IT Services CEO turned M&A Banker Linda Rose

My guest today is Linda Rose, of RoseBiz, Inc. A tax accountant by training, Linda left the accounting world behind early in her career and became a repeat entrepreneur with multiple exits in the world of IT Services. After her last exit, Linda wrote the book “Get Acquired for Millions,” in which she laid out many of her lessons learned from her three exits.  

The book accidentally spawned Linda’s third major career chapter as a specialized M&A Advisor advising IT Services entrepreneurs. It was in this context that I got to know Linda given her use of the Axial platform on her sell-side M&A assignments. 

In this episode, you’ll hear about Linda’s early days in accounting, her strategies, tools, and protocols around preparing a company for sale, her surprising views on “women-owned” businesses, and an in-depth discussion on how Linda screens sellers and buyers to find exactly the right fit for all parties.

Discussion points:

• Linda’s background and journey to her current success
• Transitioning her IT Services to a 97% recurring revenue model
• The ERP CRM firm and three-year contracts, different margins and multiples
• Hiring an M&A advisor to help find buyers
• Linda’s selling protocols and strategies
• Becoming an advisor was not planned
• A value assessment tool for companies
• Linda’s book continues to provide value for readers
• The 6 Types of IT channel partners
• What drives appeal and value in each category
• Revenue vs. other value drivers, multiple channels
• Getting financials in order for Linda’s boutique clientele
• Screening potential clients starts with a phone conversation
• Considering buyers – a combination of factors determines the right fit
• The weekly barrage of interested buyer inquiries
• “Women-owned businesses” and the exit challenges they create
• Timelines on deals – calendar year start, March to market, finish before holidays

This podcast is produced by the team at Axial (www.axial.com). Axial is an online platform that makes it easy for small business owners to confidentially research and connect with top-ranked M&A advisors and capital partners. I am your host, Peter Lehrman, Founder and CEO of Axial. In every episode, we explore the vast world of small business M&A, interviewing both the proven and the emerging owners, operators, investors, and advisors whose strategies and methods are being put to the test.

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider giving us a thumbs up on Apple or Spotify. If you’re a business owner, professional acquirer, or M&A advisor, you can start using Axial for free at Axial.com. There you will also find dozens of recorded Axial member roundtables, downloadable tools for dealmakers, quarterly lower middle market league-table rankings, and lots of other checklists and useful information.

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Resources:

Linda Rose on Axial

Rosebiz, Inc.

Book: Get Acquired for Millions

Linda Rose LinkedIn

Peter Lehrman LinkedIn

Axial Website