How Buy-Side Legal Teams Can Beat the Five Big Blockers

When you’re providing legal advice on M&A, time isn’t always money. If you work many hours making little progress, then sure, you’ll get paid. But you might lose that particular client.

It isn’t even your fault. Friction, inefficiencies, and lack of central control can jam the gears of any deal. The buy-side process is notorious for it. Sellers may be inexperienced. Files in Microsoft Office formats are shared on multiple channels. Versions multiply, or disappear. Data rooms grow chaotic. Deal teams lack the insight they need to make key decisions quickly. It all adds up to delay – lost time that can sink a whole transaction.

You didn’t cause these problems. But you can fix them, with Datasite Acquire.

What is Datasite Acquire?

Datasite Acquire is the world’s first data room designed for the buy-side. It gives you one central place from which to run every part of the deal. It lets all the teams involved collaborate seamlessly, in a genuine team effort.

How does this work in practice? Here’s how Datasite Acquire overcomes the five biggest challenges of buy-side M&A.

Challenge 1: Time management

In dealmaking, time is money. Delays cost your clients dearly as your billable hours increase – but trying to move faster is costly too, whether in terms of extra resources, or errors resulting from haste.

Solution: A friction-free buy-side platform saving 3+ weeks

With Datasite Acquire, jumpstart your transaction in seconds with a secure application your clients trust. No time wasted on whitelisting this software. Plus, there’s no more back-and-forth. No more emailed files, no version control issues. Lost documents become a thing of the past. Time-hungry tasks are automated, freeing up your team for higher-value work. Result? Lower costs, a happier client, and growing momentum towards a successful close.

Challenge 2: Inefficient processes

Running a deal can be like juggling. Too much information coming at you, from too many different sources – and none of those sources is definitive. With everyone’s hands full controlling workflows, tracking tasks and examining findings, it’s more likely that someone will drop the ball.

Solution: A single source of truth

When everything happens in Datasite Acquire, there’s no uncertainty. You have a single command center from which to guide the entire deal. You can see what’s been done, what tasks are still outstanding, and how far work has progressed. Even better, you can collaborate seamlessly with your clients, sellers, and other advisors – all while maintaining maximum security.

Your checklists are embedded, so everyone works off the same to-do list that updates in real time. Comments and findings are also right where you need them.

Streamlined workflows and task management mean that things get done sooner, while your client gets better and more efficient recommendations. Even better, you can create an easily repeatable playbook, copying templates from past projects and evolving them from deal to deal.

Challenge 3: Identifying risks

As the legal team, you are the ultimate safety net. But when you are grappling with multiple platforms, multiple comms channels, and multiple versions of the same documents, identifying and prioritizing risks is much harder than it needs to be.

Solution: Integrated findings

Datasite Acquire lets you distill findings and communicate them instantly to all members of the extended deal team. Just set your findings categories, then keep a running list of all key issues that arise from the due diligence. Now everyone is on the same page, using the same template, and working from the same consolidated list.

Challenge 4: Lack of visibility and coordination

Your clients demand constant updates on deal progress. But it can be hard to be sure of this yourself, when everything is constantly in motion. With so many workstreams  to keep track of, it is hard to see the wood for the trees.

Solution: Real-time dashboard and in-depth analytics

Datasite Acquire gives you the helicopter view you need. You can see how tasks and findings are progressing in real time, along with any new @mentions or freshly uploaded documents. You can sort and filter everything by status or priority, and see stats on who has logged in, which files have been accessed, how permissions have changed, and much more. A single dashboard gives you a full health diagnostic of the deal – enough to keep deal teams focused on the risk tasks, and your clients resting easy.

Challenge 5: No specialist buy-side support

Buyers need support – it’s not a case of if, but when. For many, it’s their first experience of M&A – and their inexperience can slow the whole process down. From setting up the data room to handling everyday tasks, their needs run the gamut from the very large to the very detailed.

Solution: Global expert support 24/7/365

Deals don’t sleep – so neither does our deal support. Wherever and whenever help is needed, our specialists are just a call or a click away. Using Datasite Acquire means that both you, your clients, and even the buyers themselves can call upon our team to move the process along. From mitigating analyst and associate turnover risks, to avoiding rookie mistakes, we’ll help you across the finish line.

See it in action

See how much you can save in both time and resources by using Datasite Acquire for your clients’ buy-side deals. Get in touch today for a free demo.