Posts Tagged ‘princeton corporate solutions’
The truth is, if you’re an Ivy League MBA student chances are, you’re going to be a great employee in a strategies firm that focuses on regional economic turnaround or international expansion processes but you’re dreaming if you think you’ll spearhead a campaign or sit at the negotiation table and lead. It’s simple; you just won’t have the skills.
The minimal relevance of the archaic formulas you memorize from self-proclaimed scholars stuck in the bubble of classroom economics will get you nowhere. The internship that you battle for in NYC or Boston or some other international hub is just a name on a resume but it will be validated by your contact portfolio and the right brain negotiation gifts from god which, if you’re reading this from Yale or Harvard most likely are missing from your abilities as you’ve kept your nose stuck in the binder of your text book while simultaneously lacking the motivation to get out there and get your head kicked in by people that have a well versed comprehension of ‘street economics’ (if you’re dying to comment and tell me that this was a run-on sentence, point made). You can’t learn how to fight if you’re afraid to walk into a dark alley alone.
Street Economics and Text Book Economics is a matter of theory and strategy. The pie in the sky theories so prevalent in your education will clash with the reality of street economics. Formulaic theory is great if you exist in an corporate high rise cubical and want to pound the keys of a calculator all day without looking up but if that’s the rout you want to take, pack up and move to India as those technical mind numbing jobs are always outsourced.
The world looks to US M and A Firms and international alliance facilitation firms for innovation and the ability to put the pieces of the puzzle together for those with left brain ailments and inability to comprehend concepts that step outside of a calculation and into the negotiation room. When I say negotiation I’m not talking about a used car salesmen or some Long Island intellectual automaton living in a condo talking big and name dropping to make up for their lack of track record.
By negotiation I mean the ability to sit down in a conference room with stadium seating with ten different groups and one hundred different demands and come to a conclusion that leaves everyone in the room feeling as if they got exactly what they wanted and you carry those contacts with you to the next project to strengthen your position and expedite the results for whatever economy needs reason and strategy to arise out of the chaos that is so typical in regionalized economics on the global scene.
EU strategies won’t work in the US. MENA region processes will not work in BRIC nations. Your education centers around overgeneralizations and ancient concepts not even remotely applicable to the ‘street economics’ you’re going to need if you actually plan on becoming a force in this industry. When a regional government under the scrutiny of the IMF comes to you for economic turnaround, what does your professor tell you from his nitwit, text book mindset? He’ll hand you a book of theory (untested of course) which talks about various stimulus programs which will never get to the root of the problem, therefore the issue remains and grows like cancer.
Regional and national economies are a matter of enforcing trade, piggybacking off of legislation, lobby support and contacts with precision focus, US Congressional influence, UN pressure point mechanics, EU participant influence with countries that matter (Britain, Germany, France etc.), rapport based alliances (Yes, it’s the good old boys club, get over it. You’re either inside or your outside.) and corporate contacts that can contribute to a think tank on how a district can capitalize off of localized elements in the ground, companies carrying the economy and strategies to offshore and bring in jobs. Offshoring works in reciprocating situations where a win/win is relevant and realistic.
You’re most likely angered by this enlightenment. Your professor will tell you not to worry and that your degree from a school considered to be ‘prestigious’ by mind midgets will take you places. You’ll try to take away from the contents in this post by telling yourself “I’m different, my last name is……” or “my father is………”, but at night, when it’s just you and the voice in your head, you’ll know that what I’ve said is valid and what you do after that will dictate how far you are able to go.
Economic Power Brokers, and Crisis Management Consultants are you prepared for economic warfare?
Today, public companies are seeing the value in growing their entities and easing shareholder anxieties with a streamlined acquisitions and merger process which increases corporate holdings, stimulates share value and trading volume while offering a valuable and unrivaled incubation process for the company being merged (or a profitable exit strategy for those being acquired).
There are a minimum of 12 angles that one should observe and research during the due diligence phase: Corporate Documentation, Securities, Entity Financials, Tax, Contracts, Government and/or Organizational Licenses, Litigation, Product Offering, Marketing, Executive Staff, Corporate Assets and Research and Development. To keep this educational article from becoming a book we will simply list, in general terms the basic intricacies of the above categories:
Corporate Documentation, meaning articles of incorporation, bylaws and articles of association; as well as recent shareholder communications, certificates of operating authorization and minutes of board and other meetings.
