This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Symphony⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Symphony not only performs technical due diligence engagements for search funds, Private Equity firms, and strategic acquirers, but they also partner with those buyers on an ongoing basis on all things product (outsourced development, team augmentation, new product prototyping, UI refreshes, QA professionalization, and so on). Symphony is offering a full 15% off of any of their services for listeners of In the Trenches. Just go to...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Oberle Risk Strategies⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, the leading insurance brokerage and insurance diligence provider for the search fund community. The company is led by ⁠August Felker⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (himself a 2-time successful searcher), and has been trusted by search investors, lenders, searchers and CEOs for over a decade now. Their due diligence offering (which is 100% free of charge) will assess the pros and cons of your target company’s insurance program, including any...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Oberle Risk Strategies⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, the leading insurance brokerage and insurance diligence provider for the search fund community. The company is led by ⁠⁠⁠⁠August Felker⁠⁠⁠ (himself a 2-time successful searcher), and has been trusted by search investors, lenders, searchers and CEOs for over a decade now. Their due diligence offering (which is 100% free of charge) will assess the pros and cons of your target company’s insurance program, including any...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Symphony⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Symphony not only performs technical due diligence engagements for search funds, Private Equity firms, and strategic acquirers, but they also partner with those buyers on an ongoing basis on all things product (outsourced development, team augmentation, new product prototyping, UI refreshes, QA professionalization, and so on). Symphony is offering a full 15% off of any of their services for listeners of In the Trenches. Just go to...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠Oberle Risk Strategies⁠⁠⁠, the leading insurance brokerage and insurance diligence provider for the search fund community. The company is led by ⁠August Felker (himself a 2-time successful searcher), and has been trusted by search investors, lenders, searchers and CEOs for over a decade now. Their due diligence offering (which is 100% free of charge) will assess the pros and cons of your target company’s insurance program, including any potential coverage...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠Symphony⁠⁠⁠. Symphony not only performs technical due diligence engagements for search funds, Private Equity firms, and strategic acquirers, but they also partner with those buyers on an ongoing basis on all things product (outsourced development, team augmentation, new product prototyping, UI refreshes, QA professionalization, and so on). Symphony is offering a full 15% off of any of their services for listeners of In the Trenches. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠the...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠Symphony⁠⁠. Symphony not only performs technical due diligence engagements for search funds, Private Equity firms, and strategic acquirers, but they also partner with those buyers on an ongoing basis on all things product (outsourced development, team augmentation, new product prototyping, UI refreshes, QA professionalization, and so on). Symphony is offering a full 15% off of any of their services for listeners of In the Trenches. Just go to ⁠⁠the Contact...

This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠Avidbank⁠⁠. Avidbank is one of the most experienced search fund lenders in North America, having funded over 40 separate transactions since 2014, for a total of over $300M. They are deeply familiar with the search fund model, and understand the nuances of the fundraising process, dealing with sellers, communicating with your equity investors, LOI reviews, and everything else in between. Reach out to Anthony Rodriguez ([email protected]) or Conor...

This episode is brought to you by The Profit Line.  The Profit Line is a boutique finance and accounting firm that provides a wide range of accounting services to small and medium businesses generating anywhere between $5M to $50M in revenue. On a fractional, outsourced basis, they do day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, month-end accruals, tax compliance, and financial statement preparation, among countless other things. I was a customer of theirs for 7 consecutive years while...

It's not hard to understand the importance of persistence to the entrepreneurial journey. Entrepreneurs who overcome substantial hardships on their eventual road to success are (rightly) applauded for the otherworldly persistence that they demonstrated in doing so.  Yet many entrepreneurs are able to finally achieve success only after moving on from several prior ventures whose prospects eventually grew to become much less promising. These entrepreneurs are also (rightly) applauded, though...

This episode is brought to you by Avidbank. Avidbank is one of the most experienced search fund lenders in North America, having funded over 40 separate transactions since 2014, for a total of over $300M. They are deeply familiar with the search fund model, and understand the nuances of the fundraising process, dealing with sellers, communicating with your equity investors, LOI reviews, and everything else in between. Reach out to Anthony Rodriguez ([email protected]) or Conor Tidgwell...

This episode is brought to you by The Profit Line.  The Profit Line is a boutique finance and accounting firm that provides a wide range of accounting services to small and medium businesses generating anywhere between $5M to $50M in revenue. On a fractional, outsourced basis, they do day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, month-end accruals, tax compliance, and financial statement preparation, among countless other things. I was a customer of theirs for 7 consecutive years while...

This episode is brought to you by The Profit Line.  The Profit Line is a boutique finance and accounting firm that provides a wide range of accounting services to small and medium businesses generating anywhere between $5M to $50M in revenue. On a fractional, outsourced basis, they do day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, month-end accruals, tax compliance, and financial statement preparation, among countless other things. I was a customer of theirs for 7 consecutive years while...

