The M&A Forum was founded in Houston in June of 2008 based on a model developed by a Dallas, TX based business leadership group currently known as the Business Navigators.
Through monthly meetings and other programs, the organization brings together buyers and sellers of private enterprises along with investors, lenders and professional advisors that make business transactions happen. The principles upon which the M&A Forum was built and which continue to guide its mission and vision today are:
The M&A Forum was formally organized as a non-profit corporation in July of 2015 and designated as a 501(c)(6) tax exempt company in March of 2016.
The M&A Forum is building a community based on trusted relationships among acquisition-focused investors, lenders, brokers, professionals, and business owners of growing private enterprises, that results in enhanced value to all constituencies.
The M&A Forum envisions a business environment that fosters transparency and trust among M&A community stakeholders, including business owners, business buyers, and service providers.
Mike is a senior executive whose career in the energy and petrochemical industries spans 45 years. Currently, he is the principal of CSB Partners, LLC which assists with and participates in planning, structuring, financing, developing, and operating projects and enterprises focused on production, processing, transportation, and marketing of natural gas, oil and alternative energy resources. In 2012, Mike co-founded Discovery Energy Corp, a public oil exploration company, where he serves as president and COO through mid-2018. Previously, Mike had held numerous management and executive positions at Jefferies Energy Consulting and Enron, including president of Enron Americas. Mike earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Economics from Iowa State University.
Ray is a Senior Private Wealth Advisor with Asset Management Advisors, A Houston-based SEC-Registered Investment Advisor, offering wealth management services to high net-worth individuals, business owners, families, trusts, and foundations. Ray has over twenty years of experience serving high net worth individuals and private company business owners in financial, investment and tax planning. Before entering the financial planning profession, Ray practiced as a CPA with Arthur Andersen, Price Waterhouse and several local CPA firms. Ray graduated magna cum laude from St. Mary’s University (San Antonio) with a B.B.A. in Accounting.
Jack Chang is a Managing Director at DGP Capital, a Houston-based middle market investment bank serving the industrial, business services and energy sectors. Prior to DGP Capital, Jack was a Director at GE’s Venture Capital group, and an Associate Director at UBS’ Global Energy Investment Banking team. He was also a member of Tyco International’s M&A team. Jack holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, and a MBA from the University of Texas at Austin.
Austin is a certified business coach with the FocalPoint Coaching organization and serves as the Entrepreneur-in-Residence to the HCC Northeast campus. Austin’s practice is focused on the three drivers of profitable, sustainable and exponential growth – Strategic Direction and Execution, Customer Experience, and Team Dynamics. Prior to Focal Point, Austin was a successful business development executive with two of world’s largest professional services firms. Previously, Austin earned global recognition for turning around a $42 million business unit, consisting of over 300 client relationships and 1,700 employees by improving operating profit by 32% in less than 10 months. With the same company, a $1 billion revenue services firm, he created a Corporate Strategy function, engineering the creation of the differentiation and solutions strategy which realized a 26% premium at time of sale. Austin holds an undergraduate degree in accounting from Cal State Long Beach and an MBA from UCLA.
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