Building Your M&A Reputation: Why Relationships Beat Transactions Every Time with Andrew Cohen
M&A Science
Andy Cohen, Vice President of Corporate Development at F5 Andy has built a career that proves M&A is fundamentally about relationships, not just transactions. With 30 years of experience and 60 deals closed across high-growth tech companies including Citrix, Acquia, and F5, Andy has cultivated the kind of reputation where every CEO he's worked with will take his call tomorrow. In this conversation, he reveals why zero-sum thinking kills deals, how to convince people to sell without convincing them to sell, and why walking away on principle matters more than closing at any cost. ...
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My Daughter Interviews Me About M&A | Holiday Special Episode with Shyla Patel
M&A Science
In this special father-daughter episode, My daughter interviews me on my new book on Buyer-Led M&A™. We break down the framework built from over 400 practitioner interviews—covering why traditional M&A is flawed, how to shift from reactive auction-chasing to proactive deal sourcing, and why integration planning must begin during diligence. Things you will learn: Why integration planning during diligence (not after) determines deal success How the five pillars of buyer-led M&A transform reactive processes into strategic engines Why proactive deal sourcing beats bank-led...
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How to Score Culture Fit in M&A with Sharon Van Zeeland
M&A Science
, Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development at Rockwell Automation brings a unique engineer's perspective to the softest parts of M&A. In this episode, Sharon reveals how Rockwell developed a systematic scoring system for evaluating culture fit during due diligence—complete with numerical rankings across key dimensions like decision-making authority, adaptability, and mission alignment. She also shares unconventional tactics for getting deals across the finish line, from negotiating hunting rights to sponsoring 4th of July parades, and explains why marrying your diligence...
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Making M&A Boring (And Why That’s a Good Thing) with Leon Brujis
M&A Science
, Partner and Co-Head of U.S. at 65 Equity Partners shares how his firm is redefining private equity through non-control investments in founder-led businesses. In this conversation, Leon breaks down why the best companies are never for sale, how immigrant adaptability translates to investing success, and why boring, disciplined deal-making consistently outperforms flashy transactions. He also walks through his framework for negotiating term sheets and building relationships that span years before cutting checks north of $200 million. Things You'll Learn Why non-control "partnership capital"...
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Integration Starts with Hiring, Not the Deal with Brandon Batt
M&A Science
– Chief People and Transformation Officer at Quadient joins us to discuss how successful M&A integration starts long before you sign an LOI. Brandon shares how Quadient built M&A capability across the organization through strategic hiring, created a transformation office that breaks down traditional silos, and executed portfolio transformation through dozens of acquisitions and divestitures. Learn why the secret to integration success isn't just about playbooks—it's about building M&A muscle into your team from day one. Things You'll Learn Why hiring for M&A experience...
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Strategic M&A Framework: IFS's Acquisition Playbook with Rachel Hindley
M&A Science
, Vice President of Corporate Development, IFS oversees transformative acquisitions for the global leader in industrial AI and enterprise software. In this episode, Rachel shares how IFS navigates the unique dynamics of having three major private equity backers—EQT, HG, and TA Associates—while executing strategic deals that enhance their portfolio. She breaks down IFS's four acquisition archetypes (product bolt-ons, customer migration, market entry, and new platforms), explains why integration and value creation must be separated, and reveals how the company is adapting its...
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Mastering Carve-Out Transactions with Keith Crawford
M&A Science
, Global Head of Corporate Development and M&A at State Street Corporation , Global Head of Corporate Development and M&A at State Street Corporation, brings over 20 years of expertise executing some of the most intricate custody business carve-outs in financial services. In this episode, Keith breaks down the realities of carve-out transactions—from proactive deal sourcing and dependency mapping to navigating TSAs and post-close integration. He shares hard-won lessons on avoiding common pitfalls like scope creep, third-party contract renegotiations, and employee retention challenges...
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Integration-Led M&A: Cisco's Approach to Deal Success Part 2 with Johanna Jaakola and Tesia Hostetler
M&A Science
– Integration Lead, Corporate Development Integration Team, Cisco – Leader, Acquisition Integration Practice, Cisco , Integration Lead on Cisco's Corporate Development Integration Team, and , Leader of Cisco's Acquisition Integration Practice, continue their deep dive into Cisco's integration-led M&A framework. In Part 2, they reveal how integration planning shapes diligence, how value drivers guide surgical execution, and what it takes to coordinate a 180-person M&A community. From day one employee experience to go-to-market complexity and the Splunk mega-deal, this episode...
