Michael W. McLaughlin, Contributing Editor of RainToday.com recently wrote in an article entitled “The One Service Every Consultant Should Offer” about the virtues of providing clients with a diagnostic assessment.  The merits of his comments stand for themselves.  However, one particular idea stood out above all else.  Namely the suggestion that clients don’t take their […]

Over the years I have been asked to talk about industry consolidations and the effect consolidation has on private companies within a given space. I have learned this topic isn’t without controversy. Obviously the impact on a given business or an industry will vary wildly. However, in spite of the fluid nature of business, there […]

Since November of 2006, I have read with interest and amazement the “Street Smarts” articles written by Norm Brodsky in Inc. Magazine. My interest is borne of having served as Managing Partner of Northshore Capital Advisors, a mid-market intermediary that has closed several dozen document management transactions in the last five years. During […]

I have a lawyer and I trust him
In the past, this phrase did not bother me.  When I first started working on transactions, I failed to draw the distinction that lawyers specialize much like physicians.  They do and if you choose to work with a lawyer based on a relationship and not their credentials, you […]

It never hurts to ask
 I hear this phrase expressed to me frequently as I prepare to negotiate on behalf of clients.  Even though I negotiate every day, clients seem compelled to encourage me to push harder hoping that it will improve their deal.  I understand that.  Every client wants to know that they have maximized […]

Want to get a buyer nervous? Negotiate vigorously the terms of the seller non-compete. It sends the message (justified or not) that the seller has plans after the deal that would be in competition with the buyer. Any buyer who has any experience bristles at the notion that they are about to […]

Jared Sandberg of the Wall Street Journal wrote an insightful piece in the Tuesday September 12th edition about the dangers of multitasking. If we are true to ourselves we can all remember times when in an attempt to get everything done we fail to get much accomplished. But his article takes it further and highlights […]

I must admit I never thought I would commit to writing a blog for the Northshore website. Honestly, I never really paid much attention to blog’s, and when the idea was first suggested, I thought it was a little crazy. But after listening to my team and doing a little browsing, I have […]