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Eight strategies for boosting profits, cutting costs, and reducing risk.

Sound cash management practices are essential for any business. However, businesses in a cyclical industry have unique issues that require special diligence.

A cyclical industry—like construction, airlines, oil and gas—is sensitive to the business cycle, meaning its revenue is generally higher in periods of economic prosperity and lower in periods of economic downturn.

“Cyclical industries need to plan meticulously for downturns, ensuring they have adequate cash reserves, whereas noncyclical industries may have more consistent revenue flows,” says Jack McCullough, president of the CFO Leadership Council. “Feast or famine is a reality, more so in cyclical industries.”

Consider these eight strategies for cutting costs, saving money and reducing risk—some of which might be useful for noncyclical businesses as well.

1. Plan for the Worst

Eric Kraft, Dallas/Fort Worth commercial banking executive for First Horizon Bank, says conducting a strategic planning session at least once a year is important for all businesses and critical for a cyclical business. Companies should produce an operating plan, complete with financial projections, that considers three potential outcomes: a best-case scenario, when the economy performs well and all other factors fall into place; a worst-case scenario, when the economy falters; and a likely scenario, when things go as expected.

The cyclical companies that do the best job of planning are able to withstand difficult economic times. One best practice is to invite employees from several organizational layers to take part in the early-stage planning sessions. “Front-line employees can offer significant insight into customers’ and suppliers’ operating resilience,” Kraft says. “The companies that fail at planning don’t get the right people in the room, or they don’t allow them to freely share their thoughts.”

He recommends having a third-party consultant supervise the planning process, so the business owner is freed up to take part in the planning.

2. Cushion Yourself for Downturns

Companies in cyclical industries should have significantly greater capitalization and liquidity than companies that don’t cycle often; they should position the company during peak times to allow a cushion for downturns, according to Kraft.

“You need to be able to withstand these downturns and absorb losses for a certain period of time without materially cutting your fixed overhead,” he says. “If you find yourself in a situation where you need to cut costs, there are only so many levers you can pull, like laying off employees. We saw that in the pandemic, where restaurants closed locations and then when business returned, they weren’t able to get their employees back.”

When asked their priorities for 2024, more than half (51%) of midmarket business leaders put growth at the top in a recent WSJ Intelligence survey. Growth, like customer experience and increasing operational efficiency—ranking second and third, respectively—hinges on effective cash management.

3. Reduce Balance Sheet Leverage

Cyclical companies should generally have lower balance sheet leverage. “When they do borrow, it’s prudent to shorten the term of the debt to a period that is well less than the useful life of the underlying asset. By doing this, they will deleverage more quickly, relieving interest costs and creating the potential to refinance in a downturn,” Kraft says.

4. Factor in the Changing Interest Rates

Dana Moore, director of treasury management sales for First Horizon Bank, says companies should reevaluate the value of their cash in light of recent interest rate increases.

“Prior to the recent rate hikes, we were in an ultralow interest rate environment for over a decade. Debt was cheap and invested cash earned less than 1%. During this period, businesses lost discipline around cash management because the time-value of money was almost irrelevant. Now is the time to revisit that discipline; this higher interest rate environment creates opportunities to apply idle cash to pay down revolving credit or park in short-term investments,” she explains. “The markets right now are offering extremely favorable interest rates for liquid instruments, so companies are really missing out on an income opportunity or a savings opportunity if they are not using their cash in the most effective way.”

5. Use Lines of Credit as a Buffer

A line of credit should be used as a buffer during downturns, not as a primary source of funding, McCullough says. “It’s essential to avoid maxing it out; instead, maintain a balance to ensure availability during unexpected challenges,” he cautions. “Regularly review the terms and conditions of the credit line to ensure they remain favorable and meet the company’s needs.”

6. Consider Purchasing Cards

Moore notes that businesses may not realize the benefits of using purchasing cards, which are payable in full each month and available to commercial entities. “These cards usually have larger credit limits and are best used to pay suppliers,” she says. “The suppliers receive their money in a timely manner, while letting the company extend those payables up to an additional 45 days.”

7. Keep on Top of Cash Management

McCullough says some of the most common mistakes he sees among cyclical businesses are not diversifying revenue sources, overextending during peak times and neglecting to regularly revise and update financial forecasts.