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Integration-Led Diligence: Cisco's M&A Approach with Johanna Jaakola & Tesia Hostetle
M&A Science
– Integration Lead, Corporate Development Integration Team, Cisco – Leader, Acquisition Integration Practice, Cisco , Integration Lead on Cisco's Corporate Development Integration Team, and , Leader of Cisco's Acquisition Integration Practice, share how one of the world's most prolific acquirers structures deals for success. This episode breaks down Cisco's integration-led diligence model, where integration leads orchestrate due diligence from the deal thesis stage, ensuring strategic alignment and execution readiness before ink hits paper. Learn how Cisco's structured approach to...
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When Integration Beats Roll-Ups with Tim Hall
M&A Science
- Managing Partner and Founder, brings 29 years of private equity experience to this conversation about what actually works in buy-and-build strategies. After launching Brenton Point in 2024 following a 20-year run at CI Capital Partners, where he completed 200+ acquisitions across 12 platforms, Tim breaks down the independent sponsor model and why integration—not just aggregation—is the real value driver. He walks through building platforms from scratch, the executive-first strategy for fragmented markets, and how standardized integration playbooks turn acquired companies into...
info_outlineTim Hall - Managing Partner and Founder, Brenton Point Capital
Tim brings 29 years of private equity experience to this conversation about what actually works in buy-and-build strategies. After launching Brenton Point in 2024 following a 20-year run at CI Capital Partners, where he completed 200+ acquisitions across 12 platforms, Tim breaks down the independent sponsor model and why integration—not just aggregation—is the real value driver. He walks through building platforms from scratch, the executive-first strategy for fragmented markets, and how standardized integration playbooks turn acquired companies into cohesive, high-performing businesses.
Things You'll Learn
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Why independent sponsors can outperform traditional PE funds through concentrated investments, longer hold periods, and direct alignment with management teams earning 15% equity upside versus the typical 10%
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The difference between roll-ups and consolidation and why integration excellence separates winning platforms from aggregated disasters
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How to build platforms from scratch
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The Buyer-Led M&A™ Summit is back.
The virtual event built for dealmakers who want to eliminate chaos and take control from sourcing through integration.
📅 October 30, 2025
🕚 11:00 AM – 2:30 PM ET
💻 Free & Virtual
Learn from leaders who’ve built scalable, repeatable strategies that keep deals on track - Register now.
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Today’s episode of the M&A Science Podcast is brought to you by Grata!
Grata is the leading private market dealmaking platform. With its best-in-class AI workflows and investment-grade data, Grata helps investors, advisors, and strategic acquirers effortlessly discover, research, and connect with potential targets — all in one sleek, user-friendly interface.
Visit grata.com to learn more.
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Episode Chapters
[00:02:00] The GE Capital Training Ground – How Tim's early experience with expert networks shaped his approach to surrounding deals with industry advisors who invest alongside him
[00:04:30] Starting companies with zero revenue by hiring CEOs first, then building deal pipelines in fragmented industries like funeral services
[00:06:00] Why deal-by-deal capital raising enables longer hold periods, eliminates fund-driven decisions, and captures more value creation in the back half
[00:11:30] Finding and Aligning Operators – Sourcing executives through recruiting firms willing to co-invest, and structuring 15% management equity pools for maximum alignment
[00:22:00] Using buy-side search firms to validate thesis and create deal flow before platform acquisition, touching 2,000+ companies to close 200 deals
[00:27:00] Why acquiring is easy but integrating is hard, and how culture assessment, facility tours, and team retention determine success
[00:49:00] Hub, Spoke, and Route Strategy – Three acquisition types for platform building: regional hubs with management depth, spoke deals for synergies, and route buys for pure customer acquisition
[00:52:00] The 150-Point Integration Playbook
[00:58:30] One-Page Strategic Plans – Keeping teams aligned on priorities from monthly goals to five-year vision with a single dense but powerful reference document
[01:04:00] The Herd Mentality Warning – How quickly industries go from undiscovered to overcrowded, and why being the 30th platform in a space means you're already too late
Questions, comments, concerns?
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