Think Big, Buy Small

Harvard Business School
  • 5.0 (2)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Think Big, Buy Small

Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own startup seem too risky? There's another compelling path open to you: acquiring a small business and running it as CEO. Co-hosted by Harvard Business School Professors Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff, the show is an extension of their courses on small firms, including Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition, which has been taken by thousands of MBA students, and their highly-regarded book, HBR Guide To Buying A Small Business, which has sold more than 65,000 copies. In this series, Rick and Royce guide listeners through the different milestones of the journey to acquiring an enduringly profitable small business, sharing insights on how to evaluate prospects, raise capital, and ultimately determine if this path is right for you. 

  1. Listeners’ Questions, Rick and Royce's Answers

    9 SEPT

    Listeners’ Questions, Rick and Royce's Answers

    Throughout the first season, Rick and Royce have asked listeners to reach out to them with any queries they may have related to entrepreneurship through acquisition. Now, in the final episode of Season One, our hosts address many of the questions that were received. This wide-ranging discussion includes reflections on common mistakes made by first-time searchers; the merits and challenges of self-funded versus traditional searches; how real estate considerations factor into acquisition entrepreneurship; ETA in emerging markets; whether searchers need an MBA to successfully search for and then run their own company; what Rick and Royce hope listeners will take away from the first season, and more!

    59 min
  2. From Misfortune To Great Fortune

    26 AUG

    From Misfortune To Great Fortune

    Despite growing up in unstable and challenging circumstances, Jerod Pierce changed the trajectory of his life by embracing educational opportunities, which helped him to thrive in a series of good jobs. He then made the decision to control his own professional destiny through acquisition entrepreneurship, purchasing Mercurio's Heating & Air Conditioning and becoming its CEO. In learning about Jerod's journey from childhood misfortune to present day fortune, listeners will not only hear insights on becoming an entrepreneur through acquisition, including our hosts' reflections on the personal traits that have contributed to Jerod's success, but they will also be inspired by the journey that Jerod has traveled.

    1 hr
  3. A Seller and Business Broker’s Perspectives

    19 AUG

    A Seller and Business Broker’s Perspectives

    In discussions of the entrepreneurship through acquisition journey, our attention is often drawn to the experiences of the searchers, those looking to acquire an enduringly profitable small business. However, two other crucial perspectives to consider are those of the sellers and of the brokers who they have partnered with to help sell their companies. In this episode, we meet Greg Edwards, Founder & CEO of Onsight Healthcare, and Jim Cumbee, a deeply experienced M&A advisor to business owners and Managing Director of Tennessee Valley Group. Greg has retained Jim’s firm to advise him on selling Onsight Healthcare, potentially to a searcher. Hearing their respective positions, thought processes, and insights can help acquisition entrepreneurs to not only better frame their offers but to approach the ecosystem and their transactions within it in a more thoughtful way.

    1h 2m
  4. An Acquisition Entrepreneur’s First Months As CEO

    12 AUG

    An Acquisition Entrepreneur’s First Months As CEO

    In February of 2024, after a self-funded search, Nick Wheeler took the helm at NSCA & Tra-Cal, an enduringly profitable small business that’s been serving the electronics, manufacturing, and telecom industries since 1988. In this episode, he reflects on his entrepreneurship through acquisition journey to-date, with a particular focus on his experience of “drinking from the firehose” during his first months as CEO. Nick shares the pain of broken deals during the search process; what appealed to him about NSCA & Tra-Cal, including those specific characteristics that made it a high-quality acquisition target; his approach to Day One on the job; his relationship with the seller during the transition period; the strategies he’s implemented; and his thoughts on both the challenges and the tremendous fulfillment that he’s experienced along the way.

    1h 2m
  5. Searching Where Few Have Searched Before

    5 AUG

    Searching Where Few Have Searched Before

    After years spent studying and working in the United States, Alexander Wallace recently returned to his native New Zealand to launch a self-funded search for an enduringly profitable small business to buy. In this episode, Alexander reflects on his decision to leave a conventional job in someone else's company in order to become a searcher; the reasons he decided to launch a geographically-focused search in New Zealand, where few have searched before; the type of company he hopes to acquire, along with his strategy for doing so; his thoughts on a potential roll-up strategy; and more. Alexander is just beginning his search, which is a moment of both unbounded optimism and also a bit of apprehension about the unknowns that lie ahead. Listen to learn more about how he’s thinking through potential challenges and opportunities as he takes his first steps on the ETA journey!

    53 min
  6. The Fantastic Economics of SBA Loans

    29 JUL

    The Fantastic Economics of SBA Loans

    The Small Business Administration (SBA) loan program offers acquisition entrepreneurs an incredible opportunity to buy a company with little equity, and on very advantageous terms. Heather Endresen has decades of experience in SBA lending and is now Owner of Viso Business Capital, where she helps searchers in a variety of ways, including finding banks that are most appropriate for their SBA loans. In this episode, Heather explores the ins and outs of these "magical" loans, which differ in important ways from conventional bank loans. She discusses the beauty of SBA loans for first-time buyers, their lack of covenants, the ten-year term, how borrowers might think about the personal guarantee, and more. This is a must-listen episode for anyone considering or in the midst of an entrepreneurship through acquisition journey!

    48 min
  7. Explaining The Success Of First-Time CEOs

    22 JUL

    Explaining The Success Of First-Time CEOs

    How is it that so many searchers become successful CEOs, even when many have never run a company before and may not have the relevant industry experience? Personal characteristics count for a lot, but so too do company attributes. Sticky customers, for example, are hugely important, as this creates space for a new CEO to learn the ropes of the business. In this episode, we meet Michael Orzetti, an acquisition entrepreneur who, in August of 2020, became CEO of Eastern Communications, a company that sells, services, and maintains critical communications infrastructure and networks. He shares insights from his self-funded search through to present day management of the company, including details of how he and his wife considered the trade-offs between different paths, the attributes he looked for while searching, his relationship with the company founder, and the impressive growth of the business over the last four years.

    58 min
  8. Why A Long Island Swimming Pool Company Was An Ideal Acquisition Target

    15 JUL

    Why A Long Island Swimming Pool Company Was An Ideal Acquisition Target

    As an acquisition entrepreneur, Jackie Kopcho is now CEO of Tortorella Swimming Pools, where she leads a team that engineers, builds, and services pools on Long Island, in southeastern New York State. When searching for a company to acquire, Jackie wasn’t looking for this particular industry or location. Rather, she was on the lookout for those qualities that lead to an enduringly profitable business, such as recurring revenue and low customer concentration. This company stood out from the rest as an ideal acquisition target. In this episode, Jackie discusses her overall process of discovery, the experience of coming into the role of CEO, managing challenges associated with a seasonal business, her deep focus on customer service, and more.

    51 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own startup seem too risky? There's another compelling path open to you: acquiring a small business and running it as CEO. Co-hosted by Harvard Business School Professors Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff, the show is an extension of their courses on small firms, including Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition, which has been taken by thousands of MBA students, and their highly-regarded book, HBR Guide To Buying A Small Business, which has sold more than 65,000 copies. In this series, Rick and Royce guide listeners through the different milestones of the journey to acquiring an enduringly profitable small business, sharing insights on how to evaluate prospects, raise capital, and ultimately determine if this path is right for you. 

Information

  • Creator
    Harvard Business School
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Harvard Business School
  • Show Website
    Think Big, Buy Small

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