Serving the Madison WI life sciences marketplace and filling its unmet needs – that is the goal of Biotech Profiles LLC and its founder, Russ Smestad. Creation of this website, BiotechProfiles.com, was the first step in that journey. Launched in 2009, the site addresses two overarching needs: (1) It serves as a resource for the general public, providing a comprehensive, online overview of the Madison area biotech industry, and (2) It provides investment data and tools to help founders, local executives, and board members network with their peers and grow their companies. Complementing these general services, Mr. Smestad directly assists area biotech companies with their company-specific strategic needs, offering both project based and investment banking services.
Project based services include:
Strategic Management Consulting- Formulate or critique corporate business plans;
- Assist with the development of effective growth strategies and tactics;
- Advise on M&A strategies and tactics to maximize value of liquidity events
- Assist senior management with effective Board relations
Business Development Services- Develop key messages and strategies to create recognition of and demand for a client’s technology/products
- Identify prospective strategic partners/licensees
- Assist management with engaging partnering prospects, structuring effective agreements that support the company’s strategic objectives, and negotiating licenses, alliances and similar agreements.
Clients seeking help with these and similar issues should contact Mr. Smestad (contact info below).
As the Madison life science market has matured, so too has the need for investment banking services to help management teams engineer successful liquidity events (e.g., IPO, sale or merger) for their shareholders. Companies with valuations in excess of $100 million have been able to attract the services of mid-market or even global firms, but those with lower valuations have struggled to find quality representation.
To address this gap, Mr. Smestad and Baker Tilly Capital LLC (“BTC”), a successful M&A group based in Madison, have joined together to expand Baker Tilly’s services into the biotech sector. BTC is an affiliate of Baker Tilly International, the 8th largest accounting and business advisory network in the U.S., with 24,000 professionals located in over 110 countries. This affiliation provides BTC’s clients access to a breadth and depth of expertise that small independent firms cannot match. Locally, Baker Tilly is already a leading audit, tax and financial services provider within the biotech sector, so the addition of transaction services is a natural extension of its M&A practice.
One of Madison’s most successful biotech executives, Mr. Smestad has a proven track record in building and harvesting value in three of Madison’s most successful biotech companies to date. Now, as a strategic advisor to BTC, BTC offers local clients an experienced transaction team committed to maximizing the value of their companies.
Baker Tilly Capital: The investment bank of choice for small to mid-market transactions in the Madison life science industry.For further information, please contact one of the following parties:
- Russ Smestad: 608.821.0400 or Russ.Smestad@BiotechProfiles.com
- Dave Bauer: 608.240.2440 or David.Bauer@BakerTilly.com