Why I Love the Midmarket Growth Journey

Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of managing many types of business, ranging from high-growth start-ups to mature, private equity-backed consolidation groups. I have also had the opportunity to serve customers ranging from SOHO’s to Fortune 500 enterprises. What I’ve come to realize is that what I most enjoy is everything in between—or, in other words—the midmarket.

Over the last two decades, I’ve had the privilege of helping to acquire founder-led businesses. These entrepreneurs had the vision to see a problem and the ambition to build a business around solving it. That initial growth journey—building out a proven product for a niche market—often takes a lifetime, and it’s so incredibly inspiring.

The skillset required to get that first 10 million is often very different from the skillset required for the 10-100 million journey. There’s no insult there, because I’m no founder, and I’ve met plenty of founders with no interest in the midmarket growth journey—which is what I know how to do, and what I’ve come to realize I love to do.

By far, the most rewarding aspect of the job is witnessing the professional development of the people in these businesses. The honor of my career has been mentoring young, sometimes second-generation management teams and unlocking their big ideas.

I also really enjoy the speed of execution that comes with the midmarket growth journey. The companies are still too small for bureaucracy, and the people are deeply loyal and knowledgeable. It’s an environment where small but enlightened teams can achieve tangible results quickly, and where success is extremely personal.

I also love witnessing the impact of growth initiatives—particularly from a customer perspective. Sometimes even simple changes to their service experience or a single product release can have transformative value creation and turn happy customers into true ambassadors.