Navigating Mergers & Acquisitions with AI: The Future of Deals
4.00 Credits
Member Price $149
Non-Member Price $179
Overview
Mergers and acquisitions can be complex, risky, and filled with unexpected challenges—but they don’t have to be overwhelming. This course provides a clear and practical overview of the M&A process, helping professionals understand the critical stages of evaluating opportunities, structuring deals, conducting due diligence, and navigating post-transaction integration. Participants will learn practical techniques that help organizations avoid the common traps that derail many transactions while improving the likelihood of successful outcomes. The session also explores how emerging AI tools are beginning to enhance deal analysis, uncover deeper insights, and support better decision-making throughout the M&A process.
Highlights
- Strategic Reasons for Mergers & Acquisitions
- Establishing Acquisition Principles and Target Criteria
- Business Valuation in the M&A Process
- Structuring the Transaction and Negotiating the Deal
- Conducting Effective Due Diligence
- Post-Transaction Integration and Deal Success
Prerequisites
None
Designed For
All CPAs
Objectives
- Identify strategic reasons organizations pursue mergers and acquisitions and evaluate whether acquisition strategies align with broader organizational goals.
- Analyze potential acquisition targets by applying acquisition principles, screening criteria, and emerging AI-supported research tools to identify viable opportunities.
- Evaluate business valuation approaches used in mergers and acquisitions, including balance sheet, earnings, and cash-flow methods.
- Recognize common negotiation challenges and transaction structures encountered in M&A deals and identify practical techniques to avoid common traps.
- Assess key due diligence findings and integration considerations while recognizing how AI tools may enhance data analysis and decision-making throughout the M&A process.
Preparation
None
Leader(s):
Leader Bios
James Lindell, ACPEN Business Professionals Network
James (Jim) Lindell, CPA, MBA is the President of a Wisconsin based provider of strategic & financial consulting, professional speaking, training, and executive coaching. Jim has an extensive background in senior management including positions as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Assistant Controller. Jim has worked with a variety of industries including: manufacturing, health care, not for profit, distribution and food processing. He has been involved in more than 50 M & A projects. James Lindell is a Certified Public Accountant with public accounting experience at several local and regional accounting firms. He is a TEC Chairman (The Executive Committee). He is a member (and instructor) of the American Institute of CPA’s and the Wisconsin Institute of CPA’s and a member of Wisconsin Chapter of National Speaker Association. Jim is the author of the AICPA course “AICPA’s Annual Update for Controllers”, “Strategic Planning: A Simplified and Workable Approach for Private Companies” and “AICPA’s Controllership: 25 Critical Lessons from the Trenches.” Jim also authored and was part of the AICPA video and course, “Minimizing the Effects of a Recession on Your Business”. He is a contributing author of the AICPA course “The Fast Close, Soft Close, Virtual Close? Now Days, not Weeks”. Jim is a 2-time recipient of the AICPA’s Outstanding Discussion Leader award and most recently is a 2012-13 recipient of the AICPA Outstanding Instructor Award.
Non-Member Price $179
Member Price $149