Welcome back to Exit Stories, proudly sponsored by Robinson Bradshaw. This week’s guest brings an alternative perspective than our previous guests. Host Kevin Mosley is joined by Michael O’Hare, Managing Director for the KeyBanc Capital Markets’ IT Management and Infrastructure Software team.
As a seasoned M&A advisor and investment banker, O’Hare is responsible for new business generation, M&A execution and providing advisory services to technology companies. Drawing on three decades of banking experience, he shares his own personal advice on early relationship building, fundraising preparation, market trends and more.
Here are three takeaways from this week’s episode:
- Get involved early, even if your company is not big enough yet. From O’Hare’s experience, no matter the size of your company, it’s always better to build the relationships with bankers and potential investors early. Even if the partnership doesn’t work out, it’s best to get their advice and guidance ahead of time. (6:45)
- Your metrics and data should be transparent and defensible from the get-go. O’Hare advises spending time to organize and evaluate metrics and data and being transparent with your advisors and bankers through every every step of the process. (10:38, 14:08)
- Don’t rush the process. Spend time and slow down at the beginning to make sure every data point and person is accounted for before you start thinking about the next big move. O’Hare emphasizes managing expectations of your next raise, instead of acting on it immediately, and then adjusting accordingly. (27:54, 48:59)
Listen to the rest of O’Hare’s interview below, and remember to subscribe so that you’ll never miss an episode. Big thanks again to Robinson Bradshaw for sponsoring this season.
