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For business owners and their advisors, it’s probably not surprising that buying another company or other assets requires moving with speed and diligence. But gaining an edge—and winning—on the buy side is a bit more complicated. Effective companies tend to deploy a series of purposeful tactics and avoid common mistakes when pursuing acquisitions. This article outlines five tactics to implement and five mistakes to avoid for any company considering an acquisition.

Digital transformation is widely misunderstood as being primarily focused on digitizing existing processes, moving to the cloud, or enabling scalability of the business. While this was true historically, today digital transformation requires taking bold steps and deploying advanced technologies such as AI, machine learning, augmented reality, blockchain, and others to create innovative new products that can make new revenue streams possible.

Effective pre-liquidity planning is always important for a business owner considering a business sale, exit, or other transaction. But several recent and upcoming developments—related to estate laws, small-business tax exemptions, residency trends, philanthropic endeavors, and high interest rates—make the year uniquely challenging. This article outlines why these developments are particularly salient for founder-owned companies and offers guidance specifically tailored for them in the run-up to a liquidity event.

While the market for private sales has slowed, private equity companies have record amounts of dry powder they need to put to work—for the right companies, this may be the ideal time to explore a business sale or capital raise. In this podcast episode of Business Insights, Terry Hill, Partner in BPM’s Advisory Practice, is joined by Tara Smith Kacher, Managing Director at Cowen Inc. Together, they discuss what strategic buyers are looking for and how companies can best position themselves for M&A transactions.

Dive into Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance with these concise video series that are designed for board members and senior executives. The four short videos summarize insights on the challenges and opportunities of AI board governance. From understanding the need for “AI circuit breakers” to tracking risks and accountability, and finally embracing AI as a manageable challenge, this series addresses some of the key issues for staying on top of AI in your business.

Many successful family-owned businesses are managing embedded family offices within their existing operations to maximize the benefits and opportunities gained from the unique structure. But in time, the needs of both the business and the family shift for various reasons that include the family growing and earlier generations transitioning out of the business. If you aim to run a best-in-class, well-functioning family office while also operating a family-owned business, consider these best practices and related emerging trends.

Leaders of founder-owned businesses embarking on a liquidity event often have never been through a sale process or conducted a formal capital raise. It’s a complex process—so they often turn to outside advisors for guidance.

People are critical to a family office’s long-term success. However, recruiting top talent continues to be a great challenge when there’s a shortage of top talent in a tight labor market. Compounding the problem, many family offices lack robust training and development plans to prepare next-generation family members and existing employees to step into key roles. As capability needs evolve, updating role descriptions for employee recruitment is key. Intentional skill development, career pathing, and creative compensation can help retain top talent.

Many business owners worry about how their success and wealth will impact their loved ones and the next generation. The fear behind it can hinder the ability of future generations to build on past success and even lead to family tension. To successfully move past the fear-based planning and toward a collaborative approach, five secrets and action items of successful families demonstrate how to effectively transfer the family wealth and values.