“To avoid these mistakes, companies should maintain a conservative financial stance, regularly review their cash flow projections and aim for flexibility in both operations and financial commitments,” he says.

8. Focus on Business Efficiency

Cash management cycles have changed considerably over the past five or six years, Moore says. “When people started to work from home during the pandemic, everyone was forced to become more nimble,” she says. “Businesses moved from paper to electronic transactions to be more effective—for both receivables and payables. Traditionally, cash management has been about accelerating receivables and delaying payables to the extent possible, while having visibility into the organization’s cash flow. The next evolution is to use advancing technology to take on the more mundane accounting tasks, freeing staff to perform higher-value functions. It’s time to embrace cash management again as part of the strategic business plan.”

Brooke Chase Associates, Inc. was not involved in the creation of this content.

By Paul Cachero | Bloomberg

The Internal Revenue Service recently bumped the income thresholds for its tax brackets by 5.4% for 2024, its latest adjustment to account for elevated rates of inflation.

The move is unlikely to produce a material change on most Americans’ tax burdens, according to financial advisers. Rather, it is designed to keep earners in their current tax bracket if their additional income is only keeping up with higher living costs. The standard deduction for income tax filings in 2024 will also be 5.4% higher.

A number of other IRS thresholds have also been raised for next year, including contribution limits on tax-deferred retirement accounts, limits on gifts and estate tax exemptions.

Below is a review of those key changes, which may help taxpayers lower their tax liability in a few areas, experts say.

Income Tax Changes
The standard deduction, or amount that the IRS allows taxpayers to deduct from their income, is increasing 5.4%. That means the figure for single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately will rise to $14,600, while that for head of households and married couples filing jointly will increase to $21,900 and $29,200, respectively.

In tax year 2024, there will also be a higher income threshold for each tax bracket, meaning Americans will get a “grace period” before additional income is taxed at a higher levy, said Ryan McKeown, a financial advisor at Wealth Enhancement Group. For example, single filers with an income over $100,525 and couples earning $201,050 will be hit with a 24% tax in 2024, up from $95,375 and $190,750 this year.

Retirement Accounts
The 2024 adjustments for inflation will also provide an opportunity for savers to contribute more to tax-deferred 401(k) accounts, allowing some to reduce their income tax liability, said Dana McCartney, a CPA with AICPA.

The IRS hiked contribution limits for 401(k)s by $500 to $23,000 in 2024, in addition to a $500 bump for IRA contributions to $7,000.

Older workers who can make “catch-up” contributions on these types of accounts should note the limit did not increase in 2024, however, remaining at $7,500 for 401(k)s and $1,000 for IRAs.

Family Planning
If you plan to transfer wealth to the next generation, gifts of up to $18,000 will be tax free in 2024, up from $17,000 in 2023, and the lifetime estate tax exemption will be $13.6 million, up from the $12.9 million.

Wealthy taxpayers should take advantage of these higher limits, advisers say, as the Trump-era tax cut that doubled the federal estate tax exemption will sunset in 2025; meaning the exemptions will effectively be cut in half.

Annual contribution limits for 529 savings accounts, meant for a child’s education, will also increase by $1,000 to $18,000 in 2024. 529 contributions are considered gifts for federal tax purposes, but they don’t count against the lifetime gift tax exemption.

Additionally, starting in 2024, 529 account holders will be able to transfer up to a lifetime limit of $35,000 to a Roth IRA for a beneficiary. So if the next generation changes their higher education plans, the money you saved for college can be used for their retirement instead, said McKeown.

“Grandparents can save away, and rest assured that their money won’t go to waste,” he said.

Written By: Alicia Esposito

“Innovation” is a common word in the world of business, but it can often feel out of reach for small businesses. With the right technology, however, small business owners can establish processes that improve efficiencies and improve output.

To start successfully implementing innovations in your company, it is helpful to review the areas where they can be best applied. An implementation process can then be determined to install those specific technologies, systems or techniques that make the most sense for your business.

Innovations can be new ideas, methods or devices that save time, energy and expense or improve capacity, quality and speed. With this in mind, you should do three things as you consider the value of different technology innovations:

1. Review what innovations can do for your business: Learn what is possible from whatever innovations you come across as you interact with your industry, so you can create a vision of potential improvements.
2. Define those areas in your company that could benefit from these innovations: Sort each of the business processes you’re engaged in into a separate area to determine potential improvement zones.
3. Search for new technologies and solutions that make sense for your business: Narrow your focus based on the investment areas that would facilitate future growth.