This episode is brought to you by The Profit Line.  The Profit Line is a boutique finance and accounting firm that provides a wide range of accounting services to small and medium businesses generating anywhere between $5M to $50M in revenue. On a fractional, outsourced basis, they do day-to-day bookkeeping, bank reconciliations, month-end accruals, tax compliance, and financial statement preparation, among countless other things. I was a customer of theirs for 7 consecutive years while...

This episode is brought to you by Warren Coughlin, CEO Coach and founder of JumpStart Coaching. Warren focuses exclusively on coaching CEOs running SMBs, and has been doing so for over 20 years. One of my biggest regrets across my 7 years as a CEO was not hiring a coach, and I want to prevent others from making the same mistake. For listeners of In The Trenches, working with Warren is effectively risk-free: If at the end of the first three months you're not happy with the direction of your...

This episode is brought to you by Warren Coughlin, CEO Coach and founder of JumpStart Coaching. Warren focuses exclusively on coaching CEOs running SMBs, and has been doing so for over 20 years. One of my biggest regrets across my 7 years as a CEO was not hiring a coach, and I want to prevent others from making the same mistake. For listeners of In The Trenches, working with Warren is effectively risk-free: If at the end of the first three months you're not happy with the direction of your...

This episode is brought to you by Warren Coughlin, CEO Coach and founder of JumpStart Coaching. Warren focuses exclusively on coaching CEOs running SMBs, and has been doing so for over 20 years. One of my biggest regrets across my 7 years as a CEO was not hiring a coach, and to the best extent possible, I want to prevent others from making the same mistake. For listeners of In The Trenches, working with Warren is effectively risk-free: If at the end of the first three months you're not happy...

This episode is brought to you by Warren Coughlin, CEO Coach and founder of JumpStart Coaching. Warren focuses exclusively on coaching CEOs running SMBs, and has been doing so for over 20 years. One of my biggest regrets across my 7 years as a CEO was not hiring a coach, and to the best extent possible, I want to prevent others from making the same mistake. For listeners of In The Trenches, working with Warren is effectively risk-free: If at the end of the first three months you're not happy...

This episode is brought to you by Cayne Crossing. Cayne Crossing helps prospective SMB purchasers with all aspects of financial due diligence, including producing the Quality of Earnings report. I have personally read though, analyzed, and relied upon several of their actual QofE reports in my capacity as an SMB investor, and can personally attest to the quality of the work that they do. Unlike any other QofE provider that I’m aware of, Cayne Crossing also co-invests alongside their buyers,...

This episode is brought to you by Cayne Crossing. Cayne Crossing helps prospective SMB purchasers with all aspects of financial due diligence, including producing the Quality of Earnings report. I have personally read though, analyzed, and relied upon several of their actual QofE reports in my capacity as an SMB investor, and can personally attest to the quality of the work that they do. Unlike any other QofE provider that I’m aware of, Cayne Crossing also co-invests alongside their buyers,...

This episode is brought to you by Cayne Crossing. Cayne Crossing helps prospective SMB purchasers with all aspects of financial due diligence, including producing the Quality of Earnings report. I have personally read though, analyzed, and relied upon several of their actual QofE reports in my capacity as an SMB investor, and can personally attest to the quality of the work that they do. Unlike any other QofE provider that I’m aware of, Cayne Crossing also co-invests alongside their buyers,...

This episode is brought to you by Cayne Crossing. Cayne Crossing helps prospective SMB purchasers with all aspects of financial due diligence, including producing the Quality of Earnings report. I have personally read though, analyzed, and relied upon several of their actual QofE reports in my capacity as an SMB investor, and can personally attest to the quality of the work that they do. Unlike any other QofE provider that I’m aware of, Cayne Crossing also co-invests alongside their buyers,...

My guests today are Steve Lau and Rameez Ansari, co-CEOs of AutoLeap, a software company that services auto repair shops, that counts Bain Capital Ventures among its investors. Prior to founding AutoLeap, Steve and Rameez purchased, operated, and sold D'Esco (later renamed FieldEdge), a software company that helps entrepreneurs run their HVAC, Plumbing, and Electrical Contracting businesses. Steve and Rameez purchased the company from its original founder in 2015 at 5X EBITDA, when its...

Unfortunate at this reality may be, I would argue that firing (specifically knowing who, when, and how to fire) is a required core competency for any CEO, and is arguably as important as hiring, communication, capital allocation, and other tools within the CEO’s toolkit. The extent to which this is an unpleasant (and perhaps even unpopular) topic to discuss doesn’t negate its critical importance in building and sustaining a healthy and vibrant company. Some may associate the idea of firing...

Today’s episode is for anybody who ever plans to sell a company. Most entrepreneurs will sell a business once in their entire careers (if they’re lucky), and as a result many understandably don’t have a lot of context or experience in the finer points of exiting, specifically when it comes to how to select an M&A advisor. Most advice that I’ve come across in this domain is frankly too high level to be useful, so today I wanted to get really detailed on how to select an M&A advisor,...