CHROs see people diligence blind spot in M&A

The CFO-CHRO partnership that's winning on talent and financial performance looks different. Real-time data access. Joint scenario modeling. Quarterly rather than annual reviews. Shared accountability for outcomes. But it requires the right infrastructure to be operationally feasible. New guide for CFOs on building that partnership: https://lnkd.in/gWAqUAAx

The decision appeared close. Most of the visible questions had already received attention. Terms had been discussed. Capital sources had been identified. Responsibilities appeared understood. The conversations continued moving toward commitment. Very little seemed unresolved. One participant returned to an earlier part of the discussion. Not because it had been answered incorrectly. Because it had never been examined completely. The conversation slowed. Attention shifted. Several assumptions that had been carrying weight quietly entered the evaluation for the first time. The structure itself had not changed. The understanding of it had. What appeared complete moments earlier began revealing additional territory. The decision remained ahead. The environment surrounding it no longer looked the same. Sometimes decisions change because new information arrives. Sometimes they change because information that was already present finally receives attention. #operatorsignal #decisionweek #dealstructuring #signalrecognition

A few years ago... He slid the deck across the table to me. "We're tracking to plan." I looked at the numbers. Then I looked at him. "Which plan?" At that company, the deck showed 6% EBITDA growth. Today the deck Bain published this morning says 12% is the new minimum. Not a target. Not a stretch goal. The arithmetic required to hit 2.5x returns in the current environment. That same leader did not know about the 12%. His GP had not told him yet. His board had not updated the benchmark. His value creation plan was built for a market that no longer exists. That same conversation will happen a number of times in the coming days. The gap between strategy and execution is not invisible. It is unmeasured. Three simultaneous utility infrastructure acquisitions closed in the lower middle market today $10M to $50M+ companies in waste, power, and water. The GPs buying them already know the math. The portcos being acquired are about to learn it. We measure the gap between strategy and execution and why it occurs. Have you seen this happen yet?

ICYMI: How Is a Company Tested Before Meeting Investors?: How can management rigorously stress test its financial model, assumptions, and scalability before presenting? Which weaknesses are most likely to surface under investor questioning? What is the best way to assess whether the business is ready for serious investor scrutiny?     This article answers these questions by explaining how a company should be tested […] The post How Is a Company Tested Before Meeting Investors? appeared first on Online Pre-Consulting Business Diagnostics. https://lnkd.in/dVBR-8K8

Imagine meeting someone twice. The first time, they introduce themselves. The second time, you ask them questions. You usually learn more in the second conversation. That's exactly how I now think about earnings calls. This week, I read the entire 360 ONE WAM Q4 FY26 transcript—from the prepared remarks to the very last analyst question. The opening remarks explained what management wanted everyone to remember. The Q&A revealed what analyst wanted management to explain. Some answers confirmed the story. Some added nuance. And a few quietly changed how I interpreted the business. One strategy had to be reset. One global partnership sounded more measured once the questions began. One important revenue stream was discussed without fund-level visibility. And one piece of guidance evolved inside a longer answer. The numbers were strong. This post isn't about questioning that. It's about something I realized while reading the transcript: The presentation tells you what management wants to communicate. The Q&A tells you what the market still wants to understand. That's the part I find most interesting. Swipe Through. I'd love to know which observation you agreed—or disagreed—with the most. #100DayswithTVS #Concall #Analysis #LinkedIn #Learning #ManagementGuidance #EarningsCalls

🎙️ Week 8 | Post 3: The Q&A Session – Where the Real Story Emerges After reading BEL's management commentary, I moved to what I believe is the most insightful part of any earnings call—the Analyst Q&A. This is where experienced analysts challenge management, test assumptions, and look beyond the reported numbers. Here are the topics that dominated BEL's latest earnings call. ❓ 1. Future Order Inflows Several analysts wanted clarity on BEL's future order pipeline. The key questions were: Can BEL continue to win large defence contracts? What is the visibility on upcoming Ministry of Defence orders? Will the current order momentum sustain? Management responded confidently, highlighting a strong pipeline of projects across defence electronics, radars, communication systems, naval platforms, and missile programmes. 🚀 2. New Technology & Growth Areas Another major area of discussion was BEL's investment in emerging technologies. Analysts asked about: Artificial Intelligence Quantum communication Cyber security Drone technologies Semiconductor capabilities Management explained that these are strategic focus areas supported by continuous R&D and collaborations with DRDO, academia, startups, and industry partners. 💰 3. Margins & Execution Analysts also questioned whether BEL could maintain its strong profitability while executing a record order book. Management acknowledged that execution remains critical but expressed confidence in maintaining healthy margins through operational efficiency and product mix. 🎯 The Toughest Question The question that stood out to me was: "Can BEL sustain its growth while expanding into next-generation technologies without compromising profitability?" This wasn't just about one quarter's earnings. It challenged management on whether today's investments in AI, cyber security, drones, and advanced electronics will translate into long-term shareholder value. Management's response reflected confidence but also recognised that success will depend on disciplined execution, innovation, and timely conversion of orders into revenue. My Biggest Learning An earnings call isn't just about listening to management. It's about listening to the questions. Because the questions reveal what the market is worried about. And the quality of management's answers often tells us more than the quarterly numbers themselves. The best equity analysts don't just read financial statements—they study conversations. #100DaysWithTVS #BEL #QuarterlyResults #EarningsCall #EquityResearch #DefenceSector #Finance #Investing #IndianMarkets

