Dick Simon, a serial entrepreneur and leader in advancing psychedelic-assisted therapies, is the co-founder and CEO of Sensorium Therapeutics. The company identifies new, promising drug leads for therapeutics inspired by psychoactive plants and fungi to address mental health issues such as anxiety. Dick talks about the business, how it's grown, and its recent fundraising, which brought a $30 million Series A into the business in 2022.
After JD Harris joined Ascent Solutions in 2014, he bought out the previous owners and turned the company from a hosting company — which was 95 percent of its business — into one that provides cybersecurity advisory, consulting, education and managed services. In 2021, he sold a minority investment in the company to RunTide Capital to accelerate the already exponential growth the company experienced since he first got involved. JD talks about that first big pivot, the company's growth and the pr...
Hirewell, a recruiting company founded by Matt Massucci in 2001, recently raised $21 million from Pry-tek Holdings, a copany with global reach. Already, Matt has teamed with Pry-Tek on an investment in the London-based executive search firm TritonExec, a company that's expected to compliment the capabilities that Hirewell brings to the organization. Matt talks about the deal, the diligence and what it all means for his and the company's future.
Tranice Watts co-founded Lifting Lucy when she was in her early twenties, working in an industry not known for much diversity. The idea came to Watts — the first Black woman to co-own and operate a craft brewery in the state of Maryland — when she was on a subcommittee of the Craft Brewers Conference. Lifting Lucy has since grown into a national organization that supports under-represented communities within the brewing industry by helping finance opportunities for exposure and inclusion.
Silas Deane founded VendEngine, a financial tech software solution for inmates and their families, when he realized there were serious issues with correctional facilities in regard to money transfers. He discusses the founding of the company, how COVID-19 played a critical role in the firm's path, and how he ended up selling the business to Tyler Technologies.
Selling a closely held business is a unique and taxing challenge. When an owner's eyes are focused too intensely on how much they'll get and how to keep it away from the IRS, there's a lot they can miss. Jon Eesley, who has been a part of many M&A transactions both as an accountant and as a financial adviser, talks about the personal toll a process can take, how to emotionally prepare for an event, and where to get objective advice.
Guy Friedman is Co-Founder, President and CEO of SteadyMD, a B2B telehealth infrastructure provider that enables telehealth patient experiences in all 50 states. He spoke on the Dealmakers Podcast about how he built SteadyMD as a direct-to-consumer offering, but quickly realized it’s value to other businesses.
Years back, Sanjay Singh lead a company through a challenging integration after acquiring an industry competitor. Those first 100 days were critical to the deal’s success. Sanjay, now Chairman and CEO of Mace Security International, talks about the deal, and how he walked the companies through the post-deal work, in what could be called a tense environment, to move the needle, and how his integration process has evolved since.
IRA record keeping and technology solutions provider IRALOGIX raised an $11 million expansion of its Series B in 2021 and $22 million Series C funding in 2022. In this episode, Founding Partner Joe Hipsky talks about those raises and some things he might do differently looking back.
Halo Investing’s vision and execution has propelled it to one of the top FinTechs in the U.S. That success also allowed it to easily raise capital to further its long-term goal of making structured notes accessible for just one dollar. Jason Barsema, co-founder and president, joined the Dealmakers Podcast to talk about how they built the company to where it is today and what we can expect in the future.
Andrew Ashur's Lucid Drone Technologies is a robotics company that's outfitting flying drones to soft-wash buildings. After bootstrapping to get to proof of concept, the design caught the eye of Y Combinator, leading not only to a significant capital raise but also an informative stint with the influential accelerator. Andrew talks about how his company and his fundraising tactics have evolved, and traces the growth of the business since its launch in 2018.
Citizens Financial Group has released its 2023 M&A Outlook, its annual survey of 400 leaders at U.S. middle-market companies and private equity firms. David Dunstan, managing director in the Citizen's M&A Group, talks about the results — that despite some caution because of macroeconomic uncertainty, pre-pandemic norms are the expectation in the 2023 M&A environment — and what that could mean for both sellers and buyers.
Dr. Patrick Hines is CEO and Founder of Functional Fluidics, a company that has developed a testing platform that can assess the health of red blood cells. The company recently raised a $3.1 million bridge round and, at the time of this interview, was in the process of working to secure a Series A that would help it expand its reach into the market. Dr. Hines shares the story of his mission to develop the diagnostic tools to help people with serious health conditions resulting from abnormal red ...
Thomas Goodmanson has been with Calabrio essentially from the start. From its spinout the maker of customer support software has been acquired twice and grown exponentially in both headcount and revenue. And with its recent acquisition by Thoma Bravo, it's looking to step even harder on the accelerator. Thomas talks about the experience of bringing on a financial partner and the differences and similarities the second time around.
West Monroe Senior Partner Keith Campbell stops by to talk about The Future of Diligence in Private Equity, which just happens to be the title of a report he recently co-authored. Highlighting survey findings from 100 U.S. PE companies, it explores the shifts in diligence approach that move away from identifying risk to identifying opportunity, greater data needs and the application of data analytics tools in a more commonly remote setting. Keith talks about how much progress has been made towar...
