Pareto seeks to partner with like-minded owners and entrepreneurs for investment, and with experienced, driven executives for Board and advisory roles. We operate in a collaborative fashion, value long-term relationships, appreciate the accomplishments that come from dedication and hard work, while maximizing fun along the way in pursuit of shared goals and investment success.
While we operate with a sense of urgency and a competitive desire to win—and expect the same from those with whom we work—we also appreciate competing obligations of family and life outside the office that can arise and value a balanced life.
We are lifelong learners and approach situations with humility and desire to listen. We endeavor to be transparent in our communications, collegial and collaborative, intellectually honest and direct. We expect ourselves and our partners to operate with high integrity and character and exemplary ethical / ESG standards. We embrace diversity of opinions and in our colleagues. We will challenge ourselves and our partners and expect to be challenged, respectfully, in the spirit of achieving utmost success in a responsible and collaborative fashion.
We find no other more persuasive tool than empirical data in making decisions. We say “we have institutional know-how and entrepreneurial spirit.”
Backing management buyouts, corporate spinouts or generational transitions is our focus, so long as the business can be carved out with its own systems and resources. We also like situations where a non-profit or cooperative could be transformed into a privately-owned enterprise.
Generally, we will seek to align and partner with existing ownership and rarely will acquire full 100% ownership. We like to make sure management has a meaningful ownership stake and typically grant significant equity incentives to our management partners.
How We Manage the Due Diligence Process
We respect full confidentiality of the process and yet strive to be thorough and comprehensive in our approach, focusing on the “80/20 rule” up front. The firm plans to utilize its network of leading diligence providers across key areas of focus: market and industry consultants, accounting and tax, legal, environmental / ESG, insurance and benefits, investigative and background checks, IT, team assessment, and other specialists (such as operational or SME experts in a key functional area) which provide a more holistic view of a company’s profile and culture.
Our diligence process serves as context for creating a roadmap to post acquisition value creation priorities and enterprise risks and opportunities.
Each investment will require its own scope of work and diligence expertise, and not all investments will require every type of advisor. The firm will determine the advisory lineup based on an up-front assessment of the risks and key issues associated with each investment.
We utilize our diligence process to identify key value creation levers which will top our post-close priority list and underpin strategic planning initiatives. Thereafter, collective ownership of these objectives and priorities and joint accountability with management and board members is paramount to ensuring success.