In these days of massive organizations and mass production, it is rare to get personal attention. Working with Notch Partners, one is immediately struck by the attention provided by them. The meetings are always relaxed and leisurely; encouraging detailed discussions and exploring all relevant aspects. Mei-Mei’s focus on and patience in ensuring the right fit between the individual and the employer is genuine and commendable. Notch Partners clearly demonstrate all the positives that come to mind when one thinks of a high-end boutique operation.
Arun Maheshwari
Founder & President, Infinite Realty Ventures and RisingSun Ventures
Former Founder, Group President & CEO, Fiserv GLOBAL Services

Deal Sourcing

Executive Driven Deals
One of Notch’s key differentiators is our ability to identify and work with “backable” executives to develop proprietary deals and proprietary insight on auction deals. We are constantly seeking creative, connected, and experienced executives who are tapped into deal flow and possess the entrepreneurial energy to develop and execute on good ideas – both their own and those of others (see What is a Deal Executive?). Notch works closely with executives to bring our investor clients viable and well-articulated, actionable – and often proprietary – deal ideas.

As a first step to developing a deal thesis with an executive, Notch carefully screens the executive’s background and track record through a series of interviews. While we are always looking for “backable” CEOs, we are also open to working with executives who may wish to take a different role, such as that of Chairman or active board member. Regardless of their desired role(s), we will vet each executive for “backability” within the appropriate context and we only make introductions which we believe will have a high likelihood of resulting in a meaningful and productive relationship. We work with qualified executives to develop deal ideas that draw on their unique skills and experiences. These deal ideas can be focused on a specific target or more generally on a given industry sector. Leveraging an executive’s deep knowledge base and experience as a thought leader in a particular industry, a deal thesis typically involves acquiring one or more companies which are uniquely positioned to capitalize on current or anticipated market trends or dynamics. A target-driven deal idea reflects an executive’s goal to acquire a particular company that is poised for success under new ownership and/or management.

Recognizing that deals are difficult to complete, we aim to maximize the probability of success through the following measures:

  • Rigorous screening of an executive’s experience and capabilities
  • Thorough assessment to ensure relevance between an executive’s background and his/her deal thesis
  • Tough standards for private equity viability and investment return potential
  • Careful matching of a deal to a client’s investment parameters
  • Active management of robust feedback loop during executive/client interactions
  • Development of a defined, agreed-upon critical path that ensures productive follow through by all parties

While many executives have strong professional backgrounds, most are relatively inexperienced in working with private equity firms and developing deal ideas. Notch has created proprietary seminars, workshops and work tools (see Resources for Executives), to help prepare executives for productive discussions with private equity firms.