BMC Logo 2024

100 Ways for Executives to Use Cyndx

Written By: Gerald O’Dwyer IIThe PE Guru — Blackmore Partners, Inc | December 5th, 2024

Introduction

Cyndx is an advanced AI-powered deal-sourcing and relationship-mapping platform designed to help executives connect with decision-makers, industry players, and potential opportunities. This manual outlines 100 actionable strategies to help executives source companies, PE roles, advisory roles, consulting opportunities, and strategic contacts. It also includes a detailed process to identify owners and customers aligned with each niche or deal thesis. With a robust strategy and actionable steps, executives can leverage Cyndx to uncover insights, build connections, and achieve their objectives.

Section 1: Preparation Before Using Cyndx

Define Goals

  1. Clarify Your Objectives: Determine whether you are looking for a role, acquisition target, advisory opportunity, or strategic customers for a portfolio company.
  2. Develop a Deal Thesis: Clearly define the niche, target industries, regions, company size, growth trajectory, or customer demographics you’re pursuing.
  3. Identify Key Metrics: Decide what to focus on (e.g., revenue, EBITDA, funding stage, valuation multiples, customer penetration).
  4. Prepare Search Criteria: List filters such as geography, funding stage, industry codes (NAICS/SIC), and customer types.
  5. Establish KPIs: Define success (e.g., number of owners identified, meetings scheduled, new customers connected).

Section 2: Cyndx Core Features

Cyndx’s key tools to align with your objectives include:

  1. Entity Mapping: Visualize connections between decision-makers, owners, customers, portfolio companies, and investors.
  2. Industry Research: Analyze competitive landscapes, niches, and emerging trends.
  3. Financial Analytics: Evaluate growth metrics, valuation multiples, and ROI potential.
  4. Contact Discovery: Identify decision-makers and customers at relevant organizations.
  5. Relationship Mapping: Understand connections between owners, customers, and investors for warm introductions.

Section 3: The Process for Each Goal

1. Sourcing Companies

Process to Find Owners:

  1. Define Target Profile: Use filters like revenue ($10M–$50M), EBITDA (10%+), industry (e.g., SaaS, healthcare).
  2. Search Keywords: Input industry-specific terms and apply filters for funding history, growth rates, and ownership.
  3. Identify Owners:
    • Use Cyndx’s relationship map to trace ownership to individuals, families, or holding groups.
    • Check decision-maker titles (CEO, founder, owner).
  4. Analyze Ownership History: Look for recent transitions or sales signals (e.g., funding rounds, leadership changes).
  5. Engage Owners: Use personalized templates referencing your mutual connections or specific insights about their company.

Process to Find Customers:

  1. Map Target Customers:
    • Define your ideal customer profile (e.g., midsize businesses, high-growth industries).
    • Search for customers of competitors or similar companies.
  2. Industry Segmentation: Use industry-specific keywords to identify relevant businesses.
  3. Validate Leads: Cross-check against financial metrics and growth indicators.

2. Finding PE Roles

Process:

  1. Search Portfolio Companies:
    • Filter by industry, ownership (PE-backed), and deal stage.
  2. Map Leadership Gaps:
    • Use Cyndx to identify companies with recent leadership turnover or growth needs.
  3. Identify Decision-Makers:
    • Focus on PE firm partners and operating executives.
  4. Engage with Customized Outreach:
    • Reference their deal thesis and your experience in similar scenarios.

3. Finding Advisory Roles

Process:

  1. Search Board Members: Identify companies seeking strategic governance expertise.
  2. Monitor PE Activity: Track firms actively seeking operational improvements in your niche.
  3. Evaluate Strategic Gaps: Look for companies expanding into unfamiliar industries where your expertise applies.

4. Sourcing New Customers

Process:

  1. Define Customer Segments:
    • Narrow searches by demographics (B2B/B2C), region, and size.
  2. Trace Customer Relationships:
    • Use relationship mapping to see who buys from your target companies.
  3. Cross-Reference Competitors:
    • Find shared customers and use their profiles to locate similar businesses.

Section 4: Cyndx Feature Breakdown with Examples

Entity Mapping

  1. Map Owners in a Niche:
    • Example: Identify all small manufacturing owners in the Midwest with <$30M revenue.
  2. Discover Shared Relationships:
    • Example: Trace how multiple firms are connected to the same investor.

Industry Research

  1. Analyze Fragmented Markets:
    • Example: Identify top players in fragmented industries like HVAC or auto repair.
  2. Track Consolidation Trends:
    • Example: Monitor how many acquisitions occurred in a niche in the last 12 months.

Financial Analytics

  1. Filter by Growth Metrics:
    • Example: Focus on companies with 10%+ YoY revenue growth.
  2. Monitor Funding Trends:
    • Example: Search for companies with Series A funding in the last 18 months.

Contact Discovery

  1. Identify Decision-Makers:
    • Example: Locate CFOs at SaaS companies with $20M–$50M revenue.
  2. Find Key Customers:
    • Example: Pinpoint B2B customers of consumer product manufacturers.

Section 5: Strategic Questions to Ask Cyndx

To Find Owners:

  1. Who owns [company]?
  2. What companies are family-owned in [industry/region]?
  3. Which companies have founder-led ownership?

To Find Customers:

  1. Who are the top customers for [industry niche]?
  2. Which companies have overlapping customer bases with [target company]?
  3. Who buys from competitors of [company]?

For General Research:

  1. What companies are in [niche] with 15%+ EBITDA margins?
  2. Which firms have received growth funding in the last 12 months?

Section 6: Advanced Search Tactics

  1. Boolean Logic Searches:
    • Combine terms like “growth capital + Series A + [region].”
  2. Narrowing Results by Size:
    • Filter targets to align with your experience or network scope.
  3. Monitor Keywords:
    • Example: “Exit,” “growth,” “expansion.”

Section 7: Use Cases

Scenario 1: Finding Owners in a Niche

  1. Objective: Identify owner-managed machine shops in the Midwest.
  2. Steps:
    • Use filters: Geography (Midwest), industry (machining), revenue (<$20M).
    • Cross-check: Analyze leadership titles for “owner” or “founder.”
    • Result: Shortlist companies to approach for acquisition or partnership.

Scenario 2: Finding Customers for SaaS

  1. Objective: Source customers in healthcare.
  2. Steps:
    • Search keywords: “healthcare software + customers.”
    • Validate: Filter results by financial metrics.
    • Result: Build a target list of potential buyers.

Section 8: Questions to Evaluate Prospects

  1. Are they expanding into my target market?
  2. Do their customers align with my thesis?
  3. What is the financial health of their customer base?

Section 9: Avoiding Pitfalls

  1. Refine Searches Gradually: Avoid overly broad terms.
  2. Follow Up Regularly: Build on initial contacts.
  3. Use Analytics: Rely on financial insights for validation.

Section 10: Expanding Network Reach

  1. Warm Introductions: Use Cyndx maps to identify shared connections.
  2. Target Overlapping Relationships: Engage intermediaries for introductions.

Conclusion

This manual equips executives with 100 strategies to maximize their use of Cyndx, including detailed processes for finding owners, customers, and strategic opportunities. By combining Cyndx’s features with clear planning and execution, executives can effectively connect with key players, uncover growth opportunities, and realize their deal thesis objectives.