In the world of business, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are not just transactions but strategic decisions that can redefine the future of the companies involved. Welcome to Part 1 of our series devoted to the importance of process through the complexities and nuances of M&A.
While the economic terms and transaction structure are crucial, the process followed to get to the closing is often misunderstood or overlooked. This series aims to offer a deeper understanding of the M&A process in middle-market and small-market deals and its impact on both buyers and sellers. A well-planned and executed M&A process contributes to a smooth and efficient transaction, maximizes value for sellers, and ensures a seamless transition and future growth. Conversely, a poorly executed process can lead to misaligned expectations, value deterioration, and operational inefficiencies.
Join us as we explore each stage of the M&A process, from assembling a deal team to post-closing deliverables. Stay tuned as we roll out the rest of our series in the coming weeks.
- Part 1 – The Importance of Process: Crafting Success in M&A Transactions
- Part 2 – The Art of NDAs, Initial Discussions, and LOIs
- Part 3 – Charting the Course: Exploring the Landscape of Due Diligence
- Part 4 – Bringing it Home: Negotiating the Deal Documents
- Part 5 – The Last Lap: Strategies for a Smooth M&A Closing Process
- Part 6 – After the Ink Dries: Understanding Post-Closing Deliverables
Part 1: The Importance of Process: Crafting Success in M&A Transactions
In the world of business, mergers and acquisitions are not just transactions but strategic decisions that can redefine the future of the companies involved. The most important elements of a deal are the economic terms and transaction structure; however, an often misunderstood or ignored aspect of a strategic transaction is the process the parties follow to get to the closing. This post is the introduction to a series that will seek to offer a deeper understanding of the importance of the M&A process in middle-market and small-market deals and its impact on both buyers and sellers.
A well-planned and executed M&A process is a contributing factor to a smooth and efficient transaction, maximum value to the sellers, seamless transition, synergy realization, and future growth. On the other hand, a poorly executed M&A process can lead to a rocky transaction, misaligned expectations, value deterioration, cultural mismatch, and operational inefficiencies.
The process of buying or selling a business begins before a seller takes their company to market or a buyer identifies a potential acquisition target. Once a decision to pursue a strategic transaction is made, the first step for both buyers and sellers is to assemble a deal team. The sell-side team typically includes an investment banker or business broker, legal counsel, and tax advisors. The buyer’s team tends to be larger and is composed of legal counsel (both M&A counsel and specialists), financial and tax advisors, subject matter experts for areas like HR and insurance, and industry experts. Each member of these teams brings their expertise, providing insights into legal matters, financial valuation, operational issues, and industry trends, thus ensuring a holistic approach to decision-making.
For sellers, the next step in this initial stage involves conducting preemptive due diligence, which should ideally cover both financial and legal aspects. The investment banker digs into the company’s financials and operations, as part of its preparation of marketing materials, commonly referred to as a confidential information memorandum (CIM) or pitch deck. If deal counsel is engaged at this stage, they begin their own due diligence process, working with the other members of the deal team. This proactive approach involves a thorough review of the company’s operations, ownership structure, legal issues, regulatory matters, employment practices, and any other matters that are unique to the company and/or its business. This process helps to identify potential issues that might affect the valuation or the transaction itself and hopefully gives the seller’s team the opportunity to address material issues before they become deal-breakers.
For buyers, the initial stage focuses on identifying potential acquisition targets. This process involves detailed market research, competitor analysis, and evaluation of strategic fit. The aim is to identify businesses that align with the buyer’s strategic objectives, offer potential for growth, and add value to the existing operations.
We hope this will give the reader insight into a process that can seem difficult to understand for those that haven’t had the experience of numerous strategic transactions. Legal counsel that is highly experienced with M&A transactions provides a tremendous amount of value, including mitigating risk and contributing to an efficient process that helps ensure the transaction closes quickly.
Next up, we’ll walk through the initial discussions between buyer and seller.
About The Author: Vaughn Marshall
For more than 10 years, Vaughn Marshall has served businesses, founders, and investors by providing strategic solutions and a comprehensive approach to their corporate legal needs. Drawing upon a diverse background, including both a J.D. and an M.B.A., he helps clients navigate complex issues with practical solutions while keeping sight of the big picture. He brings this unique perspective to all of his practice areas, including corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, securities, , and general transactional matters. Vaughn joined Doida Crow Legal in 2016 and was named Partner in 2022. He is committed to problem-solving instead of merely identifying roadblocks in order to cultivate an exceptional client experience. He has experience representing clients in a wide variety of industries, including telecom, construction services, manufacturing, legal cannabis industry, IoT, SaaS, and hospitality. Prior to joining the firm, Vaughn was in house counsel at an established private equity firm in the Denver metro area where he worked closely with the firm’s management and portfolio companies on a wide range of transactions both across the country and internationally.
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