Due diligence for assets that are changing underneath the deal
Why commercial, operational and technology diligence must increasingly test future scenarios rather than validate historical performance.
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M&A strategy
Shape M&A strategy from portfolio rationale and target priorities through diligence, value creation and integration.
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Articles
M&A strategy when the obvious targets are gone
How companies can build a stronger acquisition radar by connecting portfolio logic, target intelligence and strategic fit before competition intensifies.
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Buy-and-build works only when scale creates more than a larger collection of assets
The strategy depends on whether acquisitions can improve economics, capabilities, market position or operating leverage across the platform.
Acquisition readiness tests whether the buyer can absorb what it wants to acquire
Strategic fit matters only if capital, leadership capacity, operating model and integration capability can support the transaction.
Strategic challenges
Can the target's operations support the performance assumed in the deal?
The challenge is identifying hidden constraints that may limit growth, margins, service or integration after ownership changes.
Which assumptions could cause the deal thesis to fail?
The challenge is identifying where downside comes from before valuation, momentum and confirmation bias narrow the decision.
POV
A synergy without an owner, action and baseline is not value; it is optimism
Deal economics should include only benefits that can be traced to specific changes the combined business can realistically execute.
The target should be understood before the seller explains why it is attractive
Independent intelligence reduces the risk that the buyer adopts the transaction narrative before forming its own view.
Strategic impact
A clear synergy model links deal value with measurable operating actions
Explicit baselines, owners and dependencies make it easier to track whether integration is producing the economics assumed at signing.
A clear consolidation thesis defines where successive deals can reinforce one another
Explicit scale and capability logic helps buyers distinguish coherent platform building from opportunistic asset accumulation.
What we observe
Carve-outs often underestimate the cost of services the parent quietly provides
Standalone economics can deteriorate when shared technology, procurement, finance and management support must suddenly be replicated.
Buy-and-build programs often acquire faster than the platform can integrate
Deal cadence can outrun systems, management capacity and operating-model maturity, leaving value trapped across disconnected assets.