Craig Group

How Top Portfolio Companies Overcome Revenue Scaling Challenges Scaling revenue in private equity-backed companies will be a high-stakes challenge in the hypercompetitive 2025 market. Join us for an insightful session exploring growth roadblocks and strategies, including when to hire a CRO, scale lead generation, and prioritize overlooked initiatives like AI tools or sales enablement. Packed with actionable insights, this webinar is essential for private equity executives and portfolio company leaders aiming to build resilient, scalable revenue engines. If you can’t make it, click 'attend' to receive the replay link via LinkedIn DM so you don't miss out on the insightful exchange between Brian Gustason and Ajay Joshi.

A common scenario we see here at Craig Group with lower mid-market PE-backed businesses looks something like this: · Successful business with founder-led sales & no formal sales process · Growth requires more active sales force participation · Half of the sales team had a mix of different sales styles · The other half had no sales process and were "winging it": Sales training was limited & infrequent · CRM is not used properly or updated · Growth stalls with no standardized process or KPI tracking With a sales team that is like Frankenstein, with its many parts cobbled together, this firm lacks standardization and uses many different sales methodologies, approaches, tools, scripting, and outreach cadences. Want to diagnose these problems before they affect your organic growth rates? Brian Gustason shows what to look for as symptoms of a Frankenstein Sales Process: -Lack of sales consistency -Chronically inaccurate sales forecasts -No sales playbook to reference -Limited sales training or coaching -Poor CRM use & data hygiene Now that you've identified the obstacle, these 6 steps on how to address a Frankenstein Sales Process will put you on the right track to create a unified & standardized team: ? First, validate your data to ensure an accurate growth picture ? Evaluate the current sales process & any documented processes ? Using internal or external resources, benchmark best practices ? Evaluate different sales methodology options to find the best fit ? Develop a sales playbook using best practices & easy templates ? Develop specific KPIs & train Sales Managers on 1:1 best practices

COME FOR THE DEALS - STAY FOR THE BOURBON! TOMORROW (3/27) don't miss ACG New York's 17th Annual Healthcare Conference at The Metropolitan Club of NY! REGISTER HERE: https://lnkd.in/e__iVHTa The 17th Annual Healthcare Conference will assemble 400+ senior Middle Market Healthcare payers, providers, systems as well as top private equity, family office and strategic buyers representing billions of dollars ready to invest in the North American Healthcare Sector. Join us for one-on-one curated deal meetings with investment bankers, great discussion and quality networking including bourbon tasting hosted by Private Equity Sponsors. SPONSORS: PARTNERS: Baker Tilly US | CohnReznick | Craig Group | GF Data | Grata | Marwood Group | TresVista | Troutman Pepper ASSOCIATE PARTNERS: Crowe | Hilton Global Associates | TriNet | MCR Consulting ACG New York Healthcare Planning Committee: Don Ritucci, Andrew Colbert, Richard Zall, Claudine Cohen, Anna Kostanian, Don McDonough, Joseph Kadlec, John Jones, Jerry Luebbers, CPA and Danielle Fugazy. *VIDEO BY: Alex Hopkins #acg #acgny #middlemarket #healthcare #mergersandacquisitions #pe #ib #privateequity #investmentbanking #deals #dealorigination #dealsource #lenders #banking #strategics #corporatedevelopment #operatingpartners #bourbon

This week (3/27) don't miss the Industry Agnostic Value Creation Forum at ACG New York's 17th Annual Healthcare Conference! Meet the Value Creation Forum Panel: Moderator: Summer Craig, Craig Group; Panelists: Alissa Bonneau, Centerbridge Partners, L.P.; James Nouss, TowerBrook Capital Partners L.P.; and Sam Perryman, Marwood Group. REGISTER HERE: https://lnkd.in/e__iVHTa Value Creation Forum Agenda and Speakers: https://lnkd.in/eS6UMCus Thank you to our Value Creation Forum Partners: - Craig Group - TresVista - GF Data The 17th Annual Healthcare Conference will assemble 400+ senior Middle Market Healthcare payers, providers, systems as well as top private equity, family office and strategic buyers representing billions of dollars ready to invest in the North American Healthcare Sector. Join us for one-on-one curated deal meetings with investment bankers, great discussion and quality networking including bourbon tasting hosted by Private Equity Sponsors. Thank you to the ACG NY Healthcare Planning Committee: Don Ritucci, Andrew Colbert, Richard Zall, Claudine Cohen, Anna Kostanian, Don McDonough, Joseph Kadlec, John Jones, Jerry Luebbers, CPA and Danielle Fugazy. And thank you to the ACG NY Operating Partner Committee: Kathy Colborn, Slade Kobran, Velina B., Chris Chandler, Scott Estill, Thomas Fountain, Todd M., Todd Phillips, Jim Shand, Amber Shook, and Sonal Singla. #acg #acgny #middlemarket #healthcare #mergersandacquisitions #pe #ib #privateequity #investmentbanking #deals #dealorigination #dealsource #lenders #banking #strategics #corporatedevelopment #operatingpartners #bourbon #valuecreators #valuecreation

Craig Group's Jordan Scott is a Business Intelligence practitioner with a passion for making data actionable. Fun Fact: He pole vaulted professionally from 2011-2016 and was a finalist in three Olympic Team Trials (‘08/‘12/‘16). Better Decisions, Bigger Sales: 3 Steps to Leverage Data for Maximum Results: https://lnkd.in/g5iwqT9N

Still time to register for ACG New York's Healthcare Conference! Don’t miss one-on-one deal meetings with investment bankers, engaging discussions, and high-quality networking.?

