Advisors gaining momentum in 2026.
EXIT PLANNING
CS
Christopher Snider
Exit Planning Institute
Cleveland, OH
Codifying the Discipline of Exit Planning
Christopher Snider has done more than almost anyone to turn exit planning from a loose collection of best practices into a teachable discipline. He became a CEPA in 2008, acquired the Exit Planning Institute with his son in 2012, and built the Value Acceleration Methodology that now underwrites thousands of advisor engagements across the country. His work is the reason the field has a common language.
View Profile
MARKET READINESS INTELLIGENCE
RS
Ron Smith
Cordis Group LLC
Greenwich, CT / New York, NY
Building the Intelligence Layer for Business Exits
Ron Smith is doing something most M&A advisors are not. Before his clients go to market, his firm runs a full buyer-side analysis, modeling what each buyer type will see, where they will push back, and what deal structure will actually look like before a single LOI arrives. For a lower middle market that has historically walked into sale processes unprepared, Cordis Group's approach represents a meaningful shift in how founders access institutional-grade intelligence.
View Profile
M&A ADVISORY
BE
Brent Engelbrekt
True North M&A
Minneapolis, MN
An Operator-Turned-Advisor in the Twin Cities
Brent Engelbrekt sold his own business to private equity in 2014 and has spent the years since bringing that seller's-seat perspective to the founders he now advises. Two IBBA CBI of the Year awards, multiple Platinum Chairman's Circle distinctions, and a full stack of professional designations later, he represents a model of what founder-led advisory looks like when the advisor has actually been through the process personally.
View Profile