We've invested in 70+ searchers
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Brydon invests in a cohort of Brydon CEOs in Residence (CIRs) each year and provides full private equity support to source, acquire and operate a small business

Better Support. Better Economics. Better Outcomes.

Brydon’s CIR program is designed to support a small handful of mid-career entrepreneurs each year interested in buying and running a small business with top-tier support in the sourcing, acquisition and operating phases.

Brydon CEO in Residence (CIR) Program:

  • Brydon selects ~six mid-career operators per year as Brydon CEOs in Residence (CIRs). We support both solo CIRs and partnered CIR teams
  • We invest 95-100%+ of the equity to support a two-year search and 95-100%+ of the equity at the time of a transaction (targeting transactions from $5 – 40 million)

Better Economics – Salary and Equity:

  • We fund our CIRs at salary levels commensurate with your experience - salary in the search phase is $200,000 per year (higher than traditional search)
  • CIRs earn up to 25% of the equity in their deal (or 30% for partnered CIRs), based on the standard vesting schedules (1/3 upon acquisition, 1/3 time-based vesting and 1/3 based on performance hurdles)
  • We know how mentally and emotionally demanding a search can be, and we try to provide additional support, for example, a $5,000 stipend for all our CIRs to spend on physical or mental health during their search (e.g. to buy themselves a Peloton, Tonal, gym membership, yoga classes, etc.)

Mix of In-Person & Remote:

  • The CIR program kicks off with a week of initial training for each CIR cohort in the Caribbean, followed by quarterly in-person events in the US
  • Otherwise, we strongly encourage CIRs to base their search in the geography in which they would like to live and focus their search efforts

Better Sourcing and Diligence Support:

  • We have supported over 70 searchers and many are frustrated by having to “re-create the wheel” when it comes to sourcing, diligence, valuation, structuring and operating best practices
  • We bring playbooks and best practices from large cap private equity and work hand-in-hand with our CIRs to apply them to your small business search
  • From day one, our CIRs get access to a full sourcing engine: a dedicated CRM, access to industry databases, introductions to brokers, bankers, CEOs and river guides, etc.

Advisors – Providing Large Cap Support:

  • Our (and your) advisors include some of the best private market investors in the world, highly successful searcher CEOs and strategic partners who can add substantial value to your sourcing, diligence and operations

searcher backgrounds

What We Are Looking For:

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds, but we generally look to partner with CIRs who have more work experience, typically 3-12 years out of business school or equivalent

For example:

  • You worked in banking or private equity on a PE-backed roll-up and see an opportunity to do the same with dedicated capital and support
  • You are a McKinsey Associate Partner with extensive work and deep understanding of the growth levers in a sub-industry. Now you want to implement that knowledge by building equity value in a business you own and operate
  • You’ve built relationships and qualifications in a sub-industry and believe there’s an opportunity to buy and build. For example, a former Navy submariner who can leverage your background to acquire a small nuclear services provider
  • You worked at a successful tech startup in a vertical and know the space well. You see an opportunity to buy small mom and pop players in the space

We are strong advocates of thesis-driven searches (they work better!) and encourage our CIRs to either submit subindustries / areas of interest or to discuss several of Brydon’s core theses (vertical market software, regulatory & compliance services, technical services, government services, healthcare, etc.)

Our Backgrounds – Service in Support of Our CIRs
Our founders have backgrounds in large cap private equity (Blackstone, Carlyle), bulge bracket banking (Goldman, JP Morgan) and in founding and running multiple software businesses (3 successful exits to private equity).
We also served together in combat in the most elite unit in the US military and bring best practices from special operations selection, training and leadership to our CIR program.
Our core value is service: we contribute a percentage of our revenue every year to non-profits.

applications

We host annual cohorts: the next applications will be available in early January 2025 with the interview process starting in February, offers made in late March, for an early May 2025 start date.

Have questions? Please check out our program overview & FAQ. Watch last year's 1 hour Info Session.

RSVP for our Jan 16th virtual info session session regarding our 2024 cohort.

Are you a student interested in our paid MBA Fellows program? We recruit for part-time paid spring and fall interns as well as full-time summer interns. Questions? Email Jimmy at jimmy.aylward@brydon.com
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