Don't Blow The Biggest Deal of Your Life

Part 1 - Click here.

Highlights of Part 1:

This is the first time I've had the courage to describe all of the things I did wrong during my first exit transaction.

It's also the story of the first time I lost several million dollars.

During this presentation, I compare my first exit to a more recent one where everything was perfectly planned and executed.

My story begins with the launch of my first company, Nexus Engineering, while I was still in university.

Part 2 - Click here.

Highlights of Part 2:

I wish I had done a secondary sale.

I confess that we had never discussed our exit strategy.

We start to learn about exit strategies at the worst possible time.

I make the classic error of having the CEO lead the exit.

I learn that every exit needs multiple bidders.

We hadn't checked the alignment on our exit strategy.

Part 3 - Click here.

Highlights of Part 3:

I learn about how nasty take-over battles can get.

I was a rookie and ended up playing defense all the way through.

We finally get the sale done, but my regret was that we 'rode it over the top'.

It took me another ten years to understand all the things we did wrong.

The truth is... we were lucky. To this day, I wish we'd had a good exit strategy and checked the alignment.

Part 4 - Click here.

Highlights of Part 4:

This is the story of the Parasun Exit - where we did everything perfectly.

We developed alignment on a simple exit strategy at an offsite planning retreat.

At Parasun, we successfully executed two secondary sales.

The exit completed right on schedule, but the price was 48% higher than the target.

A comparison on the Nexus and Parasun exits - what to do and what not to do in your exits.