Exit Advisory · Healthcare Technology
From corporate venture to strategic exit — in five months
Strategic Advisor · Commercialization and Exit · 2024
$15–20M
Exit value
~50
Acquirers and investors contacted
5 months
Start to signed LOI
$80M
Qualified pipeline at time of sale
The Situation
An early-stage IoT software platform built specifically for hospital operations — asset tracking, staff safety, environmental monitoring, wayfinding — with genuine product-market fit, three long-term hospital contracts, and an $80M qualified pipeline. The corporate parent had decided it was time to find the right next home for the business.
The platform had been incubated and commercialized inside a large telecommunications company. The decision to pursue an exit wasn't a failure story — it was a strategic one. The business had proven the concept, built a real product, and established early traction in a $17B market growing at 29% annually. What it needed was an owner whose core business was healthcare technology, not cable.
The challenge: execute a clean, credible exit process without bankers, without disrupting the business, and without tipping off the market.
What Was Missing
- No exit process, no materials, and no organized view of the buyer universe
- No investment banker — the decision was made to run the process internally
- A sensitive competitive dynamic: many of the most logical acquirers were direct or adjacent competitors
- A need to evaluate the full range of options — new investors, financial acquirers, strategic acquirers — before committing to a path
- A tight timeline driven by internal planning cycles
What We Did
Came in as a strategic advisor with a single mandate: get this business to the right outcome, on the right terms, for the assets and the team.
Built the materials. Developed the full Confidential Information Memorandum (CIM) and management presentation from scratch — translating three years of product development, early commercialization traction, and a compelling market thesis into a crisp investment narrative covering the opportunity, the platform, the GTM strategy, the pipeline, and the path to scale.
Mapped and contacted the buyer universe. Identified approximately 50 potential acquirers and investors spanning three categories: strategic acquirers (including direct and adjacent competitors), financial acquirers, and new investors. Contacts were made selectively and sequentially, with deliberate attention to who to approach first, who to hold back, and how to manage information flow to protect the business during the process.
The most delicate part of the work was approaching select competitors about their acquisition interest while protecting the company's customer relationships, channel partnerships, and commercial momentum. A leak from a competing bidder could have destabilized the very commercial traction that made the business attractive. Managing that dynamic required careful judgment about who to contact, when, and how.
Ran the process end to end. Co-led buyer calls and management presentations, managed due diligence, and co-led deal structuring through to signed LOI. Buyer prospecting included in-person work at the largest healthcare technology conference in the world — meeting potential acquirers face to face, gauging interest, and advancing conversations in real time.
Evaluated the full range of paths. Each option — new growth capital, financial sponsor, strategic acquirer — was evaluated on its merits against what was best for the platform, the team, and the long-term trajectory of the business. A strategic acquirer ultimately represented the best fit: operational alignment, existing healthcare infrastructure, and a commitment to retaining the majority of the team.
The Shift
- ~50 potential acquirers and investors identified, mapped, and contacted
- Full CIM and management presentation built internally — no investment banker
- Three acquisition paths evaluated: new investors, financial acquirers, strategic acquirers
- LOI signed within 5 months of engagement start
- Business sold to a strategic acquirer for $15–20M
- Majority of the 12-person team retained post-acquisition
Why It Mattered
Running an exit process without a banker is uncommon for a reason — it requires someone who can play multiple roles simultaneously: market analyst, deal marketer, relationship manager, diligence coordinator, and negotiator. The risk of doing it wrong isn't just a worse outcome. It's a damaged business, spooked customers, and a team that loses trust in the process.
This engagement worked because the work started where it needed to — with a clear-eyed view of the buyer universe, a compelling set of materials, and a process disciplined enough to move quickly without cutting corners. Five months from start to signed LOI is fast for a transaction of this complexity. The team kept their jobs. The platform found the right home.
That's the outcome that mattered.
"I worked side by side with Lawrence, from buyer prospecting at the largest healthcare conference in the world to editing the management presentation and conducting prospective buyer calls — it felt like he had been part of my team from the beginning."
SmallPond VentureCo. · smallpondventureco.com · Atlanta, Georgia
"Every engagement ends with a plan you can execute — not a presentation you have to figure out how to implement. (Or we will implement for you.)"