What Can Innovation Do for Your Business?

The pace of business continues to accelerate across industries, and new technology is empowering businesses to keep pace and capitalize on new growth opportunities. But before jumping into the hottest tech trend (like Gen AI, for example), consider what exactly it will do for your company. With this in mind, the following represent some of the benefits that can result from a properly implemented new idea, method or piece of equipment:

Increased Efficiency

This area of innovation relates to using less energy or requiring fewer steps and less labor to accomplish tasks that are currently necessary to keep business going. These kinds of improvements often involve the removal of unnecessary blocks to productivity or a revision in the way existing processes are done through new equipment, new methods or both.

Improved Capacity

Understanding what your current capacity is and what makes sense in terms of the capacity goals for a business the size of your company will help you decide if increasing capacity is the next logical step. An example of capacity improvement would be a manual screen-printing shop that adds an automated press.

Cost Reduction

Innovations that reduce the cost of product or service creation are becoming increasingly popular as labor costs continue to rise. Sometimes the resulting savings can be passed along to the customer. Other times, the savings can be added directly to your own bottom line.

Diversification of Services

Many shops these days are looking to recent innovations to add an additional decorating method without necessarily having to create a lot of extra shop space or add labor. Examples of the kind of equipment that makes this possible include the previously mentioned innovations in DTF and DTG. Other examples include some of the smaller, event-style or live-decorating types of equipment now on the market, which can be utilized to provide additional in-house services.

Improved Profit Margins

Among the more popular forms of innovations are those that allow a business to make more money while doing the same or less work. To achieve this, software systems, standardized processes and other digital products can provide faster, cheaper preparation steps as well as quicker timelines with less overall waste. Examples that help improve margins in this fashion include digital business management systems (BMS) or enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions that can dramatically reduce the time and cost involved in completing tasks your company is already doing.

Sustainability

As the industry becomes increasingly aware of the need to address its environmental impact, innovations helping businesses reduce waste and generally improve the work environment for their employees are becoming essential.

Something to think about as consider transforming your business processes: depending on the specific solution you go with, there is often a cascading effect, with companies seeing additional long-term benefits over time and in other functional areas.

Which brings us to the next step: looking at the areas in your company it makes sense to address.

Areas to Implement Innovation

This part of the investment review will differ significantly depending on your company’s structure, teams and processes. Be sure to obtain some expert advice that is specific to your company before investing in or dramatically changing your current organization. Some of the general areas where innovation is now taking place include:

Sales and Marketing

Exciting new digital innovations in marketing and customer acquisition offer possibilities that never before existed, with software and AI services such as ChatGPT, rapidly becoming essential in these two vital areas. Employing services outside your company can not only assist with overflow, it can also allow you to take advantage of some of the latest AI services on the market, like Midjourney, which has helped creative teams accelerate ideation and creative collaboration.

Fulfillment

The pandemic changed many organizations’ ordering processes, with consumers increasingly relying on ecommerce. There are many new ideas, products and services to consider when dealing with smaller order sizes or managing inventory and ecommerce orders.

Order Processing

Software systems continue to offer improved integration and provide management tools for tracking customer orders. Today’s software even makes it possible for customers to keep tabs on how their orders are progressing without having to talk to a single person within your business. Adding a system to help modernize order tracking and processing frees up employees to do other, more creative or productive work, in addition to helping the bottom line.

What Innovations Should You Adopt?

Establishing a vision will provide you with a clear set of targets you can employ as you research potential solutions. As you are doing so, consider the scope of the change(s) you are thinking about making. Will they consist of a “refinement” that improves the efficiency of a process you are already engaged in while not necessarily growing your business? Or are you interested in “leveling up,” adding capacity or quality or both? The thing to avoid is trying to do too much too soon or having unrealistic expectations.

The following is a short framework to help you work your way through the decision-making process:

1. What are you looking to achieve? Is the goal to increase revenue, capacity or the overall size of your business? Define what you are looking to achieve, so you can measure the success of your effort.
2. What timeframes and costs are involved? Make sure you have a handle on all possible costs. Project these costs over time, so there are no unpleasant surprises.
3. Include any affected employees in the process as early as possible. Doing so will encourage their ownership of the process and likely provide you with some valuable feedback prior to implementation.

