Private Equity Masterclass Training Course

Participants can turn an opportunity into a testable investment thesis and screening decision.

• Proprietary sourcing channels compared with auction processes and intermediary mandates
• Investment screens set for sector attractiveness, scale, ownership and return potential
• Porter's Five Forces used to test industry profit pools
• Value-creation bridges separate operational gains, multiple expansion and deleveraging
• Management meetings structured around strategy, incentives, capability and succession
• Early red flags identified in customer concentration, churn and working capital

Participants can direct due diligence that resolves the material assumptions in an investment case.

• Diligence workstreams mapped to investment hypotheses, risks and decision gates
• Quality of earnings analysis normalises revenue, margins and exceptional items
• Cohort analysis tests retention, expansion revenue and customer acquisition economics
• Market sizing triangulates top-down estimates, customer evidence and capacity constraints
• Operational diligence examines procurement, pricing, systems and management bandwidth
• Findings prioritised by valuation impact, probability, mitigations and deal protections

Participants can build and challenge an LBO return case under multiple operating and exit scenarios.

• Sources and uses schedule reconciles equity, debt, fees and purchase consideration
• Enterprise value bridged to equity value through net debt adjustments
• Operating case translates commercial assumptions into revenue, EBITDA and cash flow
• Debt schedules model amortisation, cash sweeps, interest and mandatory prepayments
• IRR and MOIC calculated across entry price, holding period and exit multiple
• Downside cases stress volume, pricing, margins, working capital and refinancing
• Sensitivity tables isolate return exposure to operational and valuation assumptions

Participants can evaluate debt structures, covenant headroom and lender requirements for an acquisition.

• Senior, unitranche, mezzanine and PIK instruments compared by risk and cost
• Debt capacity assessed using cash conversion, cyclicality and asset security
• Covenant headroom calculated under base, downside and severe stress cases
• Fixed-charge coverage tests interest, taxes, capex and lease commitments
• Term sheets reviewed for pricing, amortisation, baskets and restricted payments
• Refinancing risk assessed against maturity walls, market access and business volatility

Participants can assess transaction terms that allocate value, control and post-close risk.

• Share purchase and asset purchase structures compared for risk allocation
• Completion accounts and locked-box mechanisms assessed for price certainty
• Earn-outs designed around measurable metrics, controls and dispute prevention
• Representations, warranties and indemnities matched to diligence findings
• Management incentive plans model sweet equity, ratchets and vesting conditions
• Shareholders' agreements define reserved matters, transfers, drag and tag rights

Participants can prepare a decision-ready investment committee case with clear recommendations and conditions.

• Investment memorandum structure links thesis, evidence, valuation and recommendation
• Key risks ranked using likelihood, impact, ownership and mitigation actions
• Decision conditions specify diligence closure, financing, approvals and documentation
• Forecast credibility tested through historical variance, drivers and management accountability
• Committee questions anticipated on downside protection, returns and execution risk
• Dissenting views documented without weakening accountability for final recommendations

Participants can establish post-acquisition governance and value-creation plans tied to investment returns.

• One-hundred-day plan prioritises leadership, cash, customers and operational controls
• Board calendar aligns strategic decisions, performance reviews and financing obligations
• KPI trees connect operational metrics to EBITDA, cash conversion and valuation
• Value-creation office tracks initiatives, owners, milestones and realised benefits
• Management reporting distinguishes early indicators from lagging financial outcomes
• Add-on acquisition criteria test strategic fit, integration capacity and return impact

Participants can value portfolio companies and report fund performance with appropriate evidence and discipline.

• IPEV valuation guidelines applied to comparable multiples and discounted cash flow
• Fair value adjustments consider performance variance, market movements and financing conditions
• Quarterly portfolio reviews examine trading, liquidity, covenants and value-creation delivery
• MOIC, IRR, DPI, RVPI and TVPI reconciled to cash flows
• Gross and net returns separated for fees, carry and fund expenses
• LP reporting distinguishes valuation movements, realised proceeds and portfolio narratives

Participants can select, prepare and execute an exit plan that protects value and return timing.

• Trade sale, secondary buyout and IPO routes compared systematically
• Exit readiness assessment covers management depth, reporting quality and equity story
• Vendor due diligence prepares evidence for earnings, customers and working capital
• Buyer universe mapped by strategic rationale, financing capacity and execution certainty
• Sale process timetable coordinates advisers, data room, management and approvals
• Exit model tests proceeds, debt repayment, carry and distribution timing
• Personal application plan identifies priority changes to current investment processes