart Business’s Dustin Klein about how to craft a captivating online brand that attracts investors, builds a thriving community of future deal flow, and uses influencers to skyrocket the value of your investments. ...
By Adam Burroughs
December 13, 2024
Settling Into the New Deal Paradigm
Murphy Clark of Inspira Financial, Patty Comer of AccruePartners and Greg Fornelli of SRI and Stock Car Steel & Aluminum talk with First National Bank’s David Sedor about the drivers behind valuations, assessing and retaining talent during an acquisition, how interest rates are impacting M&A, and more....
By Adam Burroughs
December 13, 2024
The pivotal role played by representations and warranties insurance
MelCap Partners Vice President Domenick Cristino on the role Reps & Warranties insurance may have in M&A in the coming year and this month’s stand-out deal....
By Domenick Cristino
December 5, 2024
How NIL Is Reshaping The Business Of College Sports
Panelists Blake Baratz of IFA, Katie Harms of Space Options, Cale Johnston of Roy Inc. and Gabriel Szerda of AB CarVal discuss the business future of college sports with moderator Steve Kozachok of Taft, offering insights into the trends and complexities driving this dynamic market. ...
By Adam Burroughs
November 21, 2024
Colorado's Rise As A BioTech And HealthTech Powerhouse
Elyse Blazevich, Kimberly Muller, Afshin Safavi and Blake Unterreiner on the forces propelling Colorado to the forefront of the biotech, life sciences, and healthtech industries and what’s expected in the coming years....
By Dealmakers Staff
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. ...
By Dealmakers Staff
November 7, 2024
Redefining Value In M&A
Tiugo Technologies’ Mark Hatton on how the concept of value in M&A has changed in recent years....
By Adam Burroughs
November 7, 2024
M&A and Non-Competes: Now What?
Royer Cooper Cohen Braunfeld partners Matt Brinker and Alex Nassar break down the trends and offer advice on how M&A professionals can prepare and structure deals in the current environment. ...
By Adam Burroughs
October 31, 2024
The Rise Of Earn Outs
Gordon Rees LP’s Craig Heryford on how earn outs are being used in the market and why owners should use caution when negotiating them....
By Adam Burroughs
October 24, 2024
Settling Into the Current Deal Paradigm
Debbie Ricci of Guidehouse, Don Bassell formerly of ARKO Corp, Alex Shahidi of Riveron and Chris O’Geen of Wells Fargo, on a panel moderated by Riveron’s Robert Berdanier, explore today’s market conditions and what it all means for executives looking to get deals done. ...
By Adam Burroughs
October 17, 2024
Preparing For The Unexpected
Brady Ware & Company Advisory Group Practice Leader Jon DeMoss and Shareholder Eric Carter offer their take on the current market and how dealmakers can capitalize on opportunities despite the obstacles....
By Adam Burroughs
October 17, 2024
Doubling Down on Columbus
Dr. Linda Lehmkuhl of MedVet, Aaron Weir of CollisionRight, Kim Zavislak of KPMG, Katie Bishop of J.P. Morgan Private Bank and moderator Leslie Johnson of Ice Miller discuss the opportunities they see in Central Ohio and how they are attacking the challenges of expanding in a city on the rise....
By SBN Staff
October 10, 2024
State of M&A in the Middle Market
Bank of America’s Jim Dever and Fritz Franz, Archetype Solutions Chetan Bagga, PeopleShare’s Ryan Clark and SeventySix Capital’s Chad Stender share their experiences operating in this market and discuss what it takes to get M&A deals done in today’s environment. ...
By SBN Staff
September 19, 2024
Facing Financial Ups And Downs
Chartwell Financial Advisory’s Will Bloom on how financial conditions have affected M&A....
By Adam Burroughs
September 12, 2024
Cleveland Deal Activity: Upcoming Rate Cuts Could Spark Q4 M&A Activity
MelCap Partners’ Luke Hippler elaborates on potential interest rate cuts, and highlights notable recent transactions....
By Luke Hippler
August 8, 2024
Pittsburgh Deal Activity: Enhance business value before selling with a Tax Diagnostic Review
MelCap Partners' Tom Freeman explores tax diagnostic reviews and how they can provide significant value to sellers as they seek to exit their businesses. ...
By Tom Freeman
August 1, 2024
For PE, People Increasingly Make The Deal
BluWave's Sean Mooney on how PE's perception of people in a deal has changed over decades. ...
By Adam Burroughs
July 25, 2024
Columbus Deal Activity: The Unpredictable Yet Significant Variable Of Deal Fatigue
MelCap Partners' Mike Kostandaras talks about the phenomenon, highlights deal numbers for the market and spotlights notable Columbus deals. ...
By Mike Kostandaras
July 18, 2024
Longer Buy/Sell Timelines Are Introducing Novel Challenges
Lead Capital Partners’ Pryor Smartt on how higher interest rates have affected seller, buyer timelines....
By Adam Burroughs
June 20, 2024
Driving Growth: Northeast Ohio's Destination Potential
In this roundtable discussion led by First National Bank's Boyd Pethel, David Gilbert from the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and Destination Cleveland, Greg Harris from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Brian Zimmerman from the Cleveland Metroparks highlight how their collaborative efforts drive economic growth and position the region as a must-visit destination....
By SBN Staff
June 14, 2024
How Capital Realities Are Shaping M&A Outlook
Bank of America's José Tavarez leads a conversation with Revel's Frank Reig, ChargeLab's Shaun Stewart and Bank of America's Shawn Hoyer on what dealmakers can expect for the remainder of 2024 and beyond....
By Adam Burroughs
May 22, 2024
Columbus Deal Activity: Navigating M&A turbulence amid economic and political uncertainty
MelCap Partners' Andrew J. Chalhoub talks about M&A trends, and highlights notable local deals, in this month's Columbus Deal Activity....
