Blogs

The Three Threads of a Sutradhar: Empathy, Focus, and the Art of Impute M&A :-   Nearly five decades ago, Apple's earliest marketing philosophy distilled itself into three words: Empathy, Focus, Impute. It was written for a company selling computers, but the idea underneath it was never really about computers at all. It was about how value gets created, understood, and finally seen. Looking back at years of building businesses across very different sectors, I find myself returning to those same three words — not because I set out to follow them, but because, without naming them, they were already there. In Sanskrit theatre, a Sutradhar is the one who holds the thread — literally, the string-puller. Not the protagonist, not the audience, but the figure who stands...

Why Indian Tech and Service Firms Are Eyeing Cross-Border M&A Opportunities Indian technology and service companies are no longer content playing in one market. Boards aren't asking whether to grow anymore - they're asking how fast they can grow beyond India's borders. That shift is exactly why Cross-Border M&A Opportunities have moved from a slide in a strategy deck to the core of how ambitious firms plan their next five years. A decade ago, Indian IT and services firms expanded by opening delivery centers abroad. Today, buying an established player in a target market is often faster and less risky - you inherit client relationships, local talent, and regulatory know-how in one move instead of building it brick by brick. That's the appeal behind so many Cross-Border...

What Is an Earnout in M&A and How Does It Work? When a buyer and seller cannot agree on what a business is worth, they do not always walk away from the table. Instead, they often reach for a mechanism that lets both sides share the risk of getting valuation right over time. That mechanism is an earnout in M&A, one of the most useful and most misunderstood tools in any deal negotiation. For business owners considering a sale, understanding how an earnout in M&A works can mean the difference between leaving money on the table and structuring a deal that reflects your company's real potential. What Is an Earnout in M&A? An earnout in M&A, formally called contingent consideration, is a structure where the buyer pays...

M&A Negotiation and Deal Structuring: A Founder's Guide to IT Services M&A Deal Structures Every founder who has sat across the table from an acquirer remembers the moment the conversation shifted from "how much" to "how." A promising IT services company in Pune had two offers in the same week: a higher headline number and a lower one. The founder took the lower offer. Why? The higher one buried three years of earnouts, a two-year non-compete, and a working capital clawback worth nearly a fifth of the price. That's what IT services M&A deal structures reveal, again and again: the number on the term sheet's first page rarely tells the real story. Why IT Services M&A Deal Structures Matter More Than the Headline Valuation Valuation gets the...

A merger might close on paper in a single afternoon, but real Post-Merger Success takes months of careful work after the ink dries. Two companies rarely think alike, and that mismatch is exactly what puts Post-Merger Success at risk early on. They use different tools, run different meetings, and often measure success in different ways. When leadership focuses only on financials and legal terms, team integration gets pushed to the back burner — and that's usually where deals start to unravel. Achieving Post-Merger Success means treating people, not just paperwork, as the priority from day one. This guide walks through what actually drives Post-Merger Success once the deal is signed. Why Team Integration Determines Post-Merger Success Most merger failures aren't about bad math. They're about culture clashes...

Should You Sell Your Company? Signs It's Time for an M&A Exit Every founder reaches a point where the business runs them instead of the other way around. If you're lying awake wondering whether it's time to sell, you're already circling the question that separates two paths forward: keep pushing, or pursue an M&A exit. An M&A exit, merging with or being acquired by another company, isn't just a financial transaction. It's the culmination of years spent building something from nothing, and getting the timing right matters almost as much as getting the price right. Wait too long and value erodes. Sell too early and you leave money on the table. Here are the signs worth watching before you make the call. When Growth Plateaus, It May...

How M&A and Fundraising Advisory Can Help Your Business Scale Smarter Most founders don't think about M&A and fundraising advisory until they're already stuck trying to raise a round with a messy cap table, or fielding an acquisition offer they don't know how to evaluate. That's usually too late to get the best outcome. Whether you're raising capital, selling your company, or acquiring another one, professional M&A and fundraising advisory changes how the deal actually unfolds. Advisors bring valuation discipline and negotiating leverage that most operating teams don't have in-house. At Exigo Consulting, we work with founders and boards across India to make sure the numbers, timeline, and deal terms work in their favor. What M&A and Fundraising Advisory Actually Covers M&A and fundraising advisory isn't one...

M&A Trends Every Business Owner Should Know Mergers and acquisitions used to be something only large corporations worried about. That's no longer true. Mid-sized companies, family businesses, and even fast-growing startups are now active participants in deal-making, which means understanding current M&A trends has become essential for any owner thinking about growth, succession, or an eventual exit. Markets shift, buyer appetite changes, and the rules of a good deal evolve year to year. Owners who stay informed about the latest M&A trends tend to negotiate from a position of strength rather than scrambling to catch up once a buyer is already at the table. Strategic Buyers Are Outpacing Pure Financial Plays One of the clearest M&A trends right now is the growing dominance of strategic buyers over...