The Shifting EtA Landscape: The Rise of Self-Funded Search with HBS Professors Royce Yudkoff & Richard Ruback

This episode features guests Royce Yudkoff and Richard (Rick) Ruback, co-authors of the Harvard Business Review Guide to Buying a Small Business, and professors at Harvard Business School (HBS). Royce and Rick have spent more than 15 years teaching Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (EtA) and have witnessed the category evolve from a niche MBA pursuit into a mainstream career path for mid-career professionals and beyond. 

The conversation covers how EtA has expanded beyond elite MBA programs, the shifting dynamics of self-funded vs. funded search, the evolution of financing options, and the role of small business acquisition as an alternative to traditional career paths. Royce and Rick share insights on how self-funded search has become a dominant trend, the growing diversity in the EtA space, and what the future holds for small business ownership.

Discussion Points:

• Introduction to HBS professors Royce Yudkoff & Richard Ruback
• The rise of interest in the EtA category, both in and outside MBA programs
• Success stories helping legitimize EtA as a mainstream career path
• How the financing landscape for EtA has evolved over the past decade
• Advantages of SBA loans and the common misconceptions of personal guarantees
• Balancing family considerations and relocation decisions when executing a search
• The impact of institutional capital entering the EtA market and its effect on returns
• The rise of self-funded search as the preferred model among Harvard MBAs
• Commercial acumen, EQ, and sales skills – key traits in small business success
• How mid-career professionals can transition into EtA (without leaving their jobs)
• The importance of embedding yourself in the business community before you buy
• Predictions for the future of EtA and how the category will continue evolving

Masters in Small Business M&A (sign up for the podcast here) is produced by its host, Peter Lehrman, and the team at Axial (www.axial.com). Axial makes it easy for small business owners to confidentially explore growth capital and exit transactions with top-ranked lower middle market M&A advisors and professional capital partners. In every episode, we explore the dynamic world of small business M&A, interviewing a mix of proven and emerging owners, operators, acquirers, and M&A advisors whose strategies and methods are being put to the test.

If you’d like to go deeper, head to Axial.com, where we make available the Axial member directories, downloadable tools for dealmakers, the Axial quarterly lower middle market investment banking league table rankings, the SMB M&A pipeline report, and other helpful information. If you’re a business owner, professional acquirer, or M&A advisor, you can start using Axial for free at Axial.com.

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Resources

• Royce Yudkoff
• Richard Ruback
• HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business
• Peter Lehrman LinkedIn
• Peter Lehrman X
• Axial Website