This Is M&A Podcast

Steven Monterroso
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Dealmaking without the B.S. Designed for the decision-makers navigating complex, high-stakes transactions, This is M&A is your front-row seat to the real world of mergers and acquisitions, capital raises, and strategic moves.  Whether you're a CEO, founder, corporate development leader, or senior executive, this podcast is for you.

  1. Aug 13

    Bad Surprises Kill Deals: What Closes Life Sciences & Medtech M&A w/ Gregg Blake | This Is M&A

    Most medtech deals that stall were already in trouble before the process started. In this episode of This Is M&A, Gregg Blake, Managing Director in Healthcare Investment Banking at CapM Advisors, breaks down what separates deals that close from deals that die: how to build for a premium exit 2 to 3 years out, what hidden risks quietly kill momentum, and how to run a sell-side process that actually extracts maximum value at the finish line. Gregg Blake is a Managing Director at CapM Advisors, based in New York. He has been advising clients worldwide in healthcare, life science, and medical technology for over 20 years. He founded Brocair, a dedicated healthcare corporate finance advisor, in 2004 and ran it for over a decade before merging it with Bryan Garnier, where he co-led the healthcare practice. CapM Advisors has completed M&A transactions totaling over $51 billion. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️ What the best companies do 2 to 3 years before exit to position for a premium outcome ⚡️ Why customer concentration and CEO dependency quietly destroy deal value before a buyer ever shows up ⚡️ How to control the diligence narrative before a buyer controls it for you ⚡️ Why running your own QofE before going to market is non-negotiable ⚡️ How competitive tension in a sell-side process added 25% to one deal's value in 36 hours ⚡️ When scientific risk kills life science deals versus when commercial risk is the real threat Learn more about Gregg Blake and CapM Advisors:  Website: https://cap-m.com  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/greggblake/ Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest?  Sign up: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio and Spotify. Chapter Markers 00:00 — Meet Gregg Blake, M&A Insider  02:36 — Build the Exit Before It Exists  06:22 — Who You Take Money From Matters  11:03 — Capital Structure Can Kill Your Exit  14:05 — Why Deals Stall (And How to Stop It)  18:33 — Science Risk vs. Commercial Risk  21:30 — Management Red Flags Buyers Notice  23:44 — Creating Competitive Tension to Win  33:40 — Long-Term Relationships Drive Deals  39:45 — How to Reach Gregg Blake #thisismapodcast #mna #medtech #lifesciences #healthcareinvestmentbanking #exitplanning #founders #duediligence #middlemarket #dealstructure

  2. Jul 29

    Technical Debt Is Killing Your PE Returns w/ Dave Mangot | This Is M&A

    Most PE investors never look at the engineering organization. That blind spot is costing them. Dave Mangot, author of DevOps Patterns for Private Equity and founder and CEO at Mangoteque, joins This Is M&A to explain how DORA metrics translate into investor outcomes, why technical debt quietly destroys EBITDA, and what breaks in the first 100 days post-close. A DevOps veteran, he has successfully led digital, SRE, and DevOps transformations at Salesforce, SolarWinds, and Cable and Wireless. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️ What DORA metrics actually signal about business health — and what to listen for when your CTO presents them ⚡️ How technical debt inflates COGS and destroys EBITDA before it shows up on a financial statement ⚡️ Why AI amplifies existing engineering problems instead of fixing them ⚡️ Why not integrating engineering teams post-acquisition is the costliest PE mistake ⚡️ What engineering alpha means and how multi-tenant SaaS architecture drives EBITDA margin Learn more about Dave Mangot and Mangoteque:  Website: https://mangoteque.com  Blog: https://blog.mangoteque.com  Podcast: https://engineeringalpha.fm  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dmangot/  Email: dave@mangoteque.com Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest?  Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio and Spotify. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 — Meet Dave Mangot of Mangoteque  01:21 — Engineering's Hidden Role in PE Value  05:21 — Technical Debt Is Killing Your Margins  09:28 — Moneyball: More At-Bats, More Growth  15:52 — DORA Metrics Decoded for Investors  22:11 — Speed vs. Quality? Both. Here's Why  29:26 — When the CTO's Vision Stalls Out  35:36 — Acquisitions That Freeze Product Delivery  41:50 — Engineering Alpha: The EBITDA Multiplier  48:10 — How to Reach Dave and Final Takeaways #thisismapodcast #mna #privateequity #devops #technicaldebt #softwarevaluation #exitplanning #engineeringalpha