Venable Partner Chuck Morton has been recognized for decades as one of best middle-market deal lawyers in the United States. During his time as an M&A attorney, he’s seen business leaders make some excellent choices and some not-so-brilliant decisions. He sat down with the Dealmakers Podcast to elaborate on both and provided specific examples.
After 20 years of working in PE at different firms, Jared Paquette has stepped out on his own, launching Conanicut Capital. Targeting the lower-middle-market, his aim is to deploy patient capital at founder-led businesses to help them grow. He talks about launching the firm, the first deal and how the process of getting capital backing for the firm affected how he looks not just at deals, but his own business.
Cloud Range is a cybersecurity company led by security executives and engineers who encourage military-grade simulation training for enterprise security teams. The company recently raised its first round of outside capital from three different investors. Founder and CEO Debbie Gordon talks about what that process was like for her, what she's learned that she'll apply to future rounds, and how the company plans to use the investment to grow the business.
STAQ Pharma recently raised about $45 Million of Series C venture funding to build a $70 million facility on the west side of Columbus, which will add 300 jobs to the area. Its 503B Outsourcing Facility will produce compounded medications under the Current Good Manufacturing Process (cGMP) quality system, a Federal Drug Administration standard. CEO Joe Bagan sat down with the Dealmakers Podcast to discuss the capital raises and the new, much larger facility being built in Columbus....
Michael Pearson launched Union Packaging in 1999. Over nearly 20 years, he grew it to employ some 100 people, many of which he hired from what he calls non-traditional sources. Recently he sold that business to LBP Manufacturing, and became a partner at Iron Stone Real Estate. In addition, he's giving back to the community through board participation at many Philadelphia organizations. Mike shares the story of Union Packaging, how he prepared for and executed its sale, and offers advice for thos...
Nick Mirchef and his son-in-law, Chris Pflanz, went through the trails and tribulations of early-stage capital raises with their company SmartWitness, a pioneer in video telematics. They found a big payday at the end of it all. Today, they offer others advice using their experience as a guide.
In four short years, Detroit-based startup Airspace Link went from a couple founders and a few employees to recently raising $23 million in a Series B to aid its global expansion. It started with a $100,000 convertible note, a $3 million pre-seed, a $10 million Series A and now the global expansion raise. Michael Healander, co-founder, president and CEO, is a drone pilot enthusiast who envisions the positive impact drones could provide to economies and quality of life. His company is creating a ...
Rocco DiLillo has lived the entrepreneurial experience. He's operated 10 companies — five he founded and five he acquired, taken a company public, rescued struggling businesses and realized successful exits. His passion for building businesses compelled him out of his first retirement in his mid-40s. And even today — many years later as he begins to divest himself of his business holdings — he finds himself drawn back in by opportunity. DiLillo share some the highlights from his decades of exper...
Boon Logic, developer of machine-learning based anomaly detection algorithm, is completing its second funding round over the last four years with a nearly $40 million pre-money valuation to support the commercialization of two disruptive services. CEO Grant Goris sits down to discuss how the company was born, how it has grown, and what he’s learned about raising capital along the way.
Mike Moran is the CEO and Managing Partner of Walnut Ridge, multigenerational family office managing investment activities and controlling interest in a number of operating and start-up companies. He stops by to talk about the family office perspective — what they look for in potential acquisition targets, how they differ from other buyer types, and why and in what circumstances a family office is the likely best choice for a seller.
Late in 2020, Updox, a software collaboration platform for out-of-hospital healthcare providers, was acquired by EverCommerce. That year, the pandemic had created for Updox conditions that would make it the busiest time in the company's history as telehealth became a critical channel for both patients and service providers. Former Updox CEO Mike Morgan talks about laying the groundwork for that event, which reportedly led to the company's $143 million exit.
Dr. Shante Williams has had a remarkable career, one that started as a Research Associate studying how tumor cells migrate to founding two investment firms. Now, as the founder and CEO of Black Pearl Global Investments, she's focused on health care companies with investments that create long-term, sustainable growth while also backing several initiatives that seek to create more successful black, brown and women entrepreneurs, investors and fund managers.
Michael Schreiber knows something about disruption. He was on the team that founded and launched Hulu and led some of the media industry's first digital distribution deals. Now he's leading PlayFly Sports, a full-service sports marketing company managing multimedia rights for universities, state high school associations and other properties, including esports. The fledgling company, with significant backing from Sinclair Broadcast Group and Access Holdings, has already made a slew of acquisition...
Is it the best of times or is it the worst of times? With market signals suggesting both economic strength as well as indications that a recession is coming — or that we're in one, or that one isn't coming — uncertainty is the only certainty and it's gripped the investor mindset, shaping perspectives that are driving real changes in where they're putting their dollars, which, of course, has entrepreneurs reacting. JumpStart Ventures President Jerry Frantz joins offers his view of the early-stage...
Park Place Technologies' Kelly Greene has helped the company write its M&A playbook. From director of human resources to VP of Mergers and Acquisitions and now VP of Corporate Development, she's completed more than 20 deals for the company, including the recent acquisition of Park Place's largest competitor. She talks about how the M&A process has evolved over her seven years with the company, offers tips on post-deal integration, and shares how a team of stay-at-home moms has added speed and ef...
