David Braun
Author's posts
Quarterbacking the Acquisition Team
With football season starting, I am reminded of the indispensable role of the quarterback. In the same way that a quarterback can lead a football team to victory, your Acquisition Coordinator should lead the Acquisition Team to a successful acquisition. The Acquisition Coordinator’s job is to manage the process and drive it forward. This key …
How to Get a “Fat Cat” to Buy Your Small Business
How do you get a large company to buy your small business? In this video interview with Matthew Lesko, I’ve shared some of my tips & tricks. In many ways, selling a company is like selling a house. My number one recommendation is to make your company easy to buy. How can you do that? …
How to find the Perfect Acquisition Target
Acquiring the right company is the key to acquisition success. Your target should fit into your company’s overall strategic vision and add value to your business. To determine what this company looks like and to find it, develop prospect criteria. Keeping in mind your business strategy, sit down with your acquisition team and write your …
In an Acquisition Process, the Buck Stops With You
As you go through the M&A process, you may find that advisors are both necessary and helpful to assist you. However, you must maintain your leadership role. I find that particularly toward the end of the acquisition process, executives imagine that they should hand the reins to a more “experienced” professional. This would be unwise. …
What Apple’s Slower Growth Means for You
Apple’s growth has slowed significantly. USA Today reports that its gross margin dropped for the fifth straight quarter to 36.8% of sales and that iPad sales are down by 16%. Apple CEO Tim Cook has recognized Apple is in a mature, slow-growth market. If a company that grew steadily through the recession and whose stock …
Healthcare M&A Can Only Grow
Two major hospital acquisitions announced this summer will result in huge hospital networks and likely create pressure for other hospital deals. Tenet will buy Vanguard Health for $1.73 billion and Community Health will buy HMA for $3.6 billion. Combined with Vanguard Health, Tenet will become No. 1 or 2 in 19 key markets, including San …
Publicis-Omnicom Merger May Face Cultural Integration Challenges
The merger between two advertising giants Publicis Groupe and Omnicom Group has caused quite a stir. The two companies combined to form Publicis Omnicom Group would have stock-market value of $35.1 billion, making this the largest advertising merger ever. Although Chief Executive Maurice Levy and CEO John Wren both stress this is a “merger of …
Growth Through Divestment: DuPont May Sell Chemical Business
“Growth” is not what typically comes to mind when we hear a company is selling a part of its business. Our natural intuition is to think growth is simply about getting bigger. But growth is about more than expanding – it’s about recalibration. Economies and markets continually change and, at times, contraction may be the …
To Shop or Not to Shop?
I typically advise my clients to have a binding no-shop in the Letter of Intent. This will ensure that the seller cannot try to find a better deal somewhere else, once the LOI is signed. Sellers may insist on including a go-shop clause, which provides a certain period of time (usually around 50 days) to …
Due Diligence: More than Just a Checklist
What comes to mind when you think of “due diligence”? Most people picture an army of lawyers and accountants who pore through financials and company records after the letter of intent is signed. Once they uncover the significant risks, the deal is renegotiated based on their findings. But due diligence is more than just a …