Given the rate of change in today’s business climate, once you have done your homework and received the requisite professional guidance required, it only makes sense to implement beneficial innovations as quickly as you can. The sooner you improve your company, the more you will distance yourself from those businesses that have decided to wait before making a move — and the more you’ll position your business for success.

Where in Your Business Should You Innovate?

At this point, you may be thinking that all sounds great, but you are too busy dealing with the day-to-day to take time from your company to look for ways to innovate. This is a common issue.

To get ongoing insight from industry peers, consider attending key trade shows or join social networking groups and communities where your peers ask questions and share their experiences. You also can tap into industry-specific trade media, which can offer tailor advice and data to validate your decisions.

Ultimately, taking an intentional approach to innovation is one of the best ways to rapidly improve on multiple fronts. Having a vision of what you would like to improve, a specific area in your company to address and a plan for the new processes or systems you want to implement will position you for measurable success. Once you implement technology in one area, you’ll be able to glean lessons that you can apply for future projects.

Written By: Laura Tiffany

Employees who feel appreciated, listened to, and supported are naturally going to do a better job and stick around longer. And the way to build a business that provides this type of employee experience is through the company culture you cultivate. But what does “company culture” really mean and how does it apply to smaller businesses?

On the surface, it brings to mind the perks of big tech firms: gourmet cafeterias, on-site laundry services, video game consoles and foosball tables.  But this definition no longer works anymore for two reasons: 1. Employees have wised up and realized that those perks are meant to appease them when asked to work 60+-hour weeks, and 2. They really don’t apply to typical smaller businesses.

A better definition is one by Don Mastro, found in an article from Security Sales and Integration: “In the simplest terms, culture is how an employee feels on Sunday night. Do they look forward to Monday morning and the week ahead? Or, conversely, do they dread it?”

 The Real Reasons Employees Leave — and Stick Around

Employee experience technology firm Medallia recently asked workers why they left their job or are considering leaving. The top five answers for hourly employees were their jobs in general, workload, pay equity, limited opportunity for career advancement, and not feeling appreciated. For salaried employees, the top five answers were workload, jobs in general, not feeling appreciated, company leadership, and pay equity.

Behind all of these reasons lurks a big question: Were employers aware of the issues and did they listen to and act upon employee feedback to address the problems?

A company culture that attracts and retains talented employees doesn’t revolve around perks that can be bought — in fact, these models are out of reach for many smaller businesses that simply do not have the capital to buy high-end amenities. What really brings workers satisfaction is being able to provide feedback and ideas for how to improve their work and the business — and knowing that those ideas are being taken seriously and acted upon.

Another Medallia survey found that only one of four employees felt heard by their bosses and even fewer felt their workplaces took any meaningful action based on their feedback. MIT Sloan analyzed 1.4 million Glassdoor reviews and found that a toxic corporate culture is 10.4X more powerful than compensation when predicting a company’s attrition rate in comparison with the average attrition rate of its industry.

Now, we can take the latter data point with a small grain of salt as compensation may be less of a concern at the large firms that MIT Sloan was analyzing. But it’s still illustrative of a point that is relevant for any small business: Toxic workplaces make people leave their jobs.

What makes a company culture not toxic, then? A great company culture starts with leaders who listen to the people who are there on the frontlines day after day. They handle customer complaints, hear customer compliments, and know what is working and what is not when it comes to their jobs.

As Mastro notes: “Provide employees with big, meaningful opportunities to share what’s on their minds, and then back them up with your day-to-day behaviors. You’ll make a difference.”

Every day is a new opportunity to build a company culture at your business that helps employees flourish in their jobs, engenders positive feelings about work, and demonstrates how much you value and appreciate your staff and customers.

Written By: Francesca Nicasio

Some business owners see themselves running their companies for decades — maybe even passing them down to their children — but most entrepreneurs don’t want to own and operate their companies forever. Industry data shows that 53% of business owners want to either sell their business or transfer ownership within the next 10 years.

If this is you, then you need to ensure you have a well-crafted exit strategy.

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are an attractive prospect for entrepreneurs because they provide a strategic exit route while ensuring long-term financial security and legacy preservation.