Finding peers is easy. Finding the right peers is where valuations are won or lost. Download our free Comparable Company Selection Checklist: https://lnkd.in/eBT6UPtB A weak peer group can distort valuation multiples, undermine conclusions, and make your analysis harder to defend to clients, investors, auditors, and stakeholders. That's why we created a practical framework to help valuation professionals build stronger, more defensible peer groups. Inside you'll learn: ✓ How to assess a target company before starting your search ✓ How to identify relevant comparable companies ✓ How to refine and narrow your peer universe ✓ The criteria professionals use to defend peer selections ✓ A repeatable framework you can apply to every valuation If comparable company selection feels more subjective than it should, this guide is for you. Download your free copy here: https://lnkd.in/eBT6UPtB

Most FY27 strategy documents will not survive contact with August intact, and the organisations that know this going in are the ones that finish the year ahead. The first 100 days of a new financial year have a disproportionate influence on outcomes. Not because the work is finished by then, but because the operating rhythm is established, or it is not. Organisations that spend July in administrative recovery mode rarely fully close the gap that creates. In this month's Connected Intelligence, Orro CTO, Stu Long, took a look at the specific translation problem technology leaders face at the start of every financial year, and the 30/60/90 framework that turns strategy documents into operational momentum before the year's inertia reasserts itself. Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/gHmUUUwq #SecurelyConnectedEverything #WeAreOrro #FY27 #TechnologyStrategy #CTO

I spent two weeks building a DCF model on BEL (Bharat Electronics Limited). Revenue projections, WACC, terminal value, and a Monte Carlo simulation on the assumptions. When I finished, I genuinely thought I’d done something solid. I sent it to a few research analysts for feedback. One of them wrote back: “Good financial work. But you need more depth on the business.” I read that line three times. I was annoyed, honestly. I’d built a Monte Carlo simulation. What depth was missing? Then I re-read my own report. And I saw it immediately. I had modelled the numbers precisely and understood the business loosely. I knew BEL made defense electronics. I didn’t deeply understand why a radar system sold in year one generates years of downstream service revenue. I hadn’t traced how government budget allocations actually flow into order books. I’d treated the company like a spreadsheet when it’s really an ecosystem. The model was technically fine. The thinking behind it wasn’t. That’s the gap between data analysis and equity research, I think. One tells you what the numbers are. The other tells you why they’ll be different in five years. Still figuring out the second part. Transitioning from data science into equity research. Writing about what that actually looks like. To the experienced analysts out there: How did you make the mental shift from just reading the financial statements to deeply understanding the industrial ecosystem of a sector? Let me know in the comments below. 👇 #EquityResearch #Finance #DataScience #CFA #FinancialModeling #ValueInvesting

If you're only reading annual reports, you're missing half the story. A concall is a recorded conversation between management and investors/analysts after the quarterly results are announced. where they discuss their numbers, their expansion plans and their strategies while answering questions from investors/analysts. There are three different parties involved in an earnings call. Management, moderator and the investors/analysts. Why not an annual report? An annual report is a backward-looking statement and a one-sided conversation from management's side. Why not an investor presentation? An investor presentation is more of an infographic presentation of numbers than a proper conversation. As an investor we can't scrap the insights we actually need from a presentation. Then why conference calls? 1. To understand management mindset at the current market scenario, a plus point is we can assess their tone, hesitation & confidence. 2. To understand their guidance for the future. It may be the next quarter or the next year. 3. To understand risk and challenges in a better way. 4. To understand their capital allocation decisions. 5. We can spot red flags. How does management react to difficult questions? Are they consistent with previous statements? 6. It gives us an opportunity to ask questions directly to the management. This week I am diving deep into Max Healthcare's conference calls, and I will share my learnings from the scripts. Parth Verma The Valuation School #100DaysWithTVS #equityresearch #finance