How a Strategic M&A Playbook Can Ignite Organic Growth
Michael S. Reed, Partner & Managing Director Republic Capital Group
The Unexpected Discovery
For the past two years, we have been helping firms develop customized M&A Playbooks, and over that time we have uncovered a powerful phenomenon: organic growth increases as an unexpected biproduct of implementing an inorganic strategy. For example, when we were engaged by a wealth management firm to help them grow from just under $1 billion to approximately $5 billion in assets under management (AUM) over the next decade, neither we nor our client anticipated the remarkable secondary effect that would emerge from our M&A playbook development process. While the primary objective was clear, to create a comprehensive roadmap for strategic acquisitions, what unfolded demonstrated the profound interconnectedness between strategic preparation and organic business performance.
Using our Republic M&A playbook©, we guided the client through a structured process, conducting rigorous due diligence, identifying gaps with a detailed analysis, partnering with their leadership to design targeted strategies, and securing the resources needed to remove barriers, positioning them, in our opinion, for success in an increasingly competitive market. The culmination was a comprehensive M&A playbook specifically designed for their differentiated firm, complete with a compelling presentation deck, sophisticated pro forma modeling, comprehensive cash flow analysis, a secure lender relationship with pre-qualification in place, and a crystal-clear roadmap for opportunity sourcing, vetting, structuring, and integration.
What we observed over the following 12 months was extraordinary: a significant uptick in organic growth that was entirely unrelated to any M&A activity and independent of market performance. This experience highlights the potential for transformative value of engaging an external advisor, bringing fresh perspective to uncover organizational gaps, strengthen and energize the business, create alignment across functions, and inspire teams to engage more deeply with clients while pursuing growth opportunities organically. Importantly, the cost of the program or playbook has historically proven to be far less than the measurable return on investment it has traditionally delivered.
The Science of Opportunity Priming
We describe this effect as opportunity priming, a concept my colleague, Amy Cunningham, illustrates through the “slug bug” analogy. Many of us remember this childhood game during long car trips: spotting Volkswagen Bugs and being the first to announce the sighting while playfully punching a sibling’s arm. Today’s Generation X children play a similar game called “chicken jockey,” but the premise remains identical. Both games demonstrate a fundamental principle: once you’re actively looking for something specific, you suddenly notice it everywhere. The same applies to opportunity priming in teams, when we help our clients recognize what opportunities look like, those previously invisible possibilities become readily apparent, transforming how the team perceives and responds to their environment.
This psychological phenomenon explains what we observe with teams that complete our M&A playbook process. Research in business psychology confirms that priming techniques can significantly enhance stakeholder engagement and improve decision-making processes.1 When organizations work with experts who understand the marketplace, know how to approach opportunities competitively, and can navigate an environment heavily influenced by private equity funding, something remarkable happens: opportunities become more noticeable and more robust.
Strategic alignment research supports this observation. According to McKinsey & Company, enterprises with strong alignment outperform competitors by 30% in profitability. When teams know what they’re doing, how to execute effectively, and what to look for, opportunities that were always present suddenly become visible and actionable.2 Research shows “priming” not only increases revenue, but improves team morale, innovation, and retention, since employees feel empowered and “in the game” rather than at the mercy of external forces.3
This phenomenon is well established in other sectors. One of the largest integrated healthcare providers in the U.S. used an M&A playbook to expand across six states, integrating dozens of diverse entities. By systematizing processes from tech integration to leadership structures, they not only conquered operational chaos but divested unprofitable units and set record financial results in 2024.4 Their story shows how a repeatable playbook “primes” an organization to not just acquire but actively seek out, recognize, and convert opportunities it may have missed.
