🧠 Episode Summary:
In this insightful episode, Alex Rawlings is joined by Brian Reavell, Founder of R-Squared Advisors and seasoned Private Equity Operating Partner, to dive deep into the world of go-to-market (GTM) strategies. Brian shares a comprehensive GTM playbook for PE-backed portfolio companies—spanning from due diligence and customer segmentation to talent evaluation and post-investment execution.

With over two decades of commercial leadership and consulting experience, Brian explains why private equity firms often overestimate internal talent, underestimate customer orientation, and misalign incentives—leading to missed growth targets. Packed with case studies and actionable frameworks, this episode is a goldmine for anyone looking to drive scalable and sustainable sales growth within a PE-backed environment.

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction to Brian Reavell and today's GTM focus
01:26 – Common mistakes PE firms make around organic growth assumptions
03:21 – The three critical GTM pillars: Ideal Client Profile, Talent, and Segmentation
05:38 – Why talent is the most overlooked area in due diligence
08:00 – Assessing sales talent beyond resumes and black books
09:28 – Quantitative vs. qualitative approaches to evaluating salespeople
11:20 – EQ, IQ, and AQ: The key characteristics to assess in talent
13:18 – Building a GTM strategy post-investment: Process & execution
14:45 – Case Study: GTM transformation in a $4B building products distributor
16:56 – Impact of role design and customer segmentation on profitability
18:50 – $500M top-line and $100M EBITDA opportunity unlocked
20:42 – Managing change in founder-led businesses
23:07 – Overcoming resistance at field and leadership levels
24:53 – Case Study: Cultural and GTM integration in a K-12 education platform
27:43 – Creating flexible but standardized playbooks
29:35 – Assessing and top-grading sales and marketing leadership
31:02 – Succession planning and commercial leadership turnover
32:54 – What creates board-level confidence in GTM leaders
33:52 – Brian’s top reading and learning resources
35:19 – The First 90 Days, AI, and making tech an enabler
36:17 – How to connect with Brian Revelle

📚 Resources Mentioned:

• Winning Moves & Intelligent Equity by Dan Kremins
• The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins
• ChatGPT and AI tools for sales enablement and productivity

📨 Connect with Brian Reavell:
Email: brian@r-squaredadvisors.com
Company: R-Squared Advisors (not linked in transcript, assumed domain)

Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.

🔗 Connect with Alex Rawlings on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrawlings/
🌐 Visit Raw Selection: www.raw-selection.com

Guest: David Rowley, Operating Partner at Diversis Capital
Host: Alex Rawlings
Topic: Product Strategy, Artificial Intelligence, and the Evolving Role of the Operating Partner

🔍 Episode Overview:

In this episode, Alex Rawlings is joined by David Rowley, Operating Partner at Diversis Capital, to explore how private equity can drive value creation through smarter product strategies and the integration of artificial intelligence. With a career spanning back to the 1980s in software product development, David shares practical insights into aligning executive teams with PE theses, building agile innovation pods, and how AI is transforming both product development and organizational structures.

💡 Key Discussion Points:

• The Critical Role of Alignment:
  David highlights that one of the most frequent causes of failure in portfolio companies is a lack of alignment between leadership and the PE firm's investment thesis.
• Product Strategy Framework:
  Distinguishing between goals, vision, and strategy, David explains his approach to creating adaptive product strategies optimized for optionality and driven by data.
• AI’s Evolving Impact:
  David discusses how AI is reshaping product development, comparing the current inflection point to the rise of agile methodologies in the early 2000s. He introduces the concept of small, highly-focused “cocktail party” innovation pods to build and iterate rapidly.
• Scaling Innovation Across Portfolio Companies:
  He emphasizes the need for organizational models that support rapid, creative innovation while maintaining core operations—balancing “keeping the lights on” with breakthrough work.
• Grassroots AI Adoption:
  David shares how he's cultivating a culture of experimentation across Diversis’ portfolio companies, allowing individual contributors to explore AI tools, sparking internal champions and grassroots innovation.
• Avoiding AI Hype Distractions:
  With AI now included in many value creation plans, David outlines how to distinguish between superficial use cases and those that drive meaningful operational improvements.
• Leveraging CTO Experience as an Operating Partner:
  David reflects on how his hands-on CTO background across multiple sectors enhances his intuition and effectiveness in the PE world—particularly when decisions must be made before data is complete.
• Trends in the Operating Partner Role:
  From a recent operating partner forum, David notes the growing trend of more hands-on involvement from operating partners, suggesting a broader shift in private equity away from consultants and toward in-house expertise.

