Panel 1 – How To Pick The Right Private Equity Firm Partner

• Questions to ask on the front end
• Actions/Signals to observe
• Capital availability – Firms with Funds vs. Independent Sponsors vs. Family Offices
• Operational control vs. Private Equity Interference
• Growth/ ROI-oriented capital, add-on acquisitions
• History of acquisition and exits
• Management team and hiring

Panel 2 – Valuations Through Volatility

• Volume of inbound deal proposals (1st Half 2026 vs. 1st Half 2025; outlook into 2nd Half)
• Sector focus shifts based on economic outlook and geopolitical factors
• How are you managing noisy financials and forecasting uncertainty -- specifically next 12-18 months outlook in Newco
• Deal structure changes to bridge valuation gaps
• Investor reactions and evolving risk tolerance
• "Dry powder" environment outlook
• Use of AI in firm operations and deal evaluation

Panel 3 – What It’s Like to Work With a PE Investor

Topics We Will Tackle (Execution, Not Theory)

1. Value Creation: Plan vs. Operating Reality
   Where value creation plans collide with real systems, capacity, and behaviors — and why most misses are execution-driven, not strategic.
2. Operating Style Differences That Matter
   How PE firms actually behave once they own the business — decision rights, tolerance for fixing broken systems, and pressure for results.
3. Communication Rhythms & Board Expectations
   What really gets discussed in boardrooms, how narratives replace data after misses, and how confidence can outrun reality.
4. Operational vs. Strategic Involvement
   Where PE involvement helps velocity — and where it unintentionally slows execution by misaligning ownership and accountability.
5. Network Value & “Value-Add” Reality
   Which sponsor promises translate into results — and which create distraction instead of traction.
6. The First 100 Days
   Where 100-day plans break down, what gets rushed too early, and why value should be claimed before it’s created.
7. Budgets, Alignment & the First Miss
   How strong sponsors respond differently than weak ones when reality misses the model.
8. Assessing a PE Sponsor Before You Partner
   What operators should listen for — philosophy, behavior, and tolerance for operational reality.

Provocative Questions I will pose to the panel as appropriate

• Where do PE value creation plans most often overestimate execution capability?
• What EBITDA do you see consistently missed, not lost — and why?
• What operating behaviors separate strong PE partners from destructive ones?
• What really happens to decision rights after the first real miss?
• Which “value-add” promises actually convert into results?
• What should not be in a 100-day plan — but almost always is?
• What questions should CEOs ask before signing, and what answers should worry them?

Moderator Closing Question

“If you were advising a CEO considering their first PE partner, what is the one thing they should not underestimate?”