The Evidence: Strategic Planning and Business Performance
The connection between comprehensive strategic planning and enhanced business performance is well-documented. Companies with written business plans grow 30% faster than those without formal planning processes. More specifically, 71% of fast-growing companies have strategic plans, business plans, or similar long-range planning tools in place.5
In the wealth management industry specifically, the data is compelling. The global wealth management platform market is estimated to grow from $3.31 billion in 2024 to $8.50 billion by 2032, which could represent a CAGR of 12.5%. Wealth managers’ growth approximations for 2025 average 13.7% globally, with U.S. wealth managers forecasting average AUM growth of 17.6% (actual results could vary substantially).6 However, the average RIA firm experienced organic growth of just 5.7% last year. Fidelity’s research shows even more modest figures: larger firms (over $1 billion AUM) achieved 3.6% organic growth in 2023, while smaller firms experienced 3.2%. Some research indicates even lower figures, with net flows of just 2.4% highlighting the challenge of achieving sustainable organic growth without strategic frameworks.7
The gap between potential and actual performance underscores the value of sophisticated strategic planning. Businesses that engage in strategic planning are 313% more likely to report success compared to those without a documented strategy.8
The Second Client: Organizational Transformation
Our second client story further illustrates the potential transformative power of the playbook process. This client, also focused on growth, engaged us to develop their customized M&A playbook. During our assessment, we discovered that their corporate structure, leadership team organization, vision and mission statements, and stated core values all required significant revision and refinement.
Fortunately, this client demonstrated remarkable receptivity and humility throughout the process. They worked collaboratively with us to reorganize their company from multiple perspectives: corporate structure, leadership configuration, service delivery model, and, most importantly, a complete revision of their vision statement, mission statement, and core values through an inclusive process involving their entire staff.
The result was immediate and profound: excitement, energy, and renewed enthusiasm to work as a unified team and grow their firm both inorganically and organically. Subsequently, following the development of their advanced M&A playbook, this client secured two significant acquisition opportunities that we helped them transact and grew their AUM by three times their initial position.
This transformation aligns with research showing that leadership and employee engagement plays a critical role in recognizing opportunities, navigating successful transactions, and helping ensure smooth transitions, with a direct impact on both strategic goals and financial results. The process of developing an M&A playbook can create organizational alignment that drives both acquisition success and organic growth.9
The Inflection Point: From Small Business to Lower Middle Market
Throughout our company’s history, we have had the privilege of working with founder-owners who have dedicated themselves to building their small businesses into significantly-sized firms, generating revenue at the level of lower middle market (LMM) companies. There exists a critical inflection point between running a small business and managing a LLM company that requires fundamentally different skill sets and approaches to business management.
LLM companies face challenges and carry greater demands that are distinct from smaller enterprises. These businesses, typically ranging from $5 million to $50 million in annual revenue, encounter obstacles including advanced tactical business decisions, limited access to capital, talent acquisition and retention challenges, and the need for more sophisticated operational systems with KPIs.10
Many practitioners lack the business knowledge and management experience necessary to navigate this demanding transition successfully. However, those who remain open-minded and reach outside their internal environment to work with specialized advisory groups often discover pathways they never knew existed. They become better educated, more skilled, inspired, resourceful, and true partners in identifying opportunities that align with their strategic goals, financial capabilities, organizational culture, and long-term aspirations.
The Business Playbook
The implementation of comprehensive business playbooks has delivered measurable results and has become a valuable offering at Republic Capital Group. Helping companies establish structured playbooks has reduced operational variability by up to 60%, decreased error rates by 40-50%, and increased productivity by 25-35%. More specifically, organizations with documented business strategies have a 30% higher chance of sales growth and the potential to double their business.11
For M&A specifically, an effective playbook enhances decision-making and problem-solving during the vetting process, within negotiations, in creating the deal structure, and throughout the integration process. It is designed to ensure that all these efforts are streamlined while mitigating potential risks and challenges. The M&A playbook provides a clear framework for winning opportunities and then managing cultural integration, legal and regulatory compliance, and financial performance.12
The Wealth Management Context
The wealth management industry provides an ideal backdrop for understanding this phenomenon. Global assets under management reached a record $128 trillion in 2024, up 12% from the previous year. However, the industry faces margin pressures, shifting investor preferences, and intensifying competition, both organically and inorganically.13
The number of SEC-registered investment advisers reached a record high of 15,396 in 2023, with assets under management reaching $128.4 trillion. Despite this growth, firms face challenges including an advisor shortage, while affluent households grow at 4-5% per year compared to 0.6% overall population growth.14
In this competitive environment, organic growth appears to be the industry’s North Star, with referrals making up approximately 70% of total client acquisition. Securing assistance in developing a growth-oriented playbook enhances firms’ ability to capture organic and inorganic opportunities by creating the strategic clarity and organizational alignment necessary for sustained development.15
The Psychological Foundation
The success of opportunity priming rests on solid psychological principles. Priming, a concept rooted in psychology since the 1970s, demonstrates how exposure to certain stimuli can influence subsequent responses. In business contexts, priming potentially could provide a strategic advantage in enhancing stakeholder engagement, may improve requirements elicitation, possibly facilitating change management, and help ensure clear communication.16
When organizations complete a comprehensive M&A playbook process, they undergo a form of institutional priming. The detailed analysis of their market position, competitive landscape, strategic opportunities, and operational capabilities creates heightened awareness that extends far beyond M&A activities. Teams become more attuned to client needs, market opportunities, and competitive advantages, the foundation of organic growth.
