The Merits, Risks, and Possible Unintended Consequences of Earn-Outs

Listen to this Blog Post When acquiring small to medium sized businesses, buyers often utilize a tool called an “earn-out”, which is a form of contingent consideration that sellers may receive at some point in the future in addition to the cash that they stand to receive at closing. Though earn-outs can be useful andContinue reading “The Merits, Risks, and Possible Unintended Consequences of Earn-Outs”

Brent Beshore: The “Forrest Gump of Private Equity”

My Guest My guest today is Brent Beshore, Founder and CEO of Permanent Equity, a private investment firm that invests in Founder-owned private companies. Permanent Equity is a long-term investor that typically intends to hold portfolio companies indefinitely, often without the use of any leverage. In addition to his role as an investor, Brent isContinue reading “Brent Beshore: The “Forrest Gump of Private Equity””

Sell-Side M&A Advisors: How to Choose One, How Much They Cost, and The Importance of the “Fine Print”

My Guest John Carvalho is the President of Stone Oak Capital, an M&A advisory firm that focuses exclusively on middle market businesses, with a specific focus on transactions between $10 and $100 million. Among other things, Stone Oak offers acquisition, divestitures, corporate finance and valuations services for its clients. John is also the Founder ofContinue reading “Sell-Side M&A Advisors: How to Choose One, How Much They Cost, and The Importance of the “Fine Print””

Strategic Considerations When Evaluating a Letter of Intent to Sell Your Business

Listen to This Blog Post For many business owners (particularly those actively looking to sell their companies), few things are as exciting as receiving a Letter of Intent (“LOI”) from a prospective purchaser. Beyond the sense of personal validation stemming from the fact that a sophisticated counterparty sees an asset worth paying for, many businessContinue reading “Strategic Considerations When Evaluating a Letter of Intent to Sell Your Business”

Having Hard Conversations (Live Panel Discussion from 2022 MIT Sloan Search Fund Summit)

In this week’s episode, we discuss the importance of having difficult conversations, something that CEOs find themselves doing on a near-daily basis. We discuss three primary types of difficult conversations, including: Hard conversations around internal company dynamics (eg: terminations); Hard conversations about dynamics external to the company (eg: politics and global affairs); Difficult conversations thatContinue reading “Having Hard Conversations (Live Panel Discussion from 2022 MIT Sloan Search Fund Summit)”

Quality of Earnings Analysis: What You Need to Know Before Buying a Business

My Guest My guest today is Chris Hutchinson, a Partner in Ernst & Young’s Transaction Advisory Services Group. Chris has over 15 years of experience advising clients on M&A, financings, valuation projects, and due diligence mandates, with a specific focus on private lower-middle-market businesses. Chris and his team have completed an untold number of QualityContinue reading “Quality of Earnings Analysis: What You Need to Know Before Buying a Business”

The Working Capital Adjustment

Listen to This Blog Post In a previous blog post, Busting the Biggest Myth About Selling Your Business, we reviewed a number of fundamental facts related to the sale of any company that warrant being repeated here: The single biggest myth about selling a company is that the seller bears no further risk after theContinue reading “The Working Capital Adjustment”

What M&A Lawyers Want CEOs to Know About Selling Their Companies

My Guest Mario Nigro is one of Canada’s preeminent M&A lawyers, and currently serves as a Partner in the Mergers & Acquisitions and Private Equity & Venture Capital Groups at Stikeman Elliot based out of Toronto. His practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, financings, complex corporate reorganizations, and general business law. Mario has extensive experienceContinue reading “What M&A Lawyers Want CEOs to Know About Selling Their Companies”

Busting the Biggest Myth About Selling Your Business

Listen to This Blog Post The entrepreneurial journey is full of innumerable risks: Your largest customers can leave at any time, and for any reason. The market may change faster than your company’s ability to adapt. Your largest supplier may decide to cut you out of the value chain and simply build your product themselves.Continue reading “Busting the Biggest Myth About Selling Your Business”