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Let's Buy a Company

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Let's Buy a Company

How to Accelerate Growth through Acquisitions

Career Press,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Text available

What's inside?

M&A is not just for the big guys. Learn how your small company could benefit from an acquisition – if you do it right.

Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

The 1980s saw the beginning of the greatest merger boom in history. Year after year, the number of mergers and acquisitions climbed. Mergers between large companies make headlines, but companies of any size may find it beneficial to engage in mergers and acquisitions. Author H. Lee Rust explains the basics of acquisitions in clear, simple prose for companies that are too small to make the evening news. His book will be most useful to small- and medium-sized firms whose leaders lack experience in acquisitions. He provides sound, practical advice, easy-to-use checklists, and a CD-ROM workbook with spreadsheets, calculations, sample letters and more. If you manage a small company, getAbstract suggests reading this book before you get involved in your first acquisition.

Summary

Three conditions must exist before you can begin to consider an acquisition:

  1. "There must be something to buy" - Appropriate companies may not exist in sufficient numbers in your field. Or, they may already have merged. Urban radio stations, for example, have been merging for years. Few independent ones remain.
  2. "You must be able to manage what you buy" - If you don’t yet have the necessary personnel or organizational structure, develop a plan and gear up.
  3. "You must be able to pay for what you intend to buy" - Of course, you must be able to finance the transaction; you may also need to invest additional money in the company once you acquire it.

The 10 Commandments of Acquisitions

Before you get involved in the details of acquisitions, pledge to follow these 10 Commandments. Sin against them at your peril:

  1. Leave nothing to chance - Both the risk and the opportunity of an acquisition are in the details. Examine the business you’re buying with a fine-toothed comb. Check everything. Your letter of intent should spell out every possible contingency, eventuality, risk and ...

About the Author

H. Lee Rust has been a corporate financial consultant for over two decades. He specializes in helping small companies grow through acquisitions.

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