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction to David Rowley and today’s topics
01:28 – Biggest mistake PE firms make: lack of leadership alignment
02:50 – Defining product strategy vs. goals and vision
05:10 – Key indicators for pivoting product strategy
06:32 – How AI is changing product development structures
08:55 – Traits and structure of high-performing innovation teams
10:42 – Balancing innovation pods with ongoing operations
12:31 – David’s early exposure to AI (40 years ago!)
14:52 – Deploying AI across portfolio companies
16:44 – Using AI agents in business operations
17:39 – Avoiding AI distractions and integrating AI into value creation
20:00 – Testing leadership alignment through AI transformation
21:14 – From CTO to operating partner: Lessons and intuition
23:08 – Takeaways from the Operating Partner Networking Forum
24:58 – Trend toward in-house expertise and interim CTO roles
25:51 – How to connect with David
26:20 – Wrap-up and final thoughts

🎙️ The Private Equity Podcast — Episode with Graham Bachman, Hidden River Strategic Capital

Guest: Graham Bachman, Managing Director & Head of Business Development at Hidden River Strategic Capital
Host: Alex Rawlings

In this episode of The Private Equity Podcast, Alex Rawlings is joined by Graham Bachman, who shares how Hidden River Strategic Capital is reshaping lower middle-market investing with structured capital—a hybrid approach that sits between debt and equity, allowing business owners to retain control while unlocking growth opportunities.

Graham unpacks how Hidden River’s capital solutions serve founders not looking for full buyouts or rigid debt structures and instead prioritizes long-term partnerships with existing management teams. He also offers valuable insights into deal origination, the firm's philosophy on professionalization, and why education and consistency are key in a fragmented funding landscape.

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 – Welcome and guest introduction
00:29 – Graham’s background and why he joined Hidden River
01:56 – Hidden River’s investment focus and fund status
02:52 – Gaps in the lower middle-market funding landscape
03:47 – What is structured capital and why it matters
06:08 – Use cases for Hidden River’s structured solutions
07:32 – Supporting founder-led businesses without taking control
09:08 – How hands-on is Hidden River in company operations?
11:33 – How does Hidden River help with leadership development?
12:59 – Differentiation through relationship-first deal sourcing
15:51 – Graham’s reading list and media recommendations
17:22 – How to contact Graham
17:51 – Final thoughts and episode close

💡 Episode Highlights:

• Structured Capital Defined: A tailored blend of debt and non-control equity designed to meet the needs of owners who don't want to sell or over-leverage.
• Flexible Approach: Hidden River typically backs existing management teams and helps them scale without stepping in to control day-to-day operations.
• Unique Deal Sourcing: In a buyout-dominated ecosystem, Hidden River differentiates through education, consistency, and relationship building.
• Founder-Friendly Philosophy: The firm supports founders who want capital to grow—not exit—and builds customized investment solutions to match.

📚 Graham’s Recommended Reads:

• Thinking in Bets by Annie Duke
• The Colossal Failure of Common Sense by Lawrence G. McDonald
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Howard Marks' memos
• The Wall Street Journal

📨 Connect with Graham:
Email: gbachman@hiddenrivercap.com
Website: www.hiddenrivercap.com

Raw Selection partners with Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies to secure exceptional executive talent. We focus on de-risking executive recruitment through meticulous search and selection processes, ensuring top-tier performance and long-term success.

🔗 Connect with Alex Rawlings on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrawlings/
🌐 Visit Raw Selection: www.raw-selection.com