Concept and Perspective, LLC

All good things come to an end. After more than four years of helping clients to grow and navigate change, complexity and risk it's time to say goodbye from CNP. A huge thanks to Stephanie Ortiz, Joe Garan, Kader Dicko, Toby Sandys, Grant Johnston, Erwin James Sta. Ana and Jillian Santos for your contribution and support. CNP wouldn't have been half as successful without you. As many of you know I (Chris) have today joined MEI Rigging & Crating full-time to help accelerate their corporate development efforts. You can learn more about MEI here: https://lnkd.in/gUCph8SJ. Please do not hesitate to reach out to find out about my new gig. My MEI email is: [email protected] Image copyright NZ On Screen: https://lnkd.in/eg_qHiic

One of the most remarkable features of the US economy since the pandemic has been the renaissance of the manufacturing sector. Driven by a range of factors including reshoring, energy demand/electrification of the economy, growth of the digital economy (especially data centers) and pro-active government industrial policy (such as the CHIPS Act and IRA), manufacturers have rushed to build green field facilities and to expand/upgrade existing plants. This sea change is perhaps most starkly illustrated by the growth in manufacturing construction spend. In the five years before 2020, construction spend was flat at an annualized rate of about 80 Billion US dollars. In the last three years it has tripled and now exceeds 220 billon annually! The number of people working in manufacturing has also increased, with about 13 million Americans now employed in the sector. https://lnkd.in/gcguWn8R https://lnkd.in/dVf5ZqkG

Inspiring and interesting talks from Traci Duez, IPI and Chris Perfect at the PMI Houston (Project Management Institute - Houston Chapter) meeting last week. On behalf of the Project Management Institute community, a big thank you to our speakers, attendees, and organizers. See you in the next session Thank you Keri Yanez, PMP and Aurelien MANGANO for all the support #pmi #pmihouston #leadership #houston #oilandgas #mergers #postmergerintegration #coaching #project #projectcontrols #projectmanagement

When an M&A Deal closes, the work to realize the value from an acquisition is just beginning. CNP's supports our clients across the whole M&A deal lifecycle. Chris Perfect is a Certified Acquisition Integration Manager and we have a tested integration process that is suited for middle market M&A. Find out more about our integration offering.

THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION HAS BANNED NON-COMPETE AGREEMENTS This is a tectonic shift that will benefit American entrepreneurs and workers, and ultimately American consumers.? A non-compete agreement is a contract whereby a person agrees not to work for a competing business or start a similar business for a certain period after leaving their current job. Some corporations argue that they are necessary to protect their business, but they are often used cynically across broad swathes of a company's workforce, limiting an employees' ability to seek employment in a specific industry or geographical area, indirectly locking them in. Non-competes erode one of the great strengths of the free market: the free movement of labor. They blunt competition, a price paid by the consumer. They also stifle entrepreneurship. So what's happened today... The Federal Trade Commission published its final version of a rule prohibiting the enforcement of non-competes, having first issued a draft for comment in early 2023. When the final rule comes into effect: ? employers will be prohibited from trying to put in place NEW non-competes with employees at any level of the business ? all existing non-competes with employees (other than senior employees) will no longer be enforceable ? existing non-competes with senior employees (who represent less than 0.75% of workers) can, however, remain in force. Businesses have (and will retain) other ways to protect legitimate business interests including non-disclosure agreements and protection under trade secrets laws. And, of course, more enlightened employers will protect their commercial interests by incentivizing employees to stay! Importantly, the enforceability?non-competes?will be preserved in business acquisitions. The FTC's rule does not apply to non-competition agreements made by an individual during the legitimate sale of their ownership stake in a business entity or the sale of most or all of a business's operating assets. We expect the rule to come into force in about four?months' time. Disappointingly, the US Chamber of Commerce has vowed to challenge the rule in court, perhaps as early as tomorrow (04.24.25). Others will likely do the same. These groups are, however, swimming against?an?outgoing tide: 25,000 of the 26,000 comments that the FTC received on the draft rule were in favor of the ban! Have questions about non-competes in M&A transactions? Reach out today, we know M&A! https://lnkd.in/g-C3FUs5

If you're planning to attend OTC in Houston w/c May 6, then how about joining Chris Perfect at Multinational Monday, from 6:30 onwards at the House of Blues. Hats off to the folks at the Canada-Texas Chamber of Commerce, British American Business Council-Texas (and other international Chambers) for organizing this event. https://lnkd.in/gd3WmpN7

#smartinvesting #corporatedevelopment

What do middle market M&A buyers really care about? Twice a year the Alliance of M&A Advisors commissions a survey that asks thousands of deal professionals just that. Here are the results for Q1 2024. For business owners pursuing value-focused growth, the critical take-away from this is that FINANCIAL FUNDAMENTALS (growth opportunity, revenue consistency and EBITDA margin) as well as the STRENGTH OF THE MANAGEMENT TEAM are consistently the most important thing for buyers. Have a question about evaluating acquisition targets? Reach out today. #Mergers&acquisitions #middlemarket #weknowM&A

Join CNP's Chris Perfect on the afternoon of May 9th at a PMI Houston (Project Management Institute - Houston Chapter) event that will delve into the intricacies of post-merger integration. Discover what makes integration crucial, how buyers can successfully combine two businesses, all examined through a project management lens. ???? ?? Registration will be via PMI's website! (details to follow) #PostMergerIntegration #ProjectManagement #BusinessStrategy #PMI #ProfessionalDevelopment #MergersAndAcquisitions #SuccessFactors

Although business sentiment can best described as 'soft' in many areas of the US economy, the construction industry have an increasingly upbeat outlook. The Q1 2024 Construction Industry Round Table sentiment survey published by FMI shows a significant uptick in optimism, with the overall index score rosing to 64.9 from 58.9 in the fourth quarter of 2023. The Design Index also increased sharply to 74.3 from 62.7. Backlogs remain strong, with 9 out of 10 members maintaining backlogs well into 2025. Firm capacity is also healthy, with 70% of members reporting levels greater than 80%.