Hiring an m&a analyst is not going to be any easy. You need to look for very specific things they deal in; for example, a boutique business would require a boutique m&a advisory firm as they would understand the need of the market and help you find the right people. 

There are two types of M&A analysts, sell-side and buy-side. As the name suggests, the sell-side analyst pitches different companies for you to find a prospective buyer. Similarly, buy-side analysts would be proficient in research and help you find companies you can acquire. While hiring someone, you must look at what they specialize in. In general, there are three major tasks that a boutique m&a advisory firm does: 

Targeting companies

Identifying potential target companies for mergers. They do in-depth research and analyze each potential company. They would process their findings to find various channels through primary and secondary research. They would look into their network, corporate events, employee referrals, online advertisement, database search, and more. 

Competition assessment

One of the strongest suits of boutique M&A advisory firms is their ability to process a huge amount of data on prospective businesses and companies in particular. They would do a SWOT analysis and study the different competitive landscape opportunities within a pre-determined area of consideration. 

Liaisoning

Once they have identified the target, the analyst would proceed further to contact them and arrange meetings with the senior leadership to take the talk further. 

Feasibility assessment

They would also help you with appraising and sanctioning of the financial and operational position of the target company. This involves looking into several operations, finances, and legal risks of the company.  

Specialized Skills 

The above mentioned four tasks or services are offered by all the m&a advisory firms. But you would need more than these four skillsets to successfully crack a deal with the targeted company. You need people that specialize in boutique business mergers and acquisitions. You will need to find if they have the below-mentioned skills. 

Financial Modelling 

You cannot be sure to target a company unless you have seen their financial performance. You must hire a boutique m&a analyst that specializes in financial modeling to provide you proper risk-benefit analysis. An analyst must be proficient in assessing and comparing multiple factors involved to identify the market position of a company in your industry vertical. 

Valuation Techniques

It is the job of your hired boutique m&a advisory firm to determine the purchase price of the target company. What premium needs are to pay to the company, and what is the most appropriate way to do this. They must know how to compare the transactions that happened over the years and comparable company analysis or discounted cash flow analysis. 

Accounting skills

Accounting skills are of high importance and usually very difficult to find. A merger or acquisition would involve millions and billions of dollars. Mergers and acquisitions would need you to finalize the tax treatment of the transactions that have been accounted for. For that, you would need skilled professionals that should be working at the boutique advisory firms you are considering hiring.