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All Interests Aligned (AIA) was founded “by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs” and positions itself as a next-generation MBI platform. Can you explain your mission, what inspired you to launch AIA, and how you plan to address the succession crisis in SMEs across Europe?
Our mission is to address the succession crisis head-on: ensuring thousands of SMEs — the lifeblood of Europe’s economy — don’t disappear when their founders retire. What inspired me is that this is not a theoretical problem; it’s happening now. My career has been about solving complex, often messy challenges — whether in emerging markets at Cisco or in transforming a billion-dollar industrial company at Dura-Line. SMEs face the same volatility and complexity, only with fewer resources. With AIA, we’re building a systematic model to inject new leadership and sustainable value creation into these companies, “by entrepreneurs, for entrepreneurs.”
In your view, what are the main limitations of the traditional SF model that AIA aims to overcome? How do you select and support your Operating Partners, and how do you ensure they are not only qualified but also culturally aligned with the businesses they acquire?
The search fund model has strengths but also structural flaws: no committed capital, often inexperienced operators with limited track records, and incentives that aren’t always aligned. At AIA, we solve this by bringing committed entrepreneurial investors, seasoned operators, and a team that supports the complex parts of M&A. What makes us different is the alignment — investors, operating partners, management, and employees all win together. And sellers sense this alignment — that’s why they trust us to carry forward their life’s work.
Your program targets SMEs with valuations between €15–40M. What makes this segment particularly attractive for your model? What are the key traits you look for in target companies?
This segment is full of solid companies which are too small for mainstream private equity. We especially love companies where we see scope for further professionalization. With the right leadership and basic tools, value creation is outsized. We look for simple businesses that are easy to understand, often in essential sectors — manufacturing, infrastructure services, technical support, healthcare, education. They may be “brick-and-mortar,” but precisely because of that, introducing customer-centricity or digital basics can create a step change.
Many players in the EtA space still target recent MBA graduates. Why do you believe more seasoned professionals are better suited to lead SME transformations, and what types of transformation do you typically expect them to drive?
SMEs are like emerging markets: volatile, resource-constrained, requiring resilience. You need leaders who’ve navigated that before. A recent MBA may have the theory, but they often lack the scar tissue. We target executives with 15–25 years’ leadership experience, who can walk into a company, set up the right KPIs, processes, and incentives, and adapt when the unexpected happens. Every single operator will drive transformation — not theoretical, but practical changes that reset a company for its next 20 years.
You’ve highlighted that even low-tech industries can benefit significantly from digital tools. What are some of the most underrated technologies or practices that can unlock outsized value in traditional businesses?
In low-tech industries, even modest digital tools can generate enormous impact. At Dura-Line, we turned a pipe manufacturer into a solutions company by wrapping digital services around a physical product — training, network design, optimization. For SMEs, it might be as simple as a CRM, e-commerce channel, or digital education tools. The principle is: the lower the tech baseline, the higher the marginal benefit of technology. That’s a huge lever for value creation.
What kind of support—strategic, operational, and emotional—do you provide to Operating Partners once they step into the CEO role? What value-creation levers do you believe are most effective in traditional SMEs across Europe?
We don’t micromanage CEOs; we enable them. Our support is threefold:
- Strategic: co-develop value creation plans, refine focus, identify growth levers.
- Operational: provide M&A, governance, reporting, and financial discipline.
- Emotional: mentorship, a community of peers, and access to entrepreneurial investors who’ve done it before.
Our philosophy is people-focused — build organizations that don’t depend on us, but thrive independently. Success is seeing entrepreneurs we’ve backed grow into transformational leaders.
Where do you see AIA by 2030? What are your key milestones or ambitions on the path to becoming one of Europe’s leading MBI platforms? How can AIA evolve into a systematized engine for transformation at scale?
By 2030, we aim to be Europe’s premier MBI platform — potentially even globally. That means dozens of SMEs acquired and revitalized, thousands of jobs preserved, and a proven, repeatable model for succession solutions. Our ambition is to scale a system — an engine — that pairs the best talent with succession opportunities, transforming not just companies but Europe’s competitiveness.
Finally, what advice would you give to an experienced executive considering a mid-career transition into EtA? How would you define success for them: is it about numbers, legacy, or something more intangible, like entrepreneurial empowerment?
If you’re a seasoned executive at a crossroads, this may be the most meaningful chapter of your career. EtA with AIA is not just about IRR — though returns matter. Success is threefold: you become an entrepreneur; you preserve and transform a company that might otherwise vanish; and you create lasting value for people and communities. It’s about numbers, yes, but also legacy and empowerment. If you crave ownership, accountability, and impact, this is a valid — and I’d argue, inspiring — path forward.
