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Assessing the performance of private equity (PE) investments is a challenging task. It starts with the fact that the assets are privately held and illiquid. By contrast, public equity valuations are determined in a vast open market populated largely by disinterested investors acting on publicly available information. Therefore, to make an informed assessment about PE performance, investors should be aware of the areas where general partners' discretion can most influence fund performance. As PE has grown as an asset class, investors have pushed for greater disclosure and more standardization of performance metrics and benchmarks. Although this has resulted in greater standardization of the reported information, considerable opportunity remains for general partners to influence fund returns. This note summarizes the key metrics used in assessing PE performance and discusses important areas of general partners' influence on reported returns.

This technical note outlines the differences between financial accounting standards and tax law that affect the valuation of potential targets depending on the deal structure employed. Valuation models typically rely on financial accounting information to estimate the value of the deal; but tax laws, not financial accounting standards, affect the after-tax cash flows attributable to the deal. The note provides steps to determine a target's tax basis from information in the financial statement, which allows for a better assessment of after-tax cash flows.

Family businesses are unique and complex; they have aspects and layers to them that are unlike any other organizations because at the root of family businesses' identities are the aspirations of both the business and the family's members, which could be at odds with one another. This note-a meta-analysis drawn from many authors' work-explores an approach that identifies ways to unify family and business, examining new possibilities and building a strong resiliency in the process. This analysis of various characteristics within family businesses provides opportunities to learn about how families are unique, offers examples of family businesses (when possible), and, most importantly, leads to clear recommendations.

Central to a firm's long-term success, is allocating capital so that it generates economic value. The two most common decision rules based on economic value are to (i) accept proposals that have a positive net present value (NPV) when discounted at the appropriate hurdle rate or (ii) to accept proposals whose internal rate of return (IRR) exceeds the appropriate hurdle rate. Key to both rules, in economic terms, the hurdle rate reflects the appropriate opportunity cost of devoting capital to the given proposal rather than an equally risky alternative. The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the most commonly used hurdle rate, and this note explains why it is useful as a hurdle rate, discusses how it is calculated, and explores some issues related to its use. A one-page summary of implementation best practices is also provided.

In 2019, the retail and consumer product industries were undergoing a generational transformation. The consumer sector had gone through two other generational shifts in the past 50 years. During each shift, many legacy businesses lost share or outright failed. The businesses that survived and thrived had to grow new business models and competencies, while managing their pre-existing operations. The note explains the major transformations occurring to the global consumer sector in 2019 and how leaders reacted.

This technical note outlines the general judicial requirements an acquisition must meet to qualify as a tax-deferred reorganization. The variation in the specific requirements that must be met to qualify for different types of tax-deferred ("A," Forward Triangular "A," Reverse Triangular "A," "B," and "C") reorganizations are addressed. Finally, the specific tax consequences to the target's shareholders and acquirer are outlined, and a numerical example illustrates the calculation of the after-tax proceeds to the target's shareholders and the after-tax cost to the acquirer.

This technical notes discusses three basic deal structures used to acquire another corporation. Asset acquisitions, stock acquisitions, and mergers under state law are the three common legal forms discussed.

An organization's culture can be a significant source of sustainable competitive advantage. For the organization, it can attract job candidates who fit and align employees working in different teams around common goals. For employees, a strong culture can generate pride, satisfaction, and purpose. However, a strong organizational culture can easily decay with a company's growth as new employees join the firm and business units develop cultures of their own. This technical note proposes that the growth a company can sustain while preserving its culture is governed by its ability to attract employees who fit with its purpose and values and to preserve and foster this alignment over time. To achieve this, an effective leader must formally articulate the purpose and values of the company and rely on four management systems that can be collectively thought of as a "North STAR" orienting managers' and employees' attention in the intended direction. This note details these organizational capabilities and management systems and describes the steps that successful companies take in order to preserve a strong culture through periods of growth.

This technical note helps explain what leadership really is, explores some of the factors that influence leader effectiveness, and introduces the basics of how people can begin to develop as leaders. It is an introduction to a very big topic area, but provides simple definitions and explanations of complicated concepts.

This primer provides a comprehensive exploration into the gig economy and how it is reshaping global business. It shows how the Uber driver, the freelancing programmer in India, and the independent corporate consultant are all different variants of the modern-day gig workers. In doing so, this document addresses the following questions: • What are gigs and who performs them? • What is the size of the gig economy? How big will it get? • What types of gig work are available, and how do they differ from one another? • What are major trends in the gig economy, and how could technology disrupt this space? • What are the key management and legal issues for companies that use gig workers? • What has been the recent legal and regulatory history of the gig economy? • How has the Covid-19 pandemic changed the gig economy?