With M&A deals, all roads lead to value creation

We’ve just come off the most active M&A market in history, with activity in all sectors, and my adrenaline is still running high. Because whatever the prevailing market conditions, what really inspires our M&A team is creating value for our clients.

The M&A roads to creating value are many and varied. It can be done by unlocking value in a business as part of a sale or acquisition, finding synergies between businesses, finding the right partner, or perhaps introducing new capital. On every path we take, we’re all about realising value for our clients by selling businesses, acquiring businesses or funding businesses.

In this article, I reflect on how we have been creating value lately and also map the route ahead for the next 12 months.

Combating volatility

In the 18 months to 30 June 2022, just about every sector was going gangbusters. M&A deal activity was high, driving strong valuations. More recently, however, there’ve been new twists and turns to navigate.?

Make no mistake, there’s still plenty of activity in the market. But changing market conditions mean there’s increasing volatility in earnings, and this volatility, combined with persistent inflation and rising interest rates, will affect valuation expectations. Vendors and buyers will both have a view on what is the “new normal”, and this might drive variances in valuation expectations.

Sectors that are less affected by the current macro factors – those that can demonstrate greater certainty of earnings – will continue to be active. While more volatile sectors will face greater challenges in pricing earnings risk to get transactions completed.

What makes you stand out as an advisor during these times is the ability to understand the market terrain, price risk and structure around risk. That’s how you solve the potential valuation variances between vendors and buyers.

It’s worth mentioning too, that there’s still plenty of capital around, and corporate balance sheets are strong, plus there’s been an abundance of private capital raised. So there are huge opportunities for dealmakers that know where to look.

Our team delivers value for our clients

We’re excited about what lies ahead for our team and our clients. As a leading, mid-market M&A advisory team, we transform high-stakes situations into value for our clients.

Satisfyingly, it’s really deeply connecting work.?

We connect with our clients on a level where we can give them the best possible advice about how to approach and execute a transaction. It’s not overstating it to say that these transactions are landmark moments in our clients’ personal and professional lives. (For instance, a huge proportion of what we do is helping family businesses sell or find the right partner for growth.)

Achieving this is only possible because our M&A team has the horsepower to deliver. We have more than 60 team members across Australia, and we also draw upon the expertise of colleagues across our domestic and global network. So we bring the greatest possible breadth and depth of industry insight. In fact, it’s fair to say that we’re right up there in terms of market-leading mid-market M&A teams. Our in-depth industry knowledge across all sectors enables us to navigate the potential market challenges and guide our clients to the right outcome for them.

In fact, our M&A team has again ranked as number one global M&A Advisor by Volume for 2021 by Mergermarket, Thomson Reuters, and Bloomberg. And while it’s always an honour to top the league table, the greatest compliment I can receive is when a client refers to us as their ‘trusted advisor’. When that happens, you know you’ve demonstrated the technical skills to achieve the best deal and you’ve earned their trust and respect. Clients need to be able to trust your advice; they need to see that you have their best interests at heart.?

3 tips for your career in M&A

If you think you’ve got what it takes to create value for clients by solving complex problems, then you might consider a career in M&A. It’s a career that requires you to understand your clients’ goals, and how to achieve them. When it comes to your own career goals, however, it comes down to these three things:

1. Establish some very solid foundations and invest heavily in your skills and development.
2. Start building a network and relationships from day one.
3. Surround yourself with the right people – which means people who are prepared to invest in you.

In my view, there’s probably never been a more exciting time to work in M&A than right now. This is a time where our existing team – and our new recruits – will steer people and organisations through an incredible variety of circumstances. We’ll help clients explore new ground and discover more value. And together, we’ll create moments our clients will always remember.?