That said, the process of selling a business can be incredibly challenging, and only 30% to 40% of companies listed for sale are sold.

Why Do You Need an Exit Strategy? 

Your exit strategy can make or break the sale of your business. A well-crafted plan can maximize the value of the business at sale so that you can secure a solid financial position post-purchase.

In addition, a well-defined exit strategy — one that outlines the steps involved in transferring ownership — minimizes operational disruption. If there’s a smooth handover of leadership and responsibilities, your business can keep running.

A strong transition plan isn’t just about handing over the reins to someone new; it’s about ensuring that you and your business can thrive well after the sale.

How Do You Know When to Sell? 

The ideal time to sell your business depends on a combination of personal, business-related and market considerations.

On the personal side, you may be ready to pursue M&A if you’re approaching retirement age or looking for a lifestyle change. Maybe you’ve lost your passion for running the business or feeling burnt out. In these cases, selling your company may enable you to pursue new adventures.

Business-wise, you may consider selling your company when it has reached a certain level of maturity. Has the business grown to a certain size, and you’re not interested in taking it further? In some cases, the business may have reached a growth plateau, making M&A a good option.

Finally, the market itself could start telling you that it’s time to sell. If favorable market trends or emerging opportunities arise, selling may allow you to capitalize on these developments, see a positive ROI on your investments and pursue new ventures. Similarly, if you receive unsolicited or attractive acquisition offers, it could be a smart idea to explore them.

How Can You ‘Market’ Your Business as an Ideal M&A Target? 

If you’ve decided to sell your business, you need to position your company in the best possible position. Here are expert steps to establish your business as a good M&A target.

Strengthen your cash flow

“In the end, cash is king.”

Cash flow is always the first thing buyers look at — whether they’re private equity firms or competing businesses growing through acquisition.

As such, the first thing you should do before marketing your business to potential buyers is get your cash flow in order. You can do this by “cutting expenses in areas that will not hurt revenues or profitability. This may also involve the owner taking a salary as a W-2 employee. Owner Salary is a big component of Seller’s Discretionary Earnings — or some people use Adjusted EBITDA. In a small business where the owner is the daily operator, the owner’s salary may often be the biggest part of the business’ cash flow.

Get organized

Do buyers — and yourself — a favor by ensuring all company paperwork and components are in order. This will make the due diligence process immensely easier.

Get your house in order. This is everything from sales to operations, accounts payable and accounts receivable, and everything in between.  Buyers spooked by a messy due diligence process. It literally could cost you the deal.

Small business owners should gather all financial records, update their list of assets, and organize all contracts to ensure all information is organized and aggregated in one easy-to-access location. Make sure all key stakeholders are aware of the need to clean up shop and make it easy to give the potential buyer the information they ask for.”

Remove yourself from the business

Having an owner who’s heavily involved in the business’s daily operations can complicate the transition process, making the company less attractive to buyers.

Owners should minimize their involvement in their company’s day-to-day. ​​Start removing yourself from the daily operations by adding a layer of management below you. Step away from being the face of the business. This makes the business more appealing, especially to private equity groups.

Round up your key players

A solid team in place reassures buyers that your business can continue to operate successfully post-acquisition, which makes your company a lot more appealing.

Having key personnel identified, managing and leading teams is a very attractive thing for buyers because it shows stability, order, predictability and more importantly, scalability.

Pro tip: maintain confidentiality

While finding potential buyers is relatively easy, securing a serious prospect is a different story.

You can’t under emphasized the importance of maintaining confidentiality when finding a buyer. You can do this by creating a blind profile.

Blind profiles include vague and ambiguous details on the business — what it is, some high-level financial information, etc. Do not name the business, the owner or the precise location. This compromises confidentiality

When the public knows the business is for sale, there is a chance the business may lose customers.

How Will You Know if a Buyer is the Right Fit? 

A good buyer is not only willing and able to purchase your business but also motivated to do so. Here’s how you can determine if a buyer is a good fit or if you should go elsewhere.

Watch for red flags early on

You can usually learn a lot about a potential buyer in the first 15 to 20 days, which is why this period is essential for spotting red flags.

A telltale sign of a poor fit is experiencing difficulties during your early discussions.