Republic Capital Group’s Implementation Framework
For organizations seeking to harness this phenomenon, the framework includes several critical components:
• Relationship Building and Holistic Understanding: Investing time to develop a deep, authentic relationship with each firm, gaining insight into their aspirations, hopes, dreams, and distinct operating style designed to ensure all strategies are fully aligned with the organization’s vision.
• Strategic Assessment and Gap Analysis: Conducting a thorough evaluation of current capabilities, market position, and growth opportunities creates the foundation for both M&A readiness and organic growth enhancement.
• Organizational Alignment: The process of developing vision, mission, and core values through inclusive engagement creates the cultural foundation necessary for sustained growth.
• Systematic Opportunity Identification: Establishing clear criteria for opportunity evaluation, whether M&A targets or organic growth initiatives, enhances decision-making quality and speed.
• Resource Development: Building the infrastructure, relationships, and capabilities necessary for growth execution reduces barriers to opportunity capture.
• Performance Measurement: Implementing metrics that track both organic growth and M&A readiness designed to ensure accountability and continuous improvement.
• Ongoing Partnership and Playbook Refinement: Our commitment extends beyond implementation, providing continuous support to help firms identify new opportunities, analyze results, refine strategies, and ultimately win opportunities and close deals.
The Evidence-Based Conclusion
The data overwhelmingly supports the connection between sophisticated strategic planning and enhanced business performance. Companies with written strategic plans grew 30% faster, achieved 20% higher retention rates, and demonstrated superior financial performance.17 In the M&A context specifically, organizations that prioritize structured processes can win more opportunities, close deals, drive smoother transitions, retain top talent, and help ensure long-term success.
The stories we can tell, and there are many, linking the decision to seek consultative assistance and the development of tangible, tested strategies for value creation and growth demonstrate the transformative power of comprehensive strategic planning. Working with individuals and teams to achieve their aspirational goals and celebrating their victories represents the most gratifying aspect of our work.
The phenomenon of opportunity priming through M&A playbook development offers a compelling example of how sophisticated strategic preparation can create unexpected benefits. When organizations invest in comprehensive planning, whether for acquisitions or organic growth, they create the awareness, alignment, and capability necessary for sustained success. The investment in strategic development pays dividends far beyond its original scope, igniting organic growth through the power of organizational priming and strategic clarity.
In an increasingly competitive marketplace where strategic alignment drives enterprise success and growth, the organizations that invest in comprehensive planning frameworks position themselves for both immediate opportunities and long-term sustainability. The M&A playbook becomes more than an acquisition roadmap; it transforms into a catalyst for organizational excellence and organic growth acceleration.
Do you need a playbook?
Here are eight insightful questions a wealth management firm should ask of themselves to assess whether a formal M&A Playbook could drive growth and help unlock new organic opportunities:
1. Does it often feel like our firm’s growth or contraction happens for reasons we can’t clearly identify or explain?
• This question challenges leadership to consider whether growth feels intentional and guided, or more like a reaction to unseen forces, suggesting that a structured Playbook could bring greater clarity, predictability, and control to the firm’s trajectory.
2. Are we struggling to achieve our growth targets organically, despite strong execution and sound strategies?
• This question prompts reflection on whether the barriers to growth may be less about process and more about what’s hidden in the firm’s underlying purpose, direction, or market positioning.
3. Are we finding it difficult to uncover or access compelling M&A opportunities in the current market?
• This encourages firms to examine if their approach, network, or perspective might be limiting their ability to spot attractive deals, and whether a fresh framework or outside perspective could expand their horizons.
4. Are we consistently identifying and acting on opportunities, or do we often recognize them only in hindsight?
• This question probes whether the firm is “opportunity primed,” seeing and acting on possibilities as they emerge, rather than missing out due to lack of readiness or process.
