Dan Doran

Biography

Dan splits his time between M&A deals, overseeing Quantive’s valuation practice, and helping entrepreneurs work through transition planning. His passion lies in assisting shareholders plan for ownership transitions- at the time and on the terms of their choosing.

Despite his love of working on M&A transactions, he is an experienced and sought after valuation expert. His deep experience in M&A creates a valuation point of reference goes beyond debits and credits, giving him keen insight into “what it’s really worth.”  Mr. Doran has experience in performing valuations on a wide range of businesses in both size and type. Since 2004 he has completed several thousand valuation assignments.

Dan has worked on M&A transactions and assignments in a wide range of industries but focuses his efforts on: 

  • Government and defense contractors
  • Data Science (AI/ML,  RPA, Cyber)
  • IT (SaaS, managed services, DevOps / DevSecOps, application development, etc)
  • Data Center and related trades
  • Professional Services

Dan’s passion for value creation- and helping entrepreneurs meet their ultimate financial goals- led him to create our sister company Value Scout. Value Scout is a SaaS platform aimed at helping entrepreneurs and their advisors deliberately create enterprise value. Dan is both Founder of Value Scout, and chiefly responsible for system architecture and product direction.

Early in his career Dan was a key member in a bankruptcy turnaround / leveraged buyout, and worked at GE on large restructuring projects. He was also an active duty Army Officer (Cavalry – Scouts Out!).

In his spare time Dan is an avid outdoors enthusiast, has climbed mountains the world over, and enthusiastically tries to see the farthest corner of the world.

Stats

Education
– U.S. Military Academy, West Point

Awards
-Exit Planning Leader of the Year (Exit Planning Institute, 2019)
-Exit Planning Member of the Year (Finalist – Exit Planning Institute, 2017)

Published & Quoted
-Financial Advisor Magazine
-Washington Business Journal
-US News & World Report
-Fortune Magazine
-Entrepreneur
-Forbes Magazine
-Banker and Tradesman
-NJ Biz
-Construction Business Owner Magazine
-Banking New York

Involvement
-Washington DC Exit Planning Chapter (Chair / Co-founder)

Hails From
New Jersey

Trivia
Has wrangled a hog, climbed big mountains around the world, and likes black licorice.

Recent Publications

  • “Thinking of an Exit? Begin with the End in Mind,” Compoundings Magazine, May 2019
  • “What 2019 Means for Exit Planning: Is Now the Time to Sell?,” Compoundings Magazine, February 2019
  • “Is Your Client Jeopardizing Their Retirement?” Financial Advisor Magazine, April 2017
  • “When Life Insurance Impacts the Deal: Considerations for Lenders,” Banking New England, April 2017
  • “3 Secrets to making your business more sellable,” Virginia Business, February 2017
  •  “Selling Your Startup to a Large Corporation: Dilemma or Opportunity?” All Business, January 2017
  • (Quoted) “But Did You Die? Keep the Business Alive If You’re Not Around,” The Mid-South Bazaar, February  2017
  • “4 Ways Your Business Might Be Worth More Under Trump,” Business2Community, January 2017
  • “Family Businesses Should Beware Proposed Estate Tax Regulations”, OpEd, Washington Business Journal, December 2016
  • (Quoted) “How Hillary’s Plan to Raise the Estate Tax Could Hurt Small Business”, CNBC Online, October 2016
  • (Quoted) “Small Business is up in Arms Over Hillary’s Plan to Raise Estate Tax,” Yahoo News, October 2016
  • “Strategic Partnerships Equal Magic Math”, Virginia Business Journal, September 2016
  • “Can a Great Brand Enhance Value?,” Virginia Business Journal, May 2016
  • “Valuation Red Flags in an Uncertain Economy,” Banking New York, April 2016
  • “Enhancing Value,” Compoundings Magazine, April 2016
  • “What can we learn about growth from fast growing tech startups?,” NJ Biz, March 2016
  • “Business Growth Hacks to Boost Your Value,” Thinking Bigger Magazine, January 2016
  • “Choosing a Business Appraisal Firm,”” Construction Business Owner Magazine, January 2016
  • “Triple Play: How to Focus Your Efforts on Growing Your Business,” NJ Biz, January 2016
  • “Triple Play: What to do Before Selling Your Business,” NJ Biz, November 2015
  • “Inside the Valuation Process: a Primer for Commercial Lenders” Banking New York, Nov/Dec 2015
  • “The Value if Your Business is Key to Retirement Planning.” Virginia Business Journal, November, 2015.
  • “Inside the Valuation Process: a Primer for Commercial Lenders” Banker and Tradesman, Nov/Dec 2015
  • “Four Quick Tips for a Successful Business Appraisal,” Construction Business Owner Magazine, December 2015.
  • “Inside the Valuation Process: a Primer for Commercial Lenders” Banking New England, Nov/Dec 2015
  • “How Long Does a Valuation Last?” Axial (Middle Market Capital Sourcing platform).  April, 2015.
  • “Boost the Value of Your Business Before it’s Time to Sell.” Virginia Business Journal, July 2015.
  • Featured Author, Morgan and Westfield (Middle Market Investment Bank).