The initial negotiations, letter of intent and due diligence stages should be easy. Difficult people, sloppiness and poor response times are major red flags that all too often end up being the sign of a bad buyer.

Assess the buyer’s economic stability

Just as the buyer would want to assess your business’s financial stability and cash flow, you should also evaluate their financial strength and credibility.

It’s key to ensure you are going to receive payment for your business. Even when you are willing to provide seller financing, make sure the upfront payment is adequate and ask for account statements or other proof of their financial capability to fund your business.

Set a Plan for Your Business’s Future 

There are several factors to consider when deciding whether or not to sell your business. If you do decide to go down the M&A route, you must take steps to make your business as attractive as possible to potential buyers.

From strengthening your financial position to finding interested parties, doing your homework — and the legwork — to secure the right buyer will make the sales process easier and more rewarding.

Bathtub Party Day

Bathtub Party Day encourages us all to skip the ordinary shower and linger in the tub instead. On December 5th, add some suds to the tub and pamper yourself.

• 3000 years ago is about the time that the first ‘ancestral’ pedestal tub was unearthed on the island of Crete, it measured five feet long, was made of hard pottery, and its shape resembled our modern 19th-century claw-foot tub.
• 6000 years ago archeologists discovered a plumbing system near the Indus River Valley in India
• 264 BC – The physics of displacement was discovered by Archimedes while he was soaking in a bathtub
• 17th Century – The earliest variant of the modern bathtub appears in Crete.
• 1825 – It wasn’t until the sixth president of the United States, John Quincy Adams, took office that the first bathtub appeared in the White House. Unfortunately, actual bathing was a bit tricky as there was no running water.
• 1873 – The Kohler Company is founded, with Jacob Vollrath and John Michael Kohler among the founders.
• 1853 – Franklin Pierce, the 14th man to serve as President, was the first to have a tub installed in the stunning Washington D.C. residence.
• 1883 – John Michael Kohler invented the world’s first claw-foot tub in enamel.
• 1921 – only 1% of the population’s homes had indoor plumbing, as outhouses were still the norm in rural America.
• 1928 – It was the Crane Company that first invented various colored bathroom fixtures in the US market back in 1928.
• Bathtub Gin received its name as the bottles were too tall to be topped up with water from a sink so they were filled in the tub and the gin was even sometimes distilled and fermented in a tub
• It’s against the law for donkeys to sleep in bathtubs in Arizona
• In Kentucky, a historic law required citizens to take a bath at least once every year.
• About 365 people drown in their bathtubs each year (bath safety is critical!)
• The average bathtub holds approximately over 52 gallons of water
• Marilyn Monroe reportedly bathed in champagne and it took a whopping total of 350 bottles to fill the bathtub
• It would take 17,000 McDonalds straws of water to fill a standard bathtub
• Mike Tyson reportedly spent $2 million on a bathtub for his ex-wife
• Dermatologists and skin experts have confirmed that ‘feel-good’ hormones – endorphins – are released when you bathe, similar to that feeling when you’re laying down on the beach enjoying all the warmth of the summer weather.
• An hour long soak at 38 degrees can burn on average 130 calories, which is the equivalent of doing 40 sit-ups or walking for half an hour.
• Did you know baths can make your heart actually pump faster? As the heart plays a vital role in cooling the body down, it has to work harder in a hot bath – not only exercising the heart but also great for the body’s general blood flow.
• Italy-based manufacturer Devon & Devon created a gold-coated tub.
• On the Titanic, only two bathtubs were available to over 700 passengers in third class.
• A steamy bath during cold and flu season helps to clear our sinuses and improve our oxygen intake. It also increases our circulation.
• The warm water reduces inflammation, easing achy joints and sore muscles. It also helps relieve stress.
• Dropping temperatures outside mean cold hands and feet, or just a chilled body in general. A soak in a warm tub warms us right up.
• Roman baths were originally built exclusively for the poor. The very first of Rome’s 900+ public baths were actually built for the poorest people to use, while the rich folks would have baths at home. Over time, however, the leisurely bathing pastime became a hallmark of Roman society in general – and bridged the gap between rich and poor just a little bit.

By: Datasite – October 30, 2023

Recent breakthroughs in artificial intelligence are having ripple effects in virtually every industry, and the M&A field is no exception. This new technology has potentially huge implications for dealmakers, both in day-to-day practice and big-picture strategy. Datasite’s roundtable discussion for Q3 of 2023 focused on how buyers, sellers, and M&A advisors should think about AI as they look ahead.

