(Hebrew w/English-only subtitles)
This is the role founders know the least about - but has the most influence on your deal. Learn how these elusive executives at acquirers find your company, evaluate you, and make or break your deal.
So: what makes a company rise to the top of an acquirer’s list?
Michael Calev, a corp dev exec and former investment banker, takes us through strategic fit —how well you align with an acquirer’s growth objectives, tech roadmap, and long-term market positioning. That means appearing on their radar early, knowing what they look for, and avoiding common missteps that turn deals cold.
In this episode, Sophia Tupolev-Luz and Zeevi Michel dive into the world of corporate development, breaking down the mechanics of M&A, the unspoken rules of the game, and how founders can play it to their advantage.
In this episode, we cover:
+ The art of getting on an acquirer’s radar—and staying there
+ The KPIs that drive M&A decisions and the role of post-merger integration+ How corporate development teams think about technology, talent, and customers+ The red flags and the magic words that kill deals + How earlier-stage startups can become acquirers themselves+ The real answer to: "How much more could the founder have taken home?About:
Israel’s tech M&A show delivers unfiltered conversations with key players from the startup lifecycle. This is a podcast for startups about the path to mergers and acquisitions—and their aftermath. We’re here to go behind the scenes to look at how transactions go terribly wrong or terrifically right.
Our goal:
To give founders new perspectives from the buy-side, sell-side, and investors—so they can better plan for their own endgame.
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Produced by: Sophia Tupolev-Luz
Video and sound editing by: Yair Walden
Location: Google for Startups Campus Studio, Tel Aviv