Agenda

June 13 / June 14

june 13
7:00 – 7:45 am Breakfast
8:00 – 8:15 am Opening Remarks
Welcome, Bob Grabill, CEO of CEN
Participant Introductions and Goals (Kinds of Deals Each Participant Is Looking For)
8:15 – 9:15 am The Economic Outlook
Dr. Chris Kuehl - Armada Corporate Intelligence
Dr. Kuehl will discuss key trends and factors that are likely to impact the economy and key segments over the next few years. He will share his perspective on what this implies for economic growth, inflation, interest rates, competitive dynamics of key markets and the opportunities and risks this creates for dealmakers.
9:15- 10:30 am

The State of the M&A Marketplace
Joe Durnford, CEO, JD Ford & Company Investment Bankers, will provide an in-depth analysis of the current deal environment and will discuss issues critical to buyers, sellers and financiers, including:

  • Who’s buying what: how aggressive are PE acquirers, foreign and strategic buyers now and how is that likely to change over the next few years?
  • Current pricing multiples and terms by sector -- and where they’re headed
  • What CEOs need to understand about Private Equity as a source of growth capital and what to look for (and what to avoid) in a capital partner
  • How economic uncertainty is impacting deal making and what’s ahead
  • Best practices to use in locating a buyer or seller, and why process is critical
10:30- 10:50 am Networking Break
10:50 – 12:00 pm Dealmaker Panel: Dangers to Avoid and Opportunities To Leverage
With interest rates at historic lows, this is an opportune time for healthy companies with clean balance sheets to consider pursuing acquisitions as part of their growth strategy. It’s also a time for existing business owners to consider exiting or merging their enterprise to take advantage of the strong buying environment bolstered by low interest rates and a strong stock market. This panel will discuss what mistakes to avoid and what opportunities to leverage by buyers and sellers.
12:30 – 1:30 pm Luncheon
1:30 - 2:20 pm Capital Markets Update, Dividend Recapitalizations and Other Innovations
We will explore the current dynamics in the capital markets -- bank lending, private placement of debt and equity, and IPOs – and what the terms, requirements, pros and cons are for each source of capital. We will look at leverage multiples available today for acquisitions, dividend recaps and other corporate transactions and provide insight into the current lending environment in both bank syndicate and public credit markets, including current cost of capital and the outlook for long-term interest rates.
2:20 - 3:00 pm Lessons from a successful deal guy
Rich Reinhart, Principal of Grant Partners, LLC.
Mr. Reinhart is a serial entrepreneur who combines merger and acquisitions talents (especially due diligence) with negotiation skills as well as getting the cultures right and transition planning. Additionally Rich tackles the complex issues of buy/sell agreement planning, valuation, compensation & retirement for the many privately-held firms.
3:00 – 3:30 pm Networking Break
3:30 – 4:00 pm Cost and Time Effective Due Diligence – Panel Discussion
We will delve into the mistakes people often make on both sides of a transaction and how to avoid them. Due Diligence is a critical process and there are valuable lessons and best practices that are often overlooked. We will explore what is required to conduct and effective and efficient due diligence process and what can be avoided. We will also discuss what sellers should do to prepare their company for a sale and the due diligence process.
4:15 - 5:30 pm Best Practices Roundtables
Buy Side Roundtable / Facilitator: David Barnes MD JD Ford
Target identification: how to find and close more deals
Creative structures to bridge the valuation gap
Integration planning and why it should be done before closing
Key risks to assess/avoid/mitigate: financial, product, customer, talent, technology, fit

Sell Side Roundtable / Facilitator: Joe Durnford, Sr. MD JD Ford
Preparing /Packaging your company for the sale—how to maximize value
Preparation for the “process”
Creative ways to minimize taxes
Estate and tax planning before a transaction
Gaining liquidity without a sale
Selling to PE vs. Strategic vs. foreign
5:30 – 7:00 pm Reception
7:00 – 8:30 pm Dealmakers Dinner (Optional)

June 14
7:00 – 8:00 am Networking Breakfast
8:00 – 9:00 am Negotiation: The Art of the Deal
Dr. Robert Mnookin, Chair, Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School
We are in for a real treat. Dr. Mnookin is probably the most famous negotiator in the world. As the chair of Harvard Law School’s Program on Negotiation, he has spent decades studying the secrets of successful negotiations and what the most successful negotiators do differently than others. He will share with us insights from his latest book -- Beyond Winning: Negotiating to Create Value in Deals and Disputes – and practical real world implications for people who are buying, selling, refinancing, and doing other types of deals.
9:00 – 10:00 am Financing the Deal – Panel Discussion
Shane Goodwin, Head of Investment Banking and Capital Markets, Wells Fargo Securities Southwest Region
Shane Goodwin will lead a panel of private equity and mezzanine debt investors and senior lenders to discuss financing options for transactions less than $100M versus the mega deals. Shane will also share his story, when while at Goldman Sachs he arranged the sale of Wrigley to Mars, and the creative solution that was used to eliminate the financing contingency, which lead to Mars winning the deal.
10:00 - 10:15 am Break
10:15 – 11:00 am Reflections on the Sale of a Family Business
Longtime CEN member, Mike Borner reflects on the 2012 sale of his family business, Spraylat to PP&G. Why the Borner family chose to sell and the lessons they learned about life on the sell side of a deal.
11:00 – 11:30 am Summary Discussion: Key Takeaways

Please note: Agenda subject to change

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