How to sell a 30-employee service firm for $162M
“Greg Alexander founded SBI, a consulting firm, in 2006 and sold it in 2017 for $162M,” shares Sam Thompson a Minneapolis business broker and the president of M&A firm Transitions In Business. “In this episode Greg talks about thinking like an owner and not an operator, justifying a premium multiple and avoiding errors that kill deals.”
Greg Alexander sold SBI, his 30-person consulting firm, for $162 million. Since then, he’s had a front-row seat to 50 other service firm exits through his peer group, Collective 54. In this episode of Built to Sell Radio, Greg breaks down what separates firms that sell from those that stall.
This is a Mastering the Deal episode of Built to Sell Radio—designed to help you punch above your weight in a negotiation to sell your business.
In this episode, you discover how to:
- Think like an owner instead of an operator
- Justify a premium multiple with proof, not promises
- Build recurring revenue—even in a consulting firm
- Identify the new buyer questions around AI and tech enablement
- Replace founder dependency with a promotable team
- Position your firm as a “puzzle piece” for a strategic acquirer
- Avoid unforced errors that kill deals late in the game
If you run a service business, this is required listening. Alexander lays out what a buyer’s diligence checklist looks like—and what founders need to prepare before trying to sell.