Recent Speaking Engagements

  • “M&A Update: Position for Transition,” WPA Spring Summit Charleston SC, March 2022
  • “Quantifying and Closing the Value Gap,” Exit Planning Institute Dallas Chapter, June 2021
  • “Applying the Value Engineering Framework in the Contract Furniture Industry,” Solomon Coyle Webinar Series, May 2021
  • “Do You Have the Right (Exit) Team in Place?” The Ripcord Moment Podcast, May 2021
  • “The Bottom Line Panel Discussion,” Panelists,  Exit Planning Institute North Jersey Chapter, March 2021
  • “The Value Engineering Framework: A Deliberate Approach to Value Creation,” Webinar February 2021
  • “The Current State of M&A,” Webinar November 2020
  • “Update on Valuations and M&A in the Post-Covid World,” Offit & Kurman Podcast, May 2020
  • “Valuation Impacts on the Contract Furniture Industry,” Solomon Coyle Webinar Series, April 2020
  • “What COVID-19 Means for Valuations and M&A,” April 2020
  • “Cybersecurity and M&A,” DC Cyber Week, Panelist, October 2019
  • “Valuation as the Cornerstone of Financial Planning,” San Antonio, September 2019
  • “Cloud Security and the M&A Lifecycle,” DC Cloud Week, Panelist, May 2019
  • “Scaling up a GovCon: a Fireside Chat,” March 2019
  • “Introduction to Business Valuation,” Instructor, Certified Exit Planning Advisor course, April and May 2019
  • “The Exit Planning Process,” December 2018
  • “Scaling Up,” Exit Planning Institute Annual Summit, September 2018
  • “What’s My Business Really Worth- a Private Equity Panel,” Panelist, September 2018
  • “Introduction to Business Valuation,” Instructor, Certified Exit Planning Advisor course, August 2018
  • “Valuation: Separating Signal from Noise,” January 2018
  • “Three Owners, Six Exits: Success Stories from Exited Entrepreneurs,” Moderator, December 2017
  • “Diligence: Avoiding Repricing and Tanked Deals,” Moderator, November 2018
  • “The Five Stages of Value Maturity,” Matthews, Carter, & Boyce, June 2017
  • “Understanding Exit Options: ESOP vs. M&A,” Moderator, April 2017
  • “Meet the Valuators,” Fairfax County Bar (Business Law Section), February 16, 2017
  • “Are You Exit Ready? You Can’t Take it With You”, CPE event, February 1, 2017
  • “New Year, New Admin: M&A, Valuation, and Owner Exits,” Panel Moderator, January 2017
  • “Owner Transitions: Value, Risks, and Opportunities,” CPE for New Jersey Society of CPAs, September 2016
  • “Exit Planning Bootcamp,” presented in Newark, NJ, September 2016
  • “Business Valuation 101,” presented in Alexandria VA, August, 2015
  • “Valuation Matters for Closely Held Companies,” International Lubricant Manufacturers Association annual meeting, 2016, Bermuda.
  • National Business Institute faculty member, 2015: “Business Valuation: What Attorney’s Need to Know,” CLE presented in Virginia Beach, VA
  • National Business Institute faculty member, 2015: “Business Valuation: What Attorney’s Need to Know,” CLE presented in Virginia Beach and Fairfax, VA

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