5. Do we have a clear, documented roadmap for sourcing, evaluating, and integrating opportunities, and does each member of our leadership understand their role in execution?
• Reflects whether the firm benefits from strategic alignment, process clarity, and leadership buy-in.
6. How aligned are our vision, mission, and values with our growth strategy, and could a structured M&A approach help us clarify and rally around these fundamentals?
• This assesses the foundational culture and alignment needed to maximize the impact of identifying and securing opportunities.
7. Are we maximizing organic growth from existing and acquired clients, especially through referrals, or do we lack the strategic infrastructure to fully capture these opportunities?
• This question identifies possible gaps in leveraging a playbook to enhance referral-driven business.
8. Do we have clear KPIs in place to measure the success of both our acquisition efforts and the resulting organic growth, and do we regularly review these metrics to guide strategic decisions?
• This question encourages the firm to assess whether it tracks relevant quantitative outcomes, such as client acquisition rates, retention, revenue per client, or integration efficiency.
References (Chicago Style)
1. Agos Labs. “Priming: A Secret Weapon for Business Analysts.” LinkedIn Pulse. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/priming-secret-weapon-business-analysts-agos-labs-gg7me
2. Monday.com Team. “Enterprise Strategic Alignment: Why It Matters and How to Achieve It.” Monday.com Blog. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://monday.com/blog/project-management/enterprise-strategic-alignment/
3. Stajkovic, Alexander D., Gary P. Latham, Kaitlin Sergent, and Steven J. Peterson. “Prime and
Performance: Can a CEO Motivate Employees without Their Awareness?” Journal of Business and Psychology (2018): 1-20.
4. Info-Tech Research Group. “Develop an M&A IT Playbook.” Info-Tech Research. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.infotech.com/research/ss/develop-an-m-a-it-playbook
5. Funding for Good. “Statistics about Strategic Planning.” Fundingforgood.org. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://fundingforgood.org/statistics-about-strategic-planning/
6. Natixis Investment Managers. “Wealth Management Industry Outlook 2025.” Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.im.natixis.com/en-us/insights/investor-sentiment/2025/wealth-industry-survey/wealth-management-industry-outlook
7. Roth, Gary. “Opinion: The Dirty Little Secret about RIA Organic Growth.” AlarisAcquisitions.com. May 30, 2024. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.alarisacquisitions.com/article/opinion-the-dirty-little-secret-about-ria-organic-growth
8. O8 Agency. “Strategic Marketing Planning for Business Growth: Your Definitive Guide.” O8.agency. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.o8.agency/blog/marketing-strategy/strategic-marketing-planning-business-growth-your-definitive-guide
9. Phoenix Strategy Group. “Employee Engagement during M&A Leadership Transitions.” PhoenixStrategy.group. Accessed August 18,
2025. https://www.phoenixstrategy.group/blog/employee-engagement-during-ma-leadership-transitions
10. Cause of Capital. “Top Challenges Faced by Lower-Middle Market Businesses and How to Overcome Them.” CauseOfCapital.com. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://causeofcapital.com/blog/top-challenges-faced-by-lower-middle-market-businesses-and-how-to-overcome-them
11. Upmetrics. “Business Plan Statistics.” Upmetrics.co. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://upmetrics.co/blog/business-plan-statistics
12. Dealroom. “M&A Integration Playbook.” Dealroom.net. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://dealroom.net/blog/m-a-integration-playbook
13. Boston Consulting Group. “Reinventing Growth amid Market Volatility.” BCG Publications. 2025. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.bcg.com/publications/2025/reinventing-growth-amid-market-volatility
14. McKinsey & Company. “The Looming Advisor Shortage in US Wealth Management.” McKinsey
Insights. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/financial-services/our-insights/the-looming-advisor-shortage-in-us-wealth-management
15. Morningstar. “Organic Growth Is the North Star for Financial Advisors.” Morningstar.com. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.morningstar.com/financial-advisors/organic-growth-is-north-star-financial-advisors
16. BA Times. “Priming: A Powerful Tool for Business Analysts.” BA Times Articles. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.batimes.com/articles/priming-a-powerful-tool-for-business-analysts/
17. WorkTango. “Why Employee Engagement Is Key after a Merger and Acquisition.” WorkTango Resources. Accessed August 18, 2025. https://www.worktango.com/resources/articles/why-employee-engagement-is-key-after-merger-and-acquisition