Securities should be evaluated using copies of stock certificates, copies of options and warrants, stock register, shares issued and when they were issued, holdings stated by percentage, outstanding preferred stock and any applicable covenants. Your due diligence officer should also examine outstanding warrants, options or other securities as well as options and other employee benefits and employee stock ownership.
One of the most crucial components in a merger or acquisition are the Entity Financials which are composed of, for the most part (but not exclusively limited to) audited financials since inception, balance sheets, cash flow, accounting methods and practices and revenue recognition policies. Don’t forget the basics such as management accounts, budgets and projections and of course the business plan spelling out the premise of the company and its use of proceeds etc. Furthermore, there should be a critical evaluation of the corporation’s accounts receivables and policies, revenues and margin by product, extraordinary incomes and expenses, analysis of material write downs and bad debt summary (don’t forget to collect data on outstanding contingent liabilities and external financial reports and studies if applicable).
Though fraud is always an issue in transactions of this sort, there are added investigative measures that are more difficult to ‘fraudulently convey’ and by doing so is a federal offense. Therefore Tax records should always be investigated by gathering federal, local and state tax returns for the past three years, details of any and all government audits and for European transactions a VAT Registration should always be a mandatory prerequisite for all pre acquisition/merger data collection.
Having a well-rounded comprehension of the targets Contracts is an important element depicting the liabilities and arrangements in place that you’ll inherit when the transaction is completed. Particular points of investigation should be initiated by collecting bank and non-bank lending contracts, JV and purchase agreements, liens list, equipment leases, mortgages and other loans (as well as insurance contracts). Other basic contracts that should be reviewed are supplier and vendor contracts for a sufficient contractual investigation.
Government and/or Organizational Licenses will need to be investigated in many cases depending on the particular industry genre and nature of business therefore copies of (as well as transfer process criteria for) permits, licenses and registration certificates should be examined at the offset of your investigation. During this process one should record the reports to and requests from official bodies and/or organizations.
Nothing damages a promising M&A process more than Litigation. One should have their legal tactician gather data on pending litigation ‘against’ and ‘by’ the target company, potential liabilities and potential costs as well as settlement documentation, employee claims or litigation, patent actions and intellectual property actions that could hinder your ability to proceed as planned.
Product Offerings (in addition to assets) is typically the primary reason entities engage in M&A. when analyzing the products of a target company the following will be good places to start investigation: product or service offering, market share by product, total market size, inventory list and valuations, obsolescence policy, product backlog analysis and seasonality as well as major suppliers and supplier spend analysis.
Marketing plans and information will tell how well the company understands its competition and client base. When investigating the marketing process the target’s documents should include: list of competitors and competitors market share, major clients, major client income, pricing strategy, marketing collateral (brochures, website, blog, etc.), sales projections by product/service and commission structure.
Executive and Support Staff within the target need to be committed to the process and remain motivated after the completion. To gather intelligence on the structure population you should start with an organizational chart, blogs for senior staff, labor disputes information, employee compensation plan and pension plan, options/profit sharing plan, management incentives, non-cash payments, non-salary compensation such as medical/insurance, car and travel. The basics of evaluation of this particular aspect of the company should be evaluation of employee, confidentiality, non-compete agreements and IPR protection. Many M&A agents forget to investigate the obvious such as corporate consultants and consulting agreements, employee numbers, absenteeism/sickness records, copy of employee manual(s), health and safety policy, company directors and blogs for company directors.
Many times a merger’s value lies in direct correlation to its Corporate Assets. Asset investigation items to check are: fixed asset register, asset valuation, property owned/leased, recent surveys and appraisals, mortgages, deeds, easements, encumbrances, leases and sub-leases. Continuing research should also cover growth and contraction plans, patents, trademarks, domain names and other intangible assets.
Research and Development is a valuable aspect to M&A in patent heavy industries such as pharmaceutical and biotech among others. Elements to investigate should start with research in progress, research budget, documentation policies, sample documentation, patent policies, IPR protection and of course IPR Register.
Other general items to look into are (but not limited to) social media presence, crisis management models, current defamation issues on the internet or other media venues, IT policies, backup and recovery, business continuity plan, press and media relationships as well as the basic internal communications and intranet and newsletter history.
