Laurie Barkman, CEPA®

Laurie Barkman, the business transition sherpa, is the former CEO of a $100 million revenue company that was sold to a Fortune 50. Laurie guides business owners through the often overwhelming process of transition planning. And as a mergers and acquisitions intermediary, she facilitates sell-side and buy-side transactions in the lower middle market. Laurie is the author of The Business Transition Handbook: How to Avoid Succession Pitfalls and Create Valuable Exit Options, and hosts the award-winning podcast Succession Stories, rated in the top 2.5% of podcasts globally. Laurie earned an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, and Bachelors from Cornell University. She holds a professional designation from The Alliance of Mergers & Acquisitions Advisors.

Succession Stories, ranked in the top 2.5% of global podcasts, is an award-winning show hosted by Laurie Barkman. The show features thought leadership and best practices for founders, family businesses, and next generation entrepreneurs to grow their businesses, develop transition strategies, and lead for the future.

As an M&A Advisor with Stony Hill, Laurie Barkman guides business owners through the complex process of selling and buying businesses. In addition to her M&A role, Laurie provides exit and succession planning services to help owners increase the value of their business with her firm, SmallDotBig. Stony Hill Advisors is a merger and acquisition advisory firm that specializes in providing intermediary services for lower middle market companies and small business entrepreneurs. For more than 15 years, Stony Hill has assisted clients across a wide variety of industries throughout New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut, Ohio, and New York City. Our team of advisors have many years of successful prior corporate roles as owners, managers, and senior executives in small, medium, and large corporations. Combining these experiences with our years in advising merger and acquisitions, our years of training and experience in various professional fields, and with the uniqueness of the Stony Hill approach, is what allows us to stand out as a premier M&A advisory firm. Advising business leaders in these areas: • SELL to exit (value, package & market the company) • ACQUIRE to expand (find the “needle in the haystack” & arrange financing) • CONNECT to Investors and Operating Partners (Executives, Private Equity, & Family Office portfolios to monetize equity) Laurie is a Certified M&A Advisor and Certified Value Builder giving her the knowledge to expertly represent clients and coach them how to maximize the value of their business. Laurie can be contacted at 412-520-8399 or by email at laurie@stonyhilladvisors.com

Member of the Advisory Board for The Orchards at Foxcrest, a second generation family-owned held health services company whose mission is to care for minds, bodies, and souls.

Serve as Lead Board Advisor for the Massaro Construction Group (MCG), a privately held diversified construction services company and business operating units: Massaro Corporation, Massaro Construction Management Services, LLC, and Massaro Restoration Services, LLC.

Teaching the Corporate Startup Lab, a Masters level course sponsored by an interdisciplinary group focused on researching and promoting the mission of transformative innovation within corporations.

Named Top New Vistage speaker for 2021. Certified Speaker with Vistage Worldwide Inc.

Safety io is a subsidiary of MSA Safety Inc. [NYSE: MSA] leveraging market-leading gas detection technology and providing industry-leading innovation in cloud-based software and connected devices.

Member of senior management team for law firm providing regulatory, employment, corporate advisory and litigation services to clients across the US including Transportation & Logistics, Energy, and Healthcare industries.

Topanga Partners is a private equity firm investing in early and mid-stage technology companies focused on product technology, software-as-a-service (SaaS), and digital platforms. Served as Board Member and Interim CXO for portfolio companies.

GENCO Corporation was acquired by FedEx in 2015 for $1.4B, and rebranded as FedEx Supply Chain.