Next Chapter M&A Advisory is a business brokerage firm specializing in sell-side transactions between $30M and $150M. We work with business owners who have built something valuable and want to maximize their exit.
Mark DeChant -- Managing Partner. Decades of M&A experience across multiple verticals. Dots every i, crosses every t.
Ewing Gillaspy -- Partner. Six exits in human capital, management, and talent recruiting. Former IBM, SAP, Oracle divisions. Deep relationships across HR tech. Brought a $88M deal to close for an owner-operated business. AI-powered intelligence and outreach capabilities.
John Kelly -- Advisor. Former Oracle (late '80s, worked with Larry Ellison). CRO experience. Six exits across HCM, talent, and recruiting platforms. Knows the CEOs of Remote, Rippling, and Deel personally.
We want to represent you as your broker to sell HR.com's assets -- all three or individually, whichever maximizes your outcome.
You told us: "I know all the people...me doing the negotiations is not the best thing." We agree. You need leverage, and you need someone who will fight for the highest price while you focus on running the business until close.
In 2022, you ran an acquisition process and received 8 offers:
- Lowest: $9M (industry association)
- Highest: ~$45M
- You accepted one in between. It fell through.
- Critical gap: the domain was NOT valued separately.
Our thesis: the 2022 process left money on the table because:
1. The domain was bundled, not independently valued
2. The agentic AI wave hadn't hit yet (AI.com hadn't sold for $70M)
3. My People hadn't been rebuilt and relaunched
4. The data ownership trend hadn't accelerated (companies now moving off cloud for data control)
We believe the total package is worth significantly more today than the $45M high offer from 2022.
We analyzed comparable transactions across all three asset classes using verified market data:
| Company | Deal | Revenue Multiple | EBITDA Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industry Dive (B2B media) | Sold to Informa, $525M | 4.8x | 11-15x |
| Penton Media | Sold to Informa, $1.56B | 3-4x | 11x |
| Bevy (community platform) | Valued at $325M | 20x | Growth stage |
| Circle.so (community SaaS) | Valued at $200-250M | 9x | Growth stage |
| AI.com (domain) | Sold for ~$70M | N/A | Category record |
| Asset | Conservative | Base | Aggressive |
|---|---|---|---|
| hr.com Domain | $12M | $18M | $30M+ |
| HR.com Media Business | $7M | $8.5M | $10M |
| My People Platform | $2M | $5M | $15M |
| TOTAL | $21M | $31.5M | $55M |
Base fair market value: $31.5M
This is conservative. It uses only numbers you stated on our call. If your total revenue is in the $40M+ range (as public sources suggest), the bundled value could be $85M-$150M with the right strategic buyer.
We propose a two-tier commission that aligns our incentives with yours:
5% of transaction value up to $31.5M (Fair Market Value)
This covers our work to prepare, position, and sell your assets at their fair market value. At $31.5M, our fee would be $1,575,000.
20% of any transaction value ABOVE $31.5M
This is where the real alignment happens. If we convince a strategic buyer to pay $50M instead of $31.5M, we earn an additional $3.7M on that $18.5M of upside. You still keep $14.8M of that extra value.
| If We Sell At | Your Net (After Fees) | Our Fee | Your Gain vs. No Broker |
|---|---|---|---|
| $25M | $23.75M | $1.25M (5%) | You had $45M offer in 2022 |
| $31.5M (FMV) | $29.93M | $1.58M (5%) | At market -- fair price |
| $45M (2022 high) | $40.18M | $4.83M (10.7%) | We matched 2022 peak |
| $65M | $55.78M | $9.23M (14.2%) | $20M above 2022 high |
| $100M | $83.78M | $16.23M (16.2%) | Generational outcome |
Compare to alternatives:
- Domain broker alone: 10% on domain only (no media, no My People)
- Investment banker: 3.5-5% flat (no incentive to push above market)
- Our structure: low base rate + massive upside incentive to find strategic buyers who will pay a premium
We've already analyzed 63 potential buyers for HR.com using our proprietary multi-LLM research pipeline. Here's a preview:
Pipeline Results (Complete):
- 63 buyer dossiers completed
- Average fit score: 80.6/100
- 57 buyers scored 80+
- Total research cost: $3.60
Top 10 Buyers by Strategic Fit:
| Rank | Company | Score | Why They'd Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oracle HCM | 85 | 1.92M HR practitioners = instant HCM distribution |
| 2 | OpenAI | 85 | First-party HR data for AI training |
| 3 | Paylocity | 85 | Audience ownership for mid-market HR |
| 4 | 85 | No current HR play + first-party data | |
| 5 | Industry Dive | 85 | HR vertical expansion (they already have HR Dive) |
| 6 | Wolters Kluwer | 85 | Professional content for HR compliance |
| 7 | Insight Partners | 85 | Portfolio synergies in HR tech |
| 8 | Silver Lake | 85 | Scale play with proven audience |
| 9 | Thoma Bravo | 85 | HR tech consolidation opportunity |
| 10 | SHRM | 85 | Direct competitor -- buy vs. compete |
This is the quality of intelligence we bring to every conversation with every potential buyer. Each dossier includes web research from 40+ sources, dual-LLM strategic analysis, cross-validation, and a compelling narrative for why HR.com is a strategic fit.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| This week | You review this proposal with Glenn at Mammoth |
| Next week | We verify financial data and finalize fair market value |
| Week 3 | Sign engagement letter, begin Phase 1 |
| Weeks 3-6 | Outreach to top 20 buyers |
| Weeks 7-16 | Deal facilitation, competitive bidding |
| Target | Letter of intent within 90-120 days |
Your hip replacement grounds you until June 8. That gives us 10 weeks of focused execution while you're available by phone and video from home. Perfect conditions for a disciplined process.
We're not asking you to commit to anything today. We're asking you to let us show you what we can do.
Next Chapter M&A Advisory
Mark DeChant | Ewing Gillaspy | John Kelly
"We don't just find buyers -- we create competitive tension that maximizes your price."