The above is a general criteria checklist for initiating dialog and facilitating due diligence for a basic merger or acquisition transaction. Of course each transaction brings with it its own issues that may deviate the researcher from this basic process therefore this should be a research tool that is used as a template to develop a customized strategy for completing the necessary due diligence to bring both parties to the table to close the transaction. The above does not take into consideration the psychological elements involved with a merger from the viewpoint of the ‘founder’ of the company being merged into a larger entity or the corporation being acquired. Most times, public relations and a solid communications director can grease the wheels for the human elements that will come into play. Before engaging in mergers or acquisitions of any kind proper legal counsel should be engaged to assist you in the process.
Want to find out more about Mergers and Acquisitions Consulting , then visit Princeton Corporate Solutions’ site loaded with information on M & A, Taking Your Company Public, Globalization and much more
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From one blog maniac to another, I feel that blogging gives us all an opportunity to express our opinions, good and bad, off the cuff and to the masses. I remember getting bad service in a Subway sandwich shop with my family, I sent out a twitter to my group and in 24 hours I received a personal apology from the franchise owner and the corporate office with a hefty supply of free food vouchers that literally lasted us a year. It’s nice to know that we are able to keep companies in check using social media.
That said, we should use these mediums to put out praise as well. I just left an NJIT (New Jersey Institute of Technology) conference for their incubator program where the latest and greatest in technology and biotech got to pitch their companies to angel investors and private equity firms. There were some pretty reputable companies their and investors that could pay off the deficit of a small country with their signature on a check. I was there looking at a company with a unique EKG technology that will revolutionize emergency rooms everywhere but that will be in another blog if we cut a deal; back to the conference.
We’re sitting in a room packed shoulder to should, no seats available just standing room by the door then a guy comes in, walks into the seating section (people waited in line for an hour for those seats) with his assistant, the people in their seat looked at him, he looked back and they moved and offered him their seats, then two minutes later, one of the owners of a pretty large hedge fund brings him coffee. Um, can you say strange?
As it turns out, this was James Scott the CEO of Princeton Corporate Solutions, absolutely the creme de la creme of international strategies and IPOs. The reason everyone was kissing his backside was because he was there to pick a company to spearhead legislation for his political clients. Their firm is unique as part of their process is to find promising but underdeveloped companies and blast them into super-stardom with capital, structuring and organization and IPO and getting his clients built directly into legislation, bills that are in the process of raising votes and awareness to be passed as laws and regulations. He can make or break a company, hedge fund or politician over his knee like a twig. He was the personification of power. His presence made the room vibrate with his influence. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. It was pretty awkward as we were all staring at him whispering.
20 minutes before the conference was over he got up and left, I guess he didn’t find anything he liked but the funny thing is, half of the players in the room got up to chase him down the hall to initiate contact. It was nice to see that the people that everyone was trying to sell and impress still have to do some butt kissing of their own to keep climbing the circles of influence within their industry.
Looking for more info on NJIT, or PCS
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For decades economic realities have been placed under a black veil of secrecy with its truths and lies known only to the institutional banking elite and we the public just stand like an ocean of monkeys. The system was never exposed, insiders never spoke out.
Yes, this industry has been nothing but lies and chaos, that is, until about 8 years ago. A small consulting firm called Princeton Corporate Solutions began to take this insider knowledge and make it available through very public articles and blogs. The blog on their website is one of the premier global economics and IPO blog stops on every economist’s pilgrimage to seeking and using investment banking, global commerce and IPO knowledge written by the hands of the masters.
The PCS blog does something that no other financial blog in the world does, they take away the technical jargon and in plain English, patiently and painstakingly take the reader by the hand and show them how something like having a personal bank account with a top tier institutional lender can be adding debt to your children’s tax liability 20 years from now.
They talk about the ‘unspoken’ truths of how if a country wants to hurt another country that is not cooperating with insiders, then the insiders want to impose economic sanctions on these decanters and inflict pain by damaging trade relations, threatening IMF intervention or liquidating currency holding to further damage the company who’s not playing by the rules of the establishment. Taking the military into a country is more for statement than anything as economic sanctions are the most powerful tool of war without lifting a single gun and the goal is to get the citizens of the country fed up and wound up so that they force internal changes within their borders to get those sanctions lifted but this rarely happens. The economy will eventually weaken and big business will step in with fists full of Uncle Sam’s money and start introducing the locals to the finer things in life, the luxuries that they could have but their president doesn’t want them to have them etc.
The exposing of how institutional insiders and politicians toy with the system is now termed ‘The Princeton Affect’ named after Princeton Corporate Solutions. “I think it’s a Wall Street Thing” says James Scott, CEO of PCS, “I just got so sick of hearing the lies on TV and having all the zombies at home watching and believing all this garbage. All we are trying to do is help the little guy understand what he is truly up against when trying to run the company in this economy.”