  3. Jul 15

    Growth Isn't Value with Mike de Windt | This Is M&A

    Most privately held business owners believe growing revenue automatically makes their company more valuable. Buyers disagree. And that gap is exactly where deals get discounted. In this episode of This Is M&A, Mike de Windt, Managing Director of Strategic Advisory at Carleton McKenna & Company, breaks down what actually drives shareholder value in founder-led and family-owned businesses, the hidden levers sophisticated buyers price into every deal, and why applying private equity discipline before you ever think about selling is the highest-leverage move any owner can make. Mike brings over 30 years of experience across private equity, operating leadership, and strategic advisory. He was the founder and CEO of Gates Group Capital Partners, a Cleveland-based PE firm with over $300 million in capital under management and more than $850 million in aggregate enterprise value across realized investments. He also founded Grand River Industries and served on the corporate development team at NACCO Industries. Today at Carleton McKenna, he works directly with founder-led and family businesses to close the gap between where they are and what buyers will actually pay a premium for. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️ Why revenue growth without margin expansion and cash flow conversion can actually reduce your valuation in the eyes of buyers ⚡️ The three-legged stool of value creation: strategy, scalable business model, and repeatable, predictable economics ⚡️ What the hidden levers really are: quality of earnings, pricing discipline, management incentive alignment, and reducing key person dependence ⚡️ Why the annual operating plan is a core management tool, not a box to check for your lender ⚡️ How to build a business that gives you real optionality: sell, recap, or keep growing on your terms Learn more about Mike de Windt and Carleton McKenna & Company:  Website: https://www.carletonmckenna.com  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikedewindt/  Email: emd@carletonmckenna.com Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn:  https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest?  Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio and Spotify. Timestamps 00:00 — Intro: Meet Mike de Windt  03:01 — Growth Isn't Value: Here's Why  06:10 — How Mike Sizes Up a New Client  13:47 — Getting Your House in Order First  22:16 — The Three-Legged Stool of Value Creation  30:25 — Hidden Levers Buyers Actually Pay For  41:48 — Why Most Companies Skip the AOP  50:00 — Running the Business Like You'll Sell It  57:58 — Founders vs. Professional Management  01:05:08 — Mike's Path and How to Reach Him #thisismapodcast #mna #privateequity #exitplanning #lowermiddlemarket #shareholdervalue #ebitda #founderstories #mnadvisory #operationalexcellence

  4. Jul 1

    Why 95% of AI Investments Fail with Lisa Davis | This Is M&A

    Most companies are failing at AI.  Not because the technology is broken, but because the organization is not ready for it. In this episode of This Is M&A, Lisa Davis, Founder and CEO of Davis Core Advisory, breaks down why 95% of enterprises show no ROI on AI adoption, what leaders are getting wrong about digital transformation, and how executives can build the kind of organization that is actually ready for what comes next. Lisa is a CIO Hall of Fame inductee with over 30 years of leadership across defense, government, healthcare, and technology. She served as EVP and CIO of Blue Shield of California, where she led digital transformation for a $24 billion nonprofit health plan. Prior to that she managed an $8 billion P&L as VP and GM at Intel, and held CIO roles at Georgetown University, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the Department of Defense. She currently serves on the boards of Movius and 3Strands Global Foundation and is an Executive in Residence at Progress Partners. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️  Why 95% of enterprises see zero ROI on AI and the three root causes behind the number ⚡️  What CEOs and CIOs consistently get wrong when leading digital transformation ⚡️  How to define and build a portfolio career before you need one ⚡️  The five-year rule for landing a board seat and why 80% of board seats come from your network ⚡️  What modern boards are still missing and why CIOs belong at the table 🔗 Learn more about Lisa Davis and Davis Core Advisory:  Website: https://daviscoreadvisory.com  LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-davis-cio/ 🔗 Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest?  Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio and Spotify. #thisismapodcast #mna #digitaltransformation #artificialintelligence #leadership #boardroom #cio #womeninstem