Questions and Concerns About AI Adoption

Artificial intelligence seems poised to reshape virtually every field of human endeavor. Which of those impacts should be top of mind for M&A professionals?

According to Justin Gans of Capstone Partners, it can be hard to pick just one. AI has already had a considerable impact on the market landscape as major tech firms race to scoop up top talent through large acqui-hires. It’s also impossible to ignore the risks this technology poses, such as the spread of misinformation through deepfakes or the possibilities for market disruptions due to algorithm-driven stock trading.

Meanwhile, professionals across the workforce are wondering how this new technology will affect their careers, even as they search for effective ways to work with it. Audience polling numbers suggested that adapting to the novel capabilities of AI may be the most pressing concern for many, with 53% of viewers listing it as their number-one concern.

What’s Next For AI?

Amir Ghavi, a partner at Fried Frank and the head of the firm’s technology practice, said he’s anticipating a major expansion in the ways artificial intelligence will be deployed. Initially, he pointed out, many observers viewed AI mainly in terms of individual apps like ChatGPT. Now, there’s a growing awareness of the viability of a multimodal approach incorporating disparate capabilities like image recognition, language models, and video generation.

“All of the applications we’re used to using today in the enterprise are going to have varying degrees of AI baked into them,” he said. “AI won’t look like one particular thing. Sort of like eggs in a cake, it’s going to be an invisible but quite powerful layer.”

Ashish Pagey, Datasite’s Vice President of Artificial Intelligence, agreed with Ghavi’s assessment. He also noted that there’s a great deal of progress being made on agentic tools that can perform complex, multi-stage tasks autonomously. In addition, the open-source world may be catching up to proprietary models like GPT4, which should further accelerate AI adoption.

AI Market Trends to Watch

The panelists suggested that the M&A market’s initial enthusiasm for AI is being tempered by a growing caution about the risks it poses. Sellers today often have to make a case for their ability to remain competitive in the face of AI-driven disruption.

At the same time, there’s an increasing expectation that companies in every space will have sophisticated cybersecurity and data analytics capabilities. Audience poll responses reflect this concern, indicating that concerns about data security are the biggest headwinds for AI in the M&A industry.

On the more positive side, the panel identified two major hotspots for AI-related deals. The first was advanced tech, as machine learning tools enable companies to better identify and engage with their customers.

Gans offered TikTok as a perfect example. “The thing that makes TikTok such a super-popular app is the way its algorithms can very quickly determine what is most of interest to any particular user,” he said.

Another potential growth area is in large-scale data analytics. The ability to derive useful insights from massive, unstructured data sets offers potentially game-changing benefits for buyers of all kinds.

Kicking the Tires on AI Acquisitions

Moderator Abby Roberts (Senior Director for Datasite Insights) asked the audience what’s most likely to cause a deal in the AI space to fall apart. The top contender: difficulty verifying the seller’s claims about their tech.

Gans concurred, adding that most of the deal collapses he’s seen have been due to exaggerated promises by sellers.

“For example, there was a company that claimed they were experts at identifying hazards for driverless cars,” he recalled. “They were great…when it was a nice, clean street in the middle of the day.”

The panelists suggested that one of the critical questions diligence teams should ask is whether a given solution is taking advantage of the latest in AI capabilities. Buyers may need to beware of companies that say they’ve built their own models, when in fact they’re simply reskinning open-source technology or adding UI/UX features to an existing engine.

“In a very short period of time, we’ve gone through two or three generations of technology,” Pagey said. “The thing I would look for is: Is this product using the previous generation’s technologies and competencies? Or are they well-positioned to use the next gen and continue to expand and differentiate?”

AI Tools In the M&A Workplace

Will generative AI tools increase or decrease the workload of M&A professionals? In a recent survey by Datasite, 47% said they expected this technology to make them busier rather than taking work off their plate.

“We think of AI more as automation, which is true,” Pagey said. “But the macro-level value for an organization is to use that automation to scale up.”

While many individual tasks may be faster with help from these novel tools, dealmakers may have much more to do as the capabilities of their firms expand. Ghavi seconded this view.

