I’m excited to share that today, we hosted our first-ever hybrid Fall M&A Science Fair, which was a smashing success. Thank you to the M&A Science community for showing up today, and ever day, eager to learn & connect. We are so grateful for you! Check out this community blog post to dive into top takeaways and learn how you can get involved in the M&A Science Community for future events.
The day kicked off with Kison Patel, CEO & Founder of DealRoom and M&A Science, playing his role as Chief Scientist. But he wasn’t alone! Kison was joined by his daughter and junior scientist, Shyla. Outfitted in labcoats, they set the tone for the day: the Fall M&A Science Fair would be an event unlike other stuffy M&A conferences. Focused on community, transparency, and networking, the Fair successfully connected hundreds of M&A professionals across geographies and roles.
Last year, we only offered an in-person component, but this year, we challenged ourselves to bring the learning and networking to more people and added a virtual attendance option. And WOW, our community showed up.
Our in-person session, hosted at our sponsor Sullivan Cromwell’s stunning Manhattan office, was completely sold out. Our virtual component had 700+ registrants, with attendees tuning in from all over the world, from Ghana to Turkey to California - and everywhere in between.
When reflecting back on the day, I realized there were four major takeaways that stuck with me.
Top Four Takeaways
- The era of Buyer-Led M&A is here: this theme was woven throughout the entire day’s sessions and networking breaks. More and more buyers are eager to take back control of their deals to maximize efficiency, speed, and outcomes.
- Synchronization of diligence & integration is key for success: gone are the days when diligence and integration teams can live on separate planets, using disparate tools and processes. To drive deal efficiency and thesis realization, these two teams must be on the same page.
- Cultural alignment is king: In the post-COVID world, cultural alignment when evaluating potential deals and creating integration plans is more important than ever. Without this step in any deal lifecycle, buyers and sellers can not feel confident in success rates.
- The importance of community: Whether joining us in NYC or virtually, it was clear to me that M&A practitioners are hungry for more community. Whether that be small roundtables and happy hours or large conferences. The best way to stay connected with the M&A Science community is by subscribing to our newsletter.
Now, let’s dive into our sessions and share some key learnings…
From Silos to Synergy: Best Practices for Uniting Diligence & Integration
Kison kicked off the keynote with guest speakers Matt Arsenault, VP of Corporate Development, and Camillo Franco, Director, M&A Integrations and Operations at Jamf. The session mixed humor and war stories with tangible best practices for diligence and integration synchronization.
One topic that stood out to me was a question raised by the audience. This community member asked for best practices when evaluating the intangible factors in a deal. The Jamf team called out two practices:
- Make space for casual networking: this means low-key dinners and drinks without high-stakes goals. These types of spaces allow for free conversation on each companies and individual values. While COVID took this away from us for a few years, the Jamf team encouraged M&A teams to embrace in-person connection again.
- Allow for the art of deal-making: as an M&A professional, you must build your preferences and instincts regarding the diligence process. For newer entrants to the space, this will come over time. If something feels off, it probably is, and it’s worth your time to dig deeper to investigate if there truly are crucial deal risks.
The M&A Change Challenge: Mastering Cross-Functional Technology Implementations
In this session, DealRoom Director of Customer Success Julia Rollins, hosted Nicole Markowski, Manager of Corporate Development at Wifpli. Nicole covered a common topic we hear about - change management in M&A. She covered everything from new process management to new technology adoption. She shared transparently what most of us know from both our personal and professional lives - change is hard! When asked how to handle resistance to change, Nicole spoke about the importance of transparency and flexibility. Specifically, she follows three main best practices:
- Conducting one-on-one conversations with individuals to address specific concerns.
- Being transparent about limitations and future improvements so there are no surprises.
- Empower your team with project management skills so that they can help support adoption in a productive manner.
As a DealRoom customer, Nicole could share how she handled resistance to a new software platform. Her tried and true steps include:
- Build strong relationships to make hard conversions easier
- Be ready and open for hard feedback. Do everything you can not to shut down.
- Listen to and process each individual’s feedback and blockers to adoption.
- Create individual plans to overcome key stakeholders' blockers.
- Give it time and continue those hard conversations.
3 Tips For Efficiently Scaling M&A in Roll-Up Businesses
In our third session, Matt James, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Acquisition Officer at Oakbridge Insurance, joined Kison to discuss scaling M&A in roll-up businesses.
From his intro alone, we could tell Matt was a roll-up expert. Over his career, he has done 75+ middle market transactions with 3M average deal size and 75% of deal flow being proprietary. When asked what challenges he generally faces, Matt didn’t shy away from the reality that roll-up M&A is hard! He noted the challenge of unsophisticated sellers who need heavy hand-holding to understand both the M&A process and new technology, like the DealRoom M&A Platform.
A few interesting Q&As from Matt’s session:
Q: What is the Seller Playbook?
A: Matt shared a unique best practice with our audience: the creation and use of a Seller Playbook. This is a document shared with potential sellers that provides an overview of Oakbridge, their M&A process, and what a seller can expect. He thinks of this as a way to build trust with the seller and fast-track their M&A education. In turn, this leads to more efficient deal lifecycles and more aligned buyer and seller teams.
Q: How do you determine the seller's cultural fit?
A: They follow a few steps:
- Compared to their competition, Matt shared that they spend more time on the front-end process of meeting sellers.
- Go on the road and meet seller teams in person.
- Take a close look at who they bring into the deal conversations, how they talk about equity, what their values are, etc. These topics provide a sneak peek into their culture.
- The bottom line: there isn’t a “fit score”. It’s really more of a feeling or vibe that you can understand after spending time with sellers in person.
Mastering M&A Deal Terms: Insights and Strategies for Success for M&A by Repeat Players
Lastly, we wrapped up the day with Scott Crofton, partner at Sullivan & Cromwell, walking the audience through the latest in deal terms.
Community is More Than a Day
To close out the day, Kison shared some final remarks, including the date for our next M&A Science Fair on February 20th. Add it to your calendars now! We can’t wait to bring the M&A Science community together again to share war stories, best practices, challenges, and learnings.
While virtual attendees finished out their day at this point, our in-person attendees were just gearing up for an exciting afternoon and evening of roundtables, a Dealmaker's Happy Hour, and a variety of different dinners.
We are so thankful to all of you who took time out of your busy schedules to join us both in person and virtually. We know that M&A professionals never stop making deals, but we appreciate your commitment to tune in for a few hours. We hope you found the Fall M&A Science Fair valuable we look forward to connecting with you at our next event or via Linkedin!