  5. Jun 17

    Building and Selling a Winning Business w/ Pete Moore | This Is M&A

    Most founders treat selling their business like selling milk at the grocery store. Pete Moore has spent 20 years watching that mindset cost founders millions. In this episode of This Is M&A, Pete Moore, Founder and Managing Partner of Integrity Square, breaks down what it actually takes to build a business worth buying: the playbook, the team, the fourth quarter, and the one line every founder needs to hear before they hire an advisor. Pete has driven M&A in the wellness and active lifestyle space for over two decades. He founded Integrity Square, a boutique advisory and seed investment firm focused on the HALO sector, which stands for Health, Active Lifestyle and Outdoors. He previously closed over $1.5B in deals at Sagent Advisors, co-founded Iron Planet which sold to Ritchie Bros. for $758M, hosts the HALO Talks podcast, runs the HALO Academy, and wrote Time to Win Again: 52 Takeaways from Team Sports to Ensure Your Business Success. In this episode, you will learn: ✔️  Why every business is really just solving a frustration someone will pay for ✔️  How the right playbook and the right team create value buyers pay a premium for ✔️  Why sharing real financials with your team builds the alignment that survives a sale process ✔️  What the 4th quarter of a deal actually looks like and how to keep your best people through close ✔️  Why silence is the death knell of relationships during a transaction Learn more about Pete Moore and Integrity Square:  Website: https://integritysq.com/  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/peteymo/  Email: pete@integritysq.com Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/  Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/  Want to become our next guest? Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms. Chapter Markers 00:00 — "I'm Not Your F***ing Vendor"  01:01 — Meet Pete Moore, HALO deal maker  05:40 — Every business solves a frustration  10:06 — Building the winning playbook  14:47 — Draft right, crockpot your managers  25:30 — The client is never the idiot  29:44 — You're entering a rollercoaster with no seatbelt  34:25 — Fourth quarter: close the deal or lose everything  40:38 — The mentors who built Pete Moore  43:35 — Where to find Pete #thisismapodcast #mna #exitplanning #founders #halosector #wellness #privateequity #middlemarket

  6. Jun 4

    The Earnout Trap: How to Structure Deals That Actually Close with Salim Dada | This Is M&A

    Most earnouts are never earned. Most founders do not know why until it is too late. In this episode of This Is M&A, Salim Dada, Managing Director and CEO of Concord Ventures, breaks down the three deal structure decisions that determine whether a founder walks away with what they expected: cash versus equity, earnouts and seller financing, and leveraged buyouts in today's credit environment. Salim has closed more than 100 business sales across technology, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, logistics, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, and retail. He has been doing this since 2001, focuses on transactions between $20M and $100M in enterprise value, and is based in Seattle where aerospace and defense M&A keeps him very busy. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️ When to take cash and when rolling equity actually makes you more money ⚡️ Why earnouts based on revenue protect sellers and earnouts based on profit almost never do ⚡️ How to structure seller financing so it does not go south ⚡️ What platform versus add-on means and why it changes your negotiating position ⚡️ Why private equity stopped going to banks and what that means for deal financing today ⚡️ Why honest conflict early in a deal is almost always a better sign than polite agreement Learn more about Salim Dada and Concord Ventures:  Website: https://concordventuresinc.com/  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/salimdada/  Email: Salim.d@concordventuresinc.com Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/  Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/  Want to become our next guest? Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms. #thisismapodcast #mna #exitplanning #founders #dealstructure #earnout #privateequity #middlemarket  00:00 Intro 02:33 Cash Vs. Stock: When To Take Chips Off The Table 07:29 Case Study: Turning A Skeptical Seller Into A Believer 18:03 The Golden Rule Of Earnouts (Revenue Vs. EBITDA) 22:55 Seller Financing: How To Vetting Your Buyer's Pockets 30:34 Platform Vs. Add-On: Know Your Position In The Portfolio