“It’s a productivity tool,” he said. “A country like France might use it to take more time off. I suspect that’s not going to be the way it plays out in America. We’re going to continue to try to do more in the same amount of time.”

The trillion-dollar question, he said, is whether dealmakers can handle this accelerated pace competently. Even with the added capabilities offered by AI, there’s a risk of vital details falling through the cracks when major workflows are handed over to computers.

Why Dealmakers Should Stop Worrying and Learn to Love AI

Roberts closed out the discussion by asking the panelists what advice they’d offer to M&A professionals who are concerned about this technology’s potential to disrupt the industry.

“Become as smart as possible about what AI can do,” said Gans, “both for you and your company. We’re past the initial adoption curve…if you don’t get smart on it, you’ll get left behind.”

Ghavi cited MIT roboticist Kate Darling’s suggestion that we should think of AI as animals rather than human replacements — semi-autonomous tools that will sit alongside humans.

He also pointed out that companies may be facing an important tradeoff: should they let vendors use their data to train their models? Their competitors will also have access to the advanced tools that result, but AI may not realize its full potential if companies are stingy with their data.

Pagey suggested that M&A companies may want to start their AI adoption with simple, reliable tools that will enhance their workflows without disrupting them. Then they can move on to more transformative capabilities.

“The first step, I think, will position people to understand, learn, de-risk, and remove some of the unknowns,” he said. “Step number two will probably have much higher returns.”

By, Matt Benjamin, Senior Markets Expert, The Oxford Club

In a presidential election, should smart business owners, CEO’s and investors vote for the Democrat or the Republican?

It’s an age-old question, and it’s becoming relevant again as the 2024 election season approaches and business owners, CEO’s and investors start eyeing the polls.

Invariably, each election delivers hysterical prognosticators who tell us the market will tank under a particular candidate.

On election night in 2016, when it looked like Donald Trump would beat Hillary Clinton, and New York Times opinion columnist and Nobel laureate Paul Krugman predicted apocalypse.

“Markets are plunging,” Krugman wrote that night. “If the question is when markets will recover, a first-pass answer is never.”

He was dead wrong. While the market went for a wild ride over Trump’s four years in the White House, the S&P 500 Index was 63% higher when he left office.

Similarly, I have Republican friends who predicted an utter market collapse under Barack Obama.

Yet the S&P was up 176% over his eight years in office.

For comparison, the market has struggled a bit during the Biden administration and is up just 14% over Joe Biden’s first 33 months as president. And the market fell almost 40% during George W. Bush’s eight years.

As the chart below shows, it doesn’t make that much difference to the market whether the Oval Office occupant is a Republican or a Democrat. (You can compare the S&P performance under presidents going back to Herbert Hoover here.)

That isn’t to say that a president’s policy choices don’t matter.

It’s All About the Policies

Regulation and tax policies influence the behavior of companies and individuals.

Just as important – and maybe more so – is fiscal stimulus. If you pump a lot of money into the economy, chances are that consumers and businesses will spend it. And that spending will drive corporate profits up and, eventually, stock prices higher.

And boy, oh boy, have we had fiscal stimulus in the past few years!

Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act amounted to $3 trillion in economic stimulus over 10 years. That’s bigger (as a percentage of GDP) than the entire New Deal pushed through under Franklin Roosevelt. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020 amounted to another $2 trillion. Overall, Trump’s administration enacted about $6 trillion in stimulus spending.

Biden has tried to match that. His administration has overseen the passage of five pieces of stimulus legislation that total just over $5 trillion.

As you can see in the table below, these numbers (all adjusted for inflation) dwarf both the New Deal and the Marshall Plan.

Yes, I’m well aware most of this government largesse is deficit spending, and that the national debt has ballooned to more than $33 trillion. And yes, eventually, there will be consequences to this uncontrolled borrowing.

Monetary policy, however, matters just as much as fiscal policy. And unfortunately for Biden, the ZIRP – zero interest rate policy – era is over. Just about 13 months into Biden’s term, the Federal Reserve embarked on the steepest interest rate hiking cycle in four decades.

That marked the end of easy money.

What Will 2024 Bring?
The 2024 presidential election could be very important indeed, and you’ll want to have a plan for it no matter who wins.

The reality is that smart American businesses find ways to succeed no matter who’s in charge.