The Chief Strategy Officer Podcast

Working with Investment Bankers: Strategy First, Deal Second

• Outthinker

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If you’re a strategy leader stepping into M&A or refining your inorganic growth strategy, there’s one relationship that can either propel you forward or hold you back: your relationship with investment bankers. In this episode, we dive deep into the often opaque world of investment banking with two strategy executives who’ve worked across both sides of the deal table. 
 
Together, our guests bring more than 40 years of combined experience across investment banking, M&A strategy, and corporate development—having led acquisitions and divestitures in both public and private companies, across industries and borders.  

Michael Arlotto is the Global Head of Corporate Development and Ventures at Kenvue, an American consumer health company and the proprietor of many brands you’ve heard of, like Band-Aid, Benadryl, Neutrogena and Tylenol.  

Chris Nuttall is the Executive Vice President of Corporate Development at Bazaarvoice, an American tech company that helps brands collect and leverage UGC, which stands for user-generated content.

Together, the three of us explore:

- How to assess and build the right relationship with an investment banker 
 - What “transformative M&A” really means—and how to pull it off 
 - The soft skills and cultural fit that matter just as much as deal terms 
 - How to avoid M&A regret by starting with strategy and ending with integration 
 - Why successful M&A is less about buying a company—and more about buying into a multiyear business plan 
  
 Whether you’re planning your first acquisition or fine-tuning your approach to external growth, this episode will help you build stronger partnerships, avoid costly missteps, and execute deals that deliver long-term value.

People on this episode

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Kaihan Krippendorff

Host