  7. May 13

    Why Selling Your Business Isn't Just About Price with Richard Groberg | This Is M&A

    Most founders think selling their business is about getting the highest price. It is not. In this episode of This Is M&A, Richard Groberg, Managing Director at MidCap Advisors, breaks down what really happens when you sell your business: the terms that matter more than price, the private equity reality most founders are not prepared for, and the deal landmines that blow up transactions after the LOI is signed. Richard brings more than 30 years of investment banking and operating experience. He has completed over $2.8 billion in transactions, including more than $400 million in fertility and physician practice management deals. He has served as CFO, COO, and CEO of high-growth companies and has been on both sides of the table as an operator and as an advisor. He joined MidCap Advisors, a boutique New York-based investment bank, after years of running his own advisory practice. In this episode, you will learn: ⚡️ Why the highest price is rarely the best deal and what terms actually determine your outcome ⚡️ What the LOI process looks like from indication of interest to definitive agreements ⚡️ What life really looks like the day after selling to a PE-backed buyer ⚡️ How to negotiate autonomy and alignment before you sign ⚡️ The deal landmines that show up post-LOI and how to avoid them ⚡️ Why founders who try to run the process themselves almost always leave money on the table Learn more about Richard and MidCap Advisors:  Website: https://midcapadvisors.com/  LinkedIn: https://.linkedin.com/in/rsgadvisorsllc/ Email: richard.groberg@midcapadvisors.com Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso:  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest? Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms. #thisismapodcast #mna #exitplanning #privateequity #founders #healthcare #middlemarket #dealmaking 00:00 Intro 02:40 Why Selling Isn’t Just About Price 05:40 What First-Time Sellers Get Wrong 08:40 The Process: LOI to Close Explained 16:40 Private Equity, Friend or Foe? 22:38 Deal Landmines: How They Blow Up 34:08 Richard’s Journey from Journalism to M&A

  8. Apr 29

    3 Silent Deal Killers That Destroy Your Business Valuation with Lindsey Wendler | This Is M&A

    Most CEOs think value equals revenue and EBITDA. Buyers think differently. In this episode of This Is M&A, Lindsey Wendler, Managing Director at 414 Capital, breaks down what buyers actually score you on, what you need to have in order before going to market, and what quietly kills deals before they close. Lindsey advises lower middle market companies on M&A, capital raises, and restructures across industries from roofing and landscaping to staffing and legal services. She is a Certified M&A Advisor and Certified Business Appraiser, Vice Chair of the AM&AA, and incoming President of that organization. She has been on both sides of the table — as an advisor and as a founder who started a business abroad and raised capital in Geneva, Switzerland. In this episode, you will learn: •  Why recurring revenue, management depth, and technology resistance matter more than most sellers realize •  How buyers use a valuation scorecard to raise or lower your multiple •  Why owner dependency is one of the most common deal limiters in the lower middle market •  What a Quality of Earnings report actually does for your valuation •  The silent deal killers showing up in diligence right now — from EBITDA disputes to I-9 compliance Learn more about Lindsey and 414 Capital:  Website: https://414capital.com/  LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/lindseywendler/ Connect with your host, Steven Monterroso: LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/determined2succeed/ Follow This Is M&A Podcast on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/this-is-m-a/ Want to become our next guest? Sign up or subscribe: https://sharevault.com/this-is-ma/ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms. #thisismapodcast #mna #mergersandacquisitions #exitplanning #middlemarket #founders #valuation #privateequity

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Dealmaking without the B.S. Designed for the decision-makers navigating complex, high-stakes transactions, This is M&A is your front-row seat to the real world of mergers and acquisitions, capital raises, and strategic moves.  Whether you're a CEO, founder, corporate development leader, or senior executive, this podcast is for you.

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  • Creator
    Steven Monterroso
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    25
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    This Is M&A Podcast