Global economics affects everyone with a pulse on the planet yet so few people understand it, ‘The Princeton Affect’ is the crystallization and simplifying technical economic issues in a way for the common man to increase knowledge and understanding on how to best protect oneself and grow during this difficult time as a business owner or C level executive.
Want to find out more about the Number One Financial blog on internet?, then Brad Heatherington suggests this site on how to choose the best Globalization Consultants for your needs.
Seriously, sometimes I have to step back and laugh when I see company owners trying to pre-qualify consulting firms to take them public. I just stand there and scratch my head in disbelief when they think they are asking all the ‘right’ questions when all they are doing is setting themselves up for failure.
I recently had a company who claimed to have investors who wanted to invest in pre ipo deals. For a few weeks these guys called with a million questions and demands, most of which were contrary to basic SEC regulations and compliance. I tried to set them straight but they just didn’t get it. These guys who called themselves consultants really had no clue as to what they were doing and the questions they were asking me about my firm in order to qualify our firm were completely off base and were actually laughable. It was irritating at the time, now I just sit back and laugh as I chalk it up as another lesson learned and another relationship that fortunately did not come to fruition.
Here are some realities to consider when talking to a consulting firm to take your company public. First, no consulting group acts alone, instead they play quarterback or orchestrator to facilitate a smooth, stress free process. Most consulting firms that take companies public on the OTCBB will have securities attorneys on staff for the s1 filing, third party SEC approved auditors for the SEC audit, multiple market makers to choose from for the filing of the 15c211 and scores of Investor Relations contacts for post public market creation.
When doing due diligence on an Edgar link for S1′s in process you’ll only see the attorney information and the auditor. The Consultant has to be content to stand in the background making the entire process function and succeed with virtually no public claim or credit. If you’re doing due diligence on a consulting firm it’s more important to find out how vast their network is as opposed to being the predictable intellectual midget who will look up the consultants previous stock symbols and call the company and expect to miraculously get on the phone with a person who knows the consultant first hand. The mere thought is so ridiculous it’s redundant to even bring it up but this is something that uninformed people actually do as part of what they consider ‘due diligence’.
All you need to do is this: Talk to the senior partner at the consulting firm. Establish whether or not they are full service. Gain an understanding for how long it takes them to get you from S1 to trading symbol. If you want to do some real due diligence, find out about their post public investor relations strategy so your company not only goes public but can stay public and profitable.
Consulting firms who take companies public on the OTCBB are a small part of the whole but without them, the transaction couldn’t happen. They are the 24/7 worker bees doing the impossible for the ungrateful….until the symbol is achieved and the stock is trading properly, they you get a pat on the back and, “hey thank you so much for your hard work…what was your name again?” And I always respond, “you can call me whatever you want but on my Share Certificates you can put Princeton Corporate Solutions”.
OK, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, of course they are going to remember my name but the reality is, solid due diligence by a company wanting to go public starts with a general evaluation of the consulting firm, some basic technical questions and then getting to the root and depth of their contact base to make sure your going public efforts are fast and smooth.
Expand Your Company To China Free Info Video, call Princeton Corporate Solutions at 267-233-0183 Globalize Your Company Now We will help you get where you want to go!
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As the global economy becomes more uncertain, entrepreneurs and CEOs are evaluating their fundraising strategies as traditional institutional lenders and government grants are become less available. For solid companies with profits there is a strong possibility of going public.
Pink Sheets aren’t very appealing to investors so these otc pink sheet companies can rarely stay in existence post public and the NASDAQ is a platform in which few can qualify so for companies seeking a rapid public offering of the pinks and the legitimacy of the NASDAQ the OTCBB (over the counter bulletin boards) is a viable option. The process can take from 3 to 6 months for a direct s1 filing and if it’s a real company getting the market maker to file the 15c211 is not that big of an issue as long as the initial audit and S1 filing went through without a hitch.
Post public operations are a completely different story and the investor relations strategy can and will make or break your ability to succeed in the public realm.
A strong investor relations campaign should contain a few central components: general corporate publicity, publicity wraps that go around each ‘C’ level executive to create the ‘expert’ label with your key staff, phone room communication to brokers to notify them on the ins and outs and what’s coming up for your company, stock alerts keeping seasoned traders up to speed with your stock position and information, press releases, keeping an eye out for and announcing the potential acquisitions and don’t forget about viral media (video, bookmarks, articles etc). One other thing is to hire a solid publicist who can get you on radio and television expert panel interview sessions as well as getting mentioned in journals and news papers.