Summer Craig talked about Craig Group's company culture on BoyarMiller's Building Texas Business podcast: ? No BS culture – importance of showing up authentically ? Commitment to excellence – priority is top-tier service ? Real connections – meeting people where they are ?? Give it a listen #BuildingTexasBusiness #CraigGroup #Authenticity #Excellence #Leadership

“PE Growth HEADWIND”: Not Filling Empty Portco Board Seats With People Who Understand “Modern GTM” Would an NFL team use a baseball coach to develop offensive line plays? Probably not, since the baseball coach likely does not have relevant experience. Would you use a dermatologist to prescribe medication for a heart condition? I doubt it. So, why do many PE firms demanding faster growth from portcos not take advantage of modern GTM expertise when filling empty portfolio board seats? Three undeniable facts: ·???Today’s PE exit values are deeply influenced by organic growth rates ·???GTM/growth has changed radically in just the last 5 years ·???High % of current board members have zero exposure to “modern” GTM So why does this matter? An important aspect of the board’s role is to ensure the best business strategies are developed & implemented to achieve growth objectives. QUESTION: How can board members help craft (or even challenge) an executive team’s new growth strategy if they don’t understand either the massive changes that have taken place in GTM or the mechanics involved in modern growth? So, in what ways has GTM changed in the last 5 years? ·??how buyers do their pre-buying research ·??how buyers leverage groups to make buying decisions ·??how using different marketing channels impacts prospect quality ·??how selecting different market segments impacts resources & revenue ·??how new sales methodologies can improve sales win rates ·??and many other ways directly impacting growth rates So, how confident are you that your board representative with marketing experience from the 1990s actually understands these recent changes? Typical symptoms of "legacy GTM thinking" among directors include: ·??Declining revenue/profits/market share over multiple quarters ·??Escalating customer acquisition costs (CAC) ·??Board members not challenging growth assumptions ·??Limited interest in new technologies (AI) Sound familiar? Potential steps to ensure modern GTM expertise is leveraged include: ? First, analyze gaps between previous strategies & actual results ? Identify the types of GTM expertise needed to fill the gaps ? Understand each board member’s familiarity with “modern” GTM ? Consider external support or provide the board with GTM training ? Add a board member with extensive GTM expertise ? Add Operating Partner well-versed in modern GTM to work with board Since organic growth is so critical to exit valuations today, leveraging modern GTM expertise is a required HEDGE against risky growth bets that could tank your investment. What are you doing TODAY to ensure your portco boards have access to modern GTM expertise? ------------------ ??? React to support ??? Comment with your views ??? Please repost this to also help others ?? Follow Brian Gustason??for more PE growth tips ?------------------- Need help growing your PE-backed businesses in 2025? Let’s talk - DM me

No matter how high up the ladder you are, there's always someone to learn from. Summer Craig talks with C. Lee Smith and Audrey S. on the Manage Smarter podcast. ??

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS! ACG New York proudly thanks the 17th Annual Healthcare Conference sponsors. Join us NEXT WEEK on March 27th! LEARN MORE & REGISTER HERE: https://lnkd.in/e__iVHTa PARTNERS: Baker Tilly US CohnReznick Craig Group GF Data Grata Marwood Group TresVista Troutman Pepper ASSOCIATE PARTNERS: Crowe Hilton Global Associates TriNet MCR Consulting The 17th Annual Healthcare Conference will assemble hundreds of senior Middle Market Healthcare payers, providers, systems as well as top private equity, family office and strategic buyers representing billions of dollars ready to invest in the North American Healthcare Sector. Join us for one-on-one curated deal meetings with investment bankers, great discussion and quality networking including bourbon tasting hosted by Private Equity Sponsors. Thank you to the ACG New York Healthcare Planning Committee: Don Ritucci, Andrew Colbert, Richard Zall, Claudine Cohen, Anna Kostanian, Don McDonough, Joseph Kadlec, John Jones, Jerry Luebbers, CPA and Danielle Fugazy. #acg #acgny #middlemarket #healthcare #mergersandacquisitions #pe #ib #privateequity #investmentbanking #deals #dealorigination #dealsource #lenders #banking #strategics #corporatedevelopment #operatingpartners #bourbon