The Cornerstone International Alliance is the world’s only global M&A alliance focused exclusively on the lower middle market.

We have vetted and combined resources of some of the best independent M&A firms globally to deliver more experience, industry expertise and overall value to lower middle market businesses owners.

What are the chances that one of the few M&A firms in your city or town is the absolute best team for the job? We enable business owners to look beyond regional resource limits and truly work with the best of the best.

Scott Bushkie, Founder

“When I started in the industry over 19 years ago, I noticed that very few firms actually talked to each other or would share best practices other than a conference or two a year. Like several of the members of CIA, I wanted to take a leadership position in the industry to help educate and elevate the M&A community. I served as chairman of the International Business Brokers Association, as a board member for M&A Source, and founded the Wisconsin chapter of Midwest Business Broker & Intermediary Association. But still I thought we could do more. By collaborating with a smaller group of proven firms that connect on a regular basis, we could provide the very best results for each and every client.

Concurrently I saw a big issue with business owners considering the sale of their businesses. Most business owners really “didn’t know what they didn’t know” or how to tell if an M&A firm was quality or just talked a good game in an effort to get a large retainer with little chance of a successful sale. After all, they were most likely only going to choose an M&A advisor once in their life.

Little did they know how significant the consequences of choosing the wrong M&A firm would be. It could mean the difference between successfully selling their business, extending their legacy and living out their dreams or shutting it down and liquidating the physical assets for cents on the dollar, while watching their legacy evaporate after years of sacrifices and all their employees now out of work.

With the founding of CIA, we have engineered much of the risk out of the business sale process. Now, our clients can rest assured that they have the best team, strategies and resources available to them by accessing our aggregated, well vetted pool of M&A specialists – our success rate and experience speak for themselves!”

Nick Olsen, Managing Director

Nick Olsen is Development Manager for the Cornerstone International Alliance, the global association representing M&A advisory firms and investment banks serving the lower middle market. He heads member development opportunities for the alliance.

Cornerstone International Alliance is dedicated to strengthening lower middle market M&A leadership worldwide. Alliance members are best positioned to provide business owners with a competitive advantage—the ability to network with global buyers and investors, industry expertise and the best overall value.

Nick is an experienced leader and connector, having previously worked for Aurora BayCare Medical Center where he managed strategic sports marketing partnerships and business development efforts. He is committed to fostering mutually beneficial business relationships that deliver value for the end client.

Nick holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from St. Norbert College. He coaches youth basketball and baseball and can regularly be found enjoying the outdoors with his family.