By Andrew J. Chalhoub
May 16, 2024
Essential Leadership Traits For Uncertain Times
Brightstar Capital Partners Tom Meredith on how today's market conditions impact business leaders....
By Adam Burroughs
May 16, 2024
How The Market Is Affecting Deal Processes, Outlook
Lance Bonner on how changes in the market are affecting the company's approach to M&A. ...
By Adam Burroughs
May 9, 2024
Economic Realities Change Buying Criteria, Seller Outlook
Louis Plung & Co. Partner Tony Montanaro on the conditions in today's market and how they're impacting both buyers and sellers. ...
By Adam Burroughs
May 9, 2024
Sellers Have Opportunities, If They Prepare
Bank of America's Brendan Hanley on what sellers can expect in today's M&A market....
By Adam Burroughs
May 2, 2024
Labor Trends And Their Impact On Business
Mac Tisdale, Ahmed El Nokali, Philip Tulkoff, Richard McGee, Jr. on how changes in the labor market are affecting business....
By Adam Burroughs
April 10, 2024
Pitsburgh Deal Activity: Increased scrutiny on forecasts in a volatile market
While the primary impetus for this change in buyer perspective stems largely from the pandemic and other macroeconomic factors like interest rate increases and complex geopolitical conditions, we expect that this aspect of buyer assessment will become a regular step in the deal process for the foreseeable future....
By Daniel Bowman
April 4, 2024
Cleveland Deal Activity: Resurfacing of financial sponsors as both buyers, sellers
Because of the record levels of uninvested capital from record levels of fundraising by private equity groups over the past three years, financial sponsors are expected to be more aggressive and active on the buy side in 2024. ...
By Anthony Melchiorre
March 27, 2024
Former FBI Agent On The Alarming Evolution Of Cyberthreats
Cyber Defense CEO Labs Robert Anderson, Jr. on the state of cyberthreats today and how they've evolved in recent years...
By Adam Burroughs
March 27, 2024
Columbus Deal Activity: Resurfacing of financial sponsors as both buyers, sellers
Because of the record levels of uninvested capital from record levels of fundraising by private equity groups over the past three years, financial sponsors are expected to be more aggressive and active on the buy side in 2024....
By Anthony Melchiorre
March 21, 2024
The Importance Of Driving Local Investment In St. Louis
BioSTL Founding President and CEO Donn Rubin, along with USAKO Group President and CEO Dr. Han Ko and Capacity Chief Strategy Officer Douglas Wilber shared their perspective on what it takes to build a company in the region. ...
By Adam Burroughs
March 7, 2024
It's Complicated: Earnouts And Their Impact On A Deal
The full Pittsburgh Smart Business Dealmakers Conference Kickoff panel offer their takes on the earnout's role in a deal — for better and worse. ...
By Adam Burroughs
March 7, 2024
AI Trends for the Progressive CEO: Navigating the Transformative Landscape
Chief Outsiders' Ed Valdez and Angus Robertson rank the eight most important factors in the AI scene to pay attention to right now....
By Ed Valdez and Angus Robertson
December 15, 2023
Cleveland Deal Activity: Cultural Fit Matters
One of the most critical aspects of a successful transaction is cultural fit. There are several reasons it matters. Here are a few that can determine success or failure....
By Al Melchiorre
November 17, 2023
The Fourth Quarter Comeback
Sports enthusiasts can attest that there are few scenarios more thrilling than a fourth quarter comeback. And no NFL quarterback has led more fourth quarter comebacks than future Hall of Famer Tom...
By David Shibley
November 16, 2023
The Impact of Human Capital on M&A Deals
Caliber Midstream Company's Joseph Mills and Cooper Machinery Services' John O'Brien on the power of people in dealmaking....
By Adam Burroughs
November 10, 2023
Deal Activity: The 4th Quarter Comeback
A brief look at history would indicate that total U.S. deal volume and Tom Brady have something in common: completing a 4th quarter comeback....
By David Shibley
November 10, 2023
Mayor, Business Leaders On The Evolution Of Downtown Minneapolis
Minneapolis city and business leaders discuss downtown revitalization and the role that the business community leaders play in making a dynamic and vibrant downtown a reality....
By Adam Burroughs
August 18, 2023
An Uncertain Economy Brings The Focus Inward
The uncertainty of the current state of the economy has driven Jim Banovich, CEO of Marsh Electronics to invest into the company and start getting it in position for the next generation and the next...
By Adam Burroughs
July 28, 2023
Slowed inflation to temper rising cost of capital ... hopefully
Sharply increasing inflation rates over the past two and a half years in the U.S. are a result of several contributing factors, but none more than the relationship between the prices for goods and...
By Anthony Melchiorre
June 2, 2023
Estate Tax Planning Considerations for Contemplated M&A Transactions
The landscape of estate tax planning is set to undergo a significant change in the coming years, as the estate tax exemption is set to revert to pre-2018 levels at the end of 2025. This means that...
By Tom Freeman & Evan Lyons
May 26, 2023
Stifel Financial Corp.'s Greg Urban On The Mixed M&A Market and Its Culprits
Confidence in the macro environment is a significant driver of M&A activity in this uneven market, says Stifel Financial Corp Managing Director Greg Urban. "The availability of equity capital —...
By Adam Burroughs
May 5, 2023
Baltimore Business Leaders See An Economy of Both Ups And Downs
Mahogany Inc.'s Jeff Hargrave, Acme Paper & Supply Co.'s Andy Attman, MacKenzie, Commercial Real Estate Services' Owen Rouse, Jr., and FNB Corp.'s Mac Tisdale share anecdotes from their experiences on the front lines and observations of trends during this choppy economy....
By Adam Burroughs