All of the above is absolutely crucial to surviving and thriving in your post public life. One other thing, keep an eye out for solid strategic alliances who have multiple synergies that overlap with your business model. This is an important element for domestic and international growth and investor appeal.
Get Informed with the industry’s Top Financial Blog where the industry’s power players meet. Call Princeton Corporate Solutions at 267-233-0183 if you’re interested in Taking Your Company Public or Global Expansion we can make it happen.
IPOs and Taking Your Company Public: Why Do Public Companies Fail?
There are a few things that one needs to consider when strategizing to take a business public on a major exchange: corporate structure, the speed and efficiency at which the IPO is facilitated, the market creation post public with corporate publicity strategies and investor relations, relationships to secure ongoing financing and finally strategic growth through acquisition.
The corporate structure is the foundation to the company which includes a strong ‘C’ level leadership boasting a pedigree of steeped experience and professional track record.
The board of directors must be seasoned and solid composed of industry specialists in the finance, advisory, legal and distribution sectors of the industry and finally the corporations strategic alliances must be in place and strong to pad the business model and help the company grow.
The speed at which the company achieves a trading symbol is important not only to the company but the seed capital investors who want a rapid turnaround on their investment. The audit, SEC filing, 15c11 and FINRA approval need to be orchestrated by experts to complete this task in a timely manner or this process can crush your company as opposed to enhancing it.
Now that you have your trading symbol you need to create the market. Don’t count on your market maker or broker dealer to do this as they are simply a vessel to complete trades and vouch for your company on the securities level. You need powerful investor relations (IR) and corporate publicity. You should also consider publicity strategies for your ‘C’ level executives to brand them as industry experts to add legitimacy and strength to your presence and market position.
Don’t forget PIPES and other post public securities monetization solutions. These companies can offer a lifeline if you’re company is seeking expansion or acquisition capital. Make sure you get references! The last thing you want is a PIPE firm that gives you a 60% LTV (or less) against your stock and then crucifies your company by dumping the stock, ouch!
If your company is in the correct phase of evolution, growing and ready for that next level, think: OTCBB. It’s fast and relatively affordable and if you’re corporate strategies are in place you could rake in some serious capital fast for your corporate expansion.
For Corporate Turnaround Services or Investor Relations and Publicity, call Princeton Corporate Solutions at 267-233-0183Take Your Company Public the easy way!
Why Are You Taking Your Company Public? Evolve Or Die! As the owner of a corporate consulting firm that takes companies public and steps into public entities with a turnaround team to fix dying companies, there are two realities of corporate strategies that ring true in any and all industries when it comes to creating successful companies and those realities are: few things work and nothing works for long. Evolve or die, the decision is yours. What works today didn’t work ten years ago and won’t work ten years from now.
Promotional strategies, inter industry alliances, legal loopholes and board member’s bartering chips are forever spinning and mutating and like Zen seem to change shape just as the issues that make a strategies template seem to be defined and duplicatable.
Constantly update your publicity technologies. Always get the opinion of different peer groups who represent polar opposites in the market place before you roll out a new product or service. Before you make a decision have a backup plan and a backup plan to that plan. Have your CFO’s work audited by outside sources. Run credit checks on executives before they are promoted and find out if they are trying to live above their means, if so, they have the ‘grass is greener’ disease and will never be satisfied and will always be looking for a better deal. Employees like this can’t be trusted to help carry a company.
If you are a business owner, your job should be finding someone more qualified than you to run and grow your company. Always have multiple streams of revenue. If you are in the service industry, diversify by offering some products. If you are in the product industry (retail type) partner with some service oriented companies to earn commissions off of their efforts and your customer base.
Always be on a lookout for strategic partners and never be afraid to network. Keep updating your business plan. When raising capital stay out of debt and offer equity instead and when you offer equity in return for investment, pick inter industry alliances to raise capital from. Use a publicist and publicize everything! If you can’t afford a publicist put out press releases keeping your industry and potential clients informed of what you’re doing.
The above is just a little advice that I give to each client before initiating the structuring process of a Pre IPO. These realities will hold true today, next year and as long as commerce exists.
For Corporate Turnaround Services or Investor Relations and Publicity, call Princeton Corporate Solutions at 267-233-0183Take Your Company Public the easy way!
