University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
Operations Due Diligence
Book

Operations Due Diligence

An M&A Guide for Investors and Business

James F. Grebey
McGraw-Hill, 2011
Buy book or audiobook

Read offline

Amazon Kindle

Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

Operations consultant James F. Grebey shows you how to assess the operations and infrastructure of a firm, whether you’re an executive looking to increase the longevity and profitability of your company or a financier trying to evaluate the viability of a potential acquisition. This straightforward guide is packed with extensive checklists and 400 questions that will help managers and investors complete a thorough operational evaluation – and read between the lines when necessary. The information is extraordinarily well organized, and the author eschews jargon, preferring everyday language whenever possible, a habit that sets his book apart from many how-to manuals. getAbstract recommends this comprehensive work to investors and managers responsible for assessing a firm’s viability, and to employees whose firms are going through a due diligence evaluation because this basic understanding of the process will go a long way toward dissipating the clouds of unease that come with all those closed-door meetings.

Summary

What Factors Give Rise to a Good Business?

“Operations Due Diligence” is a method for determining the opportunities, risks and longevity of a company. Investors must perform intelligent due diligence to evaluate a proposed acquisition, but managers should also go through this process to discover ways of optimizing their operations. Due diligence studies three facets of a firm’s operations to help you judge its total value:

  1. “Financial due diligence” – Appraising this area means looking at a company’s present financial health; it does not evaluate past performance. To perform financial due diligence, hire outside certified public accountants (CPAs) to inspect the firm’s ongoing fiscal operations.
  2. “Legal due diligence” – This analysis reveals the present state of a business’s legal framework. Outside attorneys conduct legal due diligence, which examines all pending legal issues that could affect the firm’s viability. A thorough evaluation covers all contracts related to partnerships, royalties, vendors, labor and nondisclosure.
  3. “Operations due diligence” – As part of providing a holistic picture of a firm’s operational fitness...

About the Author

Veteran executive Jim Grebey heads Diligent Inc., an operations consultancy.

Comment on this summary