Introduction The landscape of M&A is undergoing significant changes, driven by evolving market dynamics and technological advancements. The traditional approach of large, one-off deals is giving way to smaller, more frequent programmatic ones that involve more flexibility and agility. Similarly, the reliance on advisory-led deals is decreasing, with more companies opting for own-sourced deals that … Read more
Introduction This article showcases how ChatGPT can serve as an effective M&A consultant by demonstrating how it can be used to help develop a best practices-based M&A playbook. An M&A playbook is a comprehensive framework that guides an organization’s M&A activities from start to finish. Developing an M&A playbook is typically a challenging and time-consuming … Read more
In March 2023, the Transaction Advisors Institute (TAI) held their annual San Francisco conference for corporate development and M&A. We were excited to partner with TAI as a sponsor this year to share ideas with attendees on how to elevate dealmaking using modern SaaS technologies for managing their M&A processes. The conference boasted a comprehensive program … Read more
The introduction of ChatGPT and GPT-4 marks a significant transformation in the way all types of ‘knowledge work’, including M&A and corporate development, will be carried out. As someone who has been thinking about how to develop specialized software for M&A every day for the last 10 years, I have never been more excited about … Read more
Optimizing your M&A pipeline process to source the best targets can be a daunting task, especially if you lack the latest tools and strategies. We’re excited to shed some light on the topic in our upcoming webinar: “How to Build a Winning M&A Pipeline,” featuring Charles Cautley (CPO) and Vilius Audinis, PhD (Head of Product … Read more
Intro: When it comes to confidential data transfers for M&A and other types of corporate dealmaking, virtual data rooms (VDRs) have become an invaluable tool for corporations, investors and other entities that need to securely share large amounts of information. The two major types of deal rooms have different use cases. Buy-side VDRs and sell-side … Read more
Intro: The focus on outcomes in M&A and corporate dealmaking highlights the importance of a robust deal thesis, also known as an investment thesis. As the saying goes: to maximize potential, “begin with the end in mind.” So, how does one develop an effective deal thesis? There are two common approaches: a deal-specific approach and … Read more
Introduction: Playbooks, virtual data rooms, and project management platforms all address the never ending quest to ease the overwhelming and disjointed nature of due diligence. Undoubtedly, advancements in technology have allowed for the largest improvements. More specifically, platforms designed for M&A deal management eliminate siloed teams and disjointed communications that have long plagued deal flow. Moreover, leveraging … Read more
Introduction: Streamlining and assessing your pipeline management is non-negotiable if you are a serial acquirer or serious about leveraging M&A for growth or value creation. The data you can capture from your pipeline is critical to extracting value from the deal. In addition, it provides an opportunity for the M&A team to learn and continue … Read more
Portions of this post were originally published in 2019 and have been updated to include more in-depth and up-to-date information. The most successful acquirers in M&A take a proactive, systematic, and repeatable approach to screening targets and originating deals. They actively manage an M&A pipeline of suitable acquisition targets rather than making knee-jerk reactions to deals. They … Read more