For corporate development, strategy and product leaders
M&A growth strategy and execution
You have a growth thesis: extend into an adjacent category, consolidate a workflow, or own a capability your customers keep asking for. We turn that thesis into a ranked set of build, buy and partner options, validated by operators who know the dealer software stack, and we get you into the conversations that matter.
What we bring to the table:
- Profiles of 800+ auto-tech software and data companies
- Specialists who work in every major dealer software platform
- 40,000 auto industry connections
- Partners who have led acquisitions and divestitures themselves
Why "should we acquire?" is the wrong first question
Most teams decide they're going to acquire, then go shopping. We test all three paths against the same opportunity first. The honest answer is often "buy the core, partner the edges, build the differentiator."
Running build, buy and partner side by side changes the recommendation more often than clients expect. It also produces something a board can act on: a stack ranking with the reasoning attached, not a verdict.
The process we run
Start with the right question, not the target
Most automotive software M&A processes start with a target. The best ones start with a question.
Map the landscape before you map the deal
You can’t price white space you can’t see. Landscape mapping comes before deal-making — every time.
Size the prize honestly (TAM is not your friend)
A huge TAM has sunk more auto-tech M&A deals than a small one ever has.
Build, buy, or partner: run all three, then choose
“Should we acquire?” is the wrong question. “Build, buy, or partner?” is the right one.
The decision matrix that turns opinions into a decision
The fastest way to end a circular exec debate? Put the options in a matrix.
Validate with experts, not just spreadsheets
A database tells you what’s true. A practitioner tells you what’s real. You need both.
Screen targets to disqualify, not to fall in love
The best acquisition screen is ruthless about saying “pass.” Most lists are too polite.
Land the recommendation: tie it back to growth and to the deal
A research project that ends with “here’s what we found” failed. It should end with “here’s what to do, and what it’s worth.”
Where it goes beyond a market report
Targets before they're on the market
We can often get you into conversations with companies that aren't taking calls from bankers yet.
Data beyond the public record
Proprietary profiles and a library of expert transcripts on the dealer software stacks you're evaluating.
White space in days, not months
Specialists who use these platforms every day test the adjacency with you, so integration risk and real demand show up early.
A reason for every pass
Screening is about disqualifying fast. We write down why each candidate is a pass so the team doesn't re-litigate dead options.
Execution, not just the idea
Our partners have taken strategies through change management and full operationalization inside auto retail software companies. We can tell you quickly whether an option can actually be executed, and how.
Introductions
We don't stop at identifying the opportunity. Our network opens the door.
Corp dev capacity, fractionally
No corporate development team? We are that team for the length of the engagement: senior operators who assess the opportunity, run the process and stay through the decision.
What it has looked like
Found four acquisitions for a major media company.
Identified the market opportunity and developed the pricing model for a new DMS data product.
We keep client names confidential. More than 85%+ of our clients have engaged us for more than one project.
Weighing a build, buy or partner move this year?
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