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M&A Science

M&A Science is a podcast exploring the intricate world of mergers and acquisitions with industry leaders and practitioners. With an unlimited access to our deal network, these interviews examine M&A trends, culture, and best practices. This podcast is sponsored by DealRoom, an M&A lifecycle management platform.
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Now displaying: May, 2022
May 30, 2022
Tom Horton, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development & Strategy at Kaplan, Inc.

Online education is not new. Back in 2010, Kaplan University already had 75,000 students in its online higher education program. It grew rapidly and was highly profitable since online schools have lower costs than face-to-face campus delivery-based education. 

But because of the pandemic, the entire educational sector was forced to shift in this direction, increasing competition. There has been a 40% increase in acquisitions since the pandemic, and interest in the education sector has exploded. 

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Tom Horton, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development & Strategy at Kaplan, Inc., talks about how M&A strategy has evolved in education technology.

Things you will learn in this episode:

- The evolution of online education

- How Kaplan allocates resources for growth

- Five M&A criteria Kaplan requires for potential acquisitions

- Team alignment and how it has evolved over the years 

- Biggest lessons learned from Tom’s M&A experience

Liked today's episode? Unlock over 50 courses taught by top-tier M&A practitioners by joining our M&A Science Academy.

For a special 30% discount, use code “podcast” at our sign-up page for either monthly or annual plans. www.mascience.com/academy

If you’re head of corporate development and looking to build up a world-class M&A team, reach out to me at 

May 23, 2022
Kayla Davis, Vice President, Head of M&A at ABM Industries (NYSE: ABM) M&A is a fascinating career path, and traditionally there are a only few entry points.  Banking roles are the most common entry point to M&A, but recently, we have seen an increase in practitioners coming from different backgrounds. 

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Kayla Davis, Vice President, Head of M&A at ABM Industries, talks about how she transitioned from accounting to an M&A career.

Things you will learn in this episode:

- Kayla's journey to M&A

- How she built her team and the function

- Advice to new M&A practitioners 

- How to transition to internally sourcing deals

- Maintaining accountability throughout the entirety of the deal

To join our network of M&A practitioners and sign up for our newsletter, go to mascience.com.

May 16, 2022
Caleb Shafer, Corporate Development Associate at RS Group plc. (LON: RS1)

Traditionally, corporate development professionals come from banking roles. 

And while nothing is wrong with that, it is always fascinating to hear other ways that professionals start their careers in M&A. 

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, M&A is Caleb Shafer, Corporate Development Associate at RS Group plc talks about his career development in M&A. 

You will also learn:

- Where Caleb started 

- Skills required for a corporate development role 

- What senior leadership can do to unlock their junior-level talent 

- Gray-zone leadership Advice to aspiring practitioners 

To join our network of M&A practitioners and sign up for our newsletter, go to mascience.com.

May 9, 2022
Hannah Leung, Senior Manager, Global Distribution M&A at Salesforce (NYSE: CRM)

Implementing a GTM strategy is one of the most crucial parts of integration. The GTM strategy is what makes achieving synergies and scaling post-close possible. 

In this episode of the M&A Science podcast, Hannah Leung, Senior Manager, M&A at Salesforce, talks about the challenges of implementing an actionable GTM strategy.

In this episode you will learn about:

- The relationship between corp dev and integration team

- How integration teams do GTM planning

- The challenges in implementing an actionable GTM strategy

- How to ensure team alignment

- How to track value from buying plans

To join our network of M&A practitioners and sign up for our newsletter, go to mascience.com.

May 2, 2022
Jim Buckley, Vice President, Mergers and Acquisitions Integration at VMware (NYSE: VMW)

It doesn’t matter if you buy the best company in the world, if integration is not done properly, value will be lost. And while there are a handful of companies embracing the value of integration and bringing the integration team in during the diligence process, some take it even further. 

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Jim Buckley, Vice President, Mergers and Acquisitions Integration at VMware, talks about how to run an integration-led confirmatory diligence process. 

Things you will learn in this episode:

-The difference between a corporate development and integration team

-Why you should involve the integration team pre LOI

-How integration leaders draft diligence questions

-The do's and don'ts of integration

To join our network of M&A practitioners and sign up for our newsletter, go to mascience.com.

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