“As owners of a small Managed Services provider, my partners and I were concerned about representation from the Sellers Side. After meeting the Cogent team and having personal one-on-one conversations with their principals and their merger team, our concerns were laid to rest. Even though Cogent was clear up front on their buyer side representation, it was clear that the team had a vested interest in our long-term success and overall satisfaction with the business merger.
As it was clear upfront that Cogent represented the Buyer in this transaction, a team was setup initially including principals from Cogent, Seller and Buyer. We were given every possible piece of due-diligence information and worked hand in hand in hand with Cogent and the team at Hilltop Consultants. Any time myself, or one of my partners, had a question about process or procedure, the Cogent team was there to assist and clearly walk us through the explanation.
Weekly process and status meetings were conducted so all parties stayed on focus towards a common goal. Daily and weekly calls with “my” Cogent rep were also very helpful in making sure that our interests were always being considered. Even 11 months post transaction, the Cogent team is available to me for any questions that we may have. Rick, Bruce and the Cogent team have become a trusted strategic business partner moving forward.
My partners and I have never gone through the Buy/Sell process before, so we had many and varied questions. From x’s and o’s, mechanics, financial, taxes, buyer side attorney interactions and long-term consulting, the Cogent team was right there with us. We are very appreciative of not only the Cogent team but the Hilltop Consultants team and how well we worked through this entire process together. We setup the process from the beginning to be friendly, cordial and team oriented. Our goal was to be amicable from the beginning and throughout the years to follow. Cogent and Hilltop Consultants worked very well to foster and ensure that was and remains the culture.
My partners and I considered our own representation from start to finish, but ultimately made the decision to work with the Cogent team. Having the pleasure of working directly with Bruce years before in an earlier process, we felt very secure in knowing that he would be part of the merger team. Then after meeting with the Hilltop Consultants team and knowing who our partners would be moving forward, the relationship with Rick and the Cogent team was an easy relationship to trust.
At all times throughout the process, Cogent was keen to keep the process moving forward but certainly understood the demands of keeping our existing business in operation. At no point did Cogent or Hilltop Consultants feel as they were dictating procedure or telling us what to do. We all had a lot at stake and everyone was treated like professionals and afforded the professional courtesy’s expected. I attribute this to the candor and culture set in the beginning and all parties operating under strict good faith. I expected that if we were honest and engaging then all parties would operate that way. I am pleased to say that we have no regrets in any aspect of our working relationships.
Despite some or our apprehensions upfront, none of those concerns existed post LOI or after deal consummation. It is very difficult to quantify the dollar amount that my partners and I saved by trusting Cogent and Hilltop Consultants and unify the process with the single vendor. Having said that my partners and I did hire our own counsel to review the final closing documents and schedules just to make sure that our interests were verified. Other than that, I couldn’t make a stronger recommendation for Cogent Growth Partners in being part of the Buyer/Seller Merger and Acquisition team.”
