Smart Business Dealmakers: The Middle-Market M&A Podcast

Hosted by Smart Business Network

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Episodes

303

Latest episode

Apr 2026

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About the show

Smart Business Dealmakers interviews the entrepreneurs doing deals, the PE, VC and family office players investing in them, and the M&A advisers making them happen. Topics include raising capital, buying and selling companies and managing a liquidity event.

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60 recent

April 22, 2026Episode 30417 min

Driving Enterprise Value Through People

Every deal lives or dies by the people at the top. While financial diligence sets the price, leadership diligence is crucial to unlocking deal value. Craig McCall, president of MCG Human Capital Solutions and a corporate psychologist joins the pod to talk about how aligning talent and culture better ensures sustainable enterprise value. From spotting the leadership red flags that erode value post-close to mastering the first 90-day moves of a high-performing integration, Craig explores how to deploy the human solutions that turn an investment thesis into a reality.

April 22, 2026Episode 30324 min

Leadership Culture and Post-Deal Integration with Rachel Wallis Andreasson

Well before she co-authored the book, The Sixth Level, Rachel Wallis Andreasson helped her family's business, Wallis Companies, with two major acquisitions that doubled its headcount. She created and implemented processes that dramatically reduced turnover and increased post-deal success. The principal of the Sixth Level Collaborative and Wallis Companies Shareholder has taken those lessons and turned them into strategies and techniques leaders can use to support sustainable and profitable organizations. On the podcast, she talks about her leadership journey, her M&A experience, and how principles such as connection and care are foundational to creating a workplace culture that no one wants to leave.

March 31, 2026Episode 30229 min

Staying Healthy at the Top with Dr. Brian Dooreck

Dr. Brian Dooreck is a board-certified physician specializing in gastroenterology and hepatology who leads Executive Health Navigation. The firm helps high-net-worth individuals and those in the c-suite ensure they and their family have unmatched accessibility, support and navigation to the best doctors — in the U.S. and around the world. In this conversation, Dr. Doorick talks about what it is that he saw throughout his career that led him to launch the business, why integrated health planning is a must for family offices and wealth managers, and what CEOs tend to ignore about their health and what should they do about it.

February 20, 2026Episode 30130 min

Top 10 M&A Negotiating Mistakes with Bill McComas of Jensen & McComas

Negotiating mistakes in M&A, on either side of a deal, can strip value and hamstring the opportunity for long-term post-deal success. So, avoiding the most common mistakes at critical junctures is immensely important. Bill McComas, co-founder of the law firm Jensen & McComas, drops by to talk about the top M&A negotiating mistakes from both the buy and sell side, what they can do to a deal, and how to avoid them.

September 25, 2025Episode 30035 min

The Arc of a Deal with Mark Jensen of Jensen & McComas

For most business owners, the first time they sell their company is often the last. With only one chance to maximize the value that will be leveraged during life after business, it's important to get it right. Mark Jensen, a member at Jensen & McComas, offers an overview of the arc of an M&A deal — from assembling the deal team to the day of close. He offers tips on what to do and what not to do, and how to deal with the emotional issues that come with selling what is often a life's work.

September 25, 2025Episode 29944 min

The ESOP Exit: Rethinking the Endgame

For business owners thinking about their exit, the choice often seems limited to selling to a competitor or to a private equity firm. But there's a third option, ESOPs, that secures their legacy and rewards the very people who helped build the company. Royer Cooper Cohen Braunfeld's Andy Rudolph, Marc Hirschfield and David Dalesandro take a deep dive into Employee Stock Ownership Plans to break down how this unique succession path works — from the powerful tax advantages to the mechanics of financing the deal. They also explore the founder's role after the sale and the keys to building a thriving ownership culture long after a transition.

August 14, 2025Episode 29846 min

Factors Affecting Public and Private Dealmaking

Regardless of what uncertainty exists in the market or from where it originates, deals continue to get done. However, doing deals during more turbulent times takes some strategic maneuvering. Riveron's Alex Shahidi, Transaction Services Leader, Jeff Bernstein, Equity Capital Markets Leader, and Ryan Gamble, Tax Advisory Leader, explore the current deal environment, and the factors affecting public and private dealmaking. They talk tariffs, capital and debt markets, legislative changes affecting tax, IPO, SPACs and other factors that affect the execution of M&A deals in uncertain times.

August 14, 2025Episode 29734 min

M&A Trends in The GovCon Space

It was supposed to be a great year for M&A in the government contracting sector. New SBA rules were expected to drive GovCon sellers to market as they raced to beat the rules' implementation. But then the Department of Government Efficiency happened, which sought to cut government budgets, something that threatened to negatively affected many GovCon businesses since, as the name implies, government contracts are key to their value. Helping to identify the trends that are pulling GovCon businesses in two extreme directions, Wright Lewis, a Partner at Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig, stops by the Smart Business Dealmakers Podcast to talk about the factors weighing most heavily on M&A in the sector.

June 9, 2025Episode 29642 min

The State of The M&A Market 2025

At this year's Baltimore Smart Business Dealmakers Conference, an expert panel provided actionable insights to mitigate risks and maximize opportunities for both growth and divestiture in an increasingly complex time of tax policies and tariffs. Paragon Biosciences' Peter Buzy, Evergreen Advisors Capital's Stephen Prichett and First National Bank's David Valentiner and Mac Tisdale headlined the panel, moderated by First National Bank's Mac Tisdale.

June 4, 2025Episode 29527 min

Preparing To Sell Your Business with James Hipolit of Troutman Pepper Locke

Perhaps the worst thing a business owner can do ahead of the sale of their company is not be prepared. Not only could that crater the returns the owner was hoping to get for what is often their life's work, it could nuke a sale entirely. Fortunately, attorney James Hipolit has advice for those who've never sold before. In this podcast, the M&A partner with Troutman Pepper Locke covers the basics, from first steps to pre-diligence to common pitfalls, offering advice to get first-time sellers off to a strong start.