Founder Perspective
Notes on building, preparing and selling a services or tech company, written from the founder's side of the table.
The Founder's M&A Partner
See the whole deal, in focus
The Big Picture Advisors is a new kind of M&A advisory firm for founders, with a different perspective. We're previously operators and founders ourselves, who then became investment bankers. We see the value in a business both inside and out, from direct experience.
We help founders unlock the value in their company, and prepare them for a transaction mindset, be that acquisition, partnership or merger. We specialize in working with founders of marketing, digital, martech, AI and data companies.
Preparation is where value is won
Most of what a buyer will pay for is settled before a sale process starts. To name a few:
- How dependable is your revenue?
- How much of the business runs without you, the founder?
- Do your numbers tell a clear story?
Starting early gives you room to address what matters, on your own timeline. That means more value potential, and less time and money spent once you decide to go to market.
Why founders talk to Max
One founder talking to another
Max Thomas
Founder of The Big Picture Advisors
Three-time founder and licensed registered representative. "I've sat in the founder chair, and also the banker chair. I have insights into how much of a company's value is decided long before the first buyer conversation."
Max has founded three companies, and has advised other founders on their own partnerships and acquisitions. He knows first-hand what it takes to build a business, and then to sell it, including the pros and the cons.
- Founder-to-founder credibilityThree-time founder with successful exit experience. I understand the founder mindset, the emotional journey and the practical challenges.
- Full-spectrum expertiseA unique combination of operating experience, M&A investment banking representative (Series 79 + 63) and tech investing gives you a 360-degree view of the market.
- Strategic-first approachFocus on long-term strategy and positioning, along with transaction execution.
- Sector deep diveSpecialized focus on Digital Transformation, Digital Marketing, Data Analytics and AI, with both an operator and an investor perspective.
- Cross-border intelligenceUnderstanding of US, European and Japanese founder ecosystems and investor landscapes.
Representative transactions
Deals across the US, Canada and Japan
★ Denotes transactions completed by team members at prior firms.
Insights
Latest from Max
M&A Deal Roundup
Each week, the deals that moved in marketing and ad tech, and what they tell founders about where buyers are looking.
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
Prepare to Sell
Get your company ready before you go to market
Thinking about a sale in the near future? The work you do now shapes how buyers see your company. We help you find the gaps, address what matters, and do the preparation to walk into a process with a business that's ready.
What preparing involves
Five areas we work on with you
Operational and financial review
A clear look at how the business runs and how the money moves, through the eyes of a buyer's diligence team.
Reporting and the right metrics
Monthly reporting you can trust, and the numbers buyers in your sector expect to see: revenue quality, margin by client and service line, retention.
Structuring the company
Entity, ownership, contracts and IP organised so nothing slows a deal down or surprises a buyer late.
Founder coaching
Stepping back from day-to-day delivery, building the team that holds client relationships, and getting clear on what you want from a sale.
Expansion
Where it makes sense, growth moves that add value before a sale, including planning acquisitions of your own.
Timing
Understanding the market for companies like yours, so you can choose when to go rather than having the timing chosen for you.
How an engagement works
From first call to a company that's ready
The length depends on where you start. Some founders need a few months; others use a year or more to make bigger changes.
Introductory call
A 30-minute conversation about your company, your goals and your timing.
Readiness review
We look at your numbers, operations and structure and show you how a buyer is likely to see the business today.
Preparation plan
A short, prioritised list of what to fix, what to build, and in what order.
Working through it together
Regular working sessions with you and your team while you put the plan in place.
Deciding on next steps
When the company is ready, we talk through your options and timing for going to market.
What you get
A clearer picture, and a plan
- An outside view of how buyers are likely to see your company today
- A prioritised plan you and your team can act on
- Reporting and metrics that will stand up in diligence
- Less founder dependence, and a team that can carry the business
- A partner who has been on the founder's side of a sale
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
Ready to Sell
Decided it's time?
We evaluate your company for market-readiness, and then help you navigate the decision on how best to move forward, potentially supporting you in a go-to-market process that can take a few months or up to a year.
How we support you
Ready for market, with a partner on your side
Market-readiness evaluation
A direct read on where the company stands today, what a buyer will question, and what to address before you approach the market.
Positioning your company
Shaping the story of your business: what makes it valuable, where it's going, and why it fits the buyers most likely to be interested.
The buyer landscape
Who is buying in digital marketing, martech, AI and data, and why, drawing on a network across the US, Europe and Japan.
Support through the process
Someone in your corner from preparation to close, so you can keep running the business while the process moves forward.
What to expect
What a go-to-market process looks like
Evaluate
We review the company and agree on what needs to happen before you go to market.
Get ready
Financials, reporting, materials and story are prepared so the company is presented well.
Go to market
The process runs on a plan you understand, with regular updates and clear decisions for you to make.
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
Grow Value
Not selling, focused on building?
We assist you in maintaining your focus on what makes your company worth more in the market, aiming to help you realize value or expand through strategic acquisitions.
What influences a company's value
The value drivers in agencies and marketing-tech businesses
These are the things that shape what your company is worth, however and whenever you choose to act on them.
Recurring revenue
Retainers, subscriptions and multi-year contracts are worth more than project work that has to be won again each quarter.
Client spread
When one client is a large share of revenue, the whole company carries that risk. A broader base is a stronger base.
A team beyond the founder
Leaders who own delivery and client relationships make the company more durable, and give you your time back.
Margin you can see
Understanding your margin by client and service line provides deep insight into your financial performance.
Productised IP and data
Tools, methods and data assets that set you apart, especially as AI changes how marketing work gets done.
Growth through acquisition
Buying a smaller firm can add capabilities, clients or geography faster than building them yourself.
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
Representative transactions
Founder-owned companies, cross-border buyers
A selection of mergers, acquisitions and partnerships in marketing, digital and data, involving agencies and buyers in the US, Canada and Japan.
★ Denotes transactions completed by team members at prior firms.
Past transactions are not a guarantee of future results.
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
About
Max Thomas
Founder of The Big Picture Advisors. Registered Representative of Finalis Securities LLC, Member FINRA / SIPC (FINRA Series 79 & 63).
A founder who has done it
A three-time founder, Max shifted to helping founders maximize their goals and value after selling his digital agency. In addition, Max mentors start-up founders and is also a tech investor.
This experience shapes how The Big Picture Advisors works. A sale is one of the biggest decisions a founder makes, and most of the outcome is decided by the preparation that comes before an actual transaction. Max works with founders early, while there's ample runway to make the decisions that optimize a founder's vision and path to value creation.
He focuses on the sectors he knows from the inside: digital marketing, digital transformation, martech, AI and tech, and analytics and data. He keeps an active network of founders, operators and buyers across the US, Europe and Japan.
Max writes Founder Perspective on Substack and a weekly M&A deal roundup for marketing and ad tech deal announcements on LinkedIn. You'll also find him at industry events such as Cannes Lions, HumanX and London Tech Week, to name a few.
Max is based in Amsterdam, NL, and the USA.
Insights
What Max is seeing in the market
Regular writing on building, preparing and selling companies in marketing and related technology.
Latest from Founder Perspective
Recent posts
The latest posts couldn't load just now. Read Founder Perspective on Substack.
Founder Perspective
Longer pieces for founders: what buyers look for, how to think about timing, and lessons from building and selling a company.
M&A Deal Roundup
The week's deals in marketing and ad tech, who bought whom, and what it signals for founders in the sector.
Start with a 30-minute conversation
Tell Max where you are and what you're weighing up. You'll leave with a clearer view of your options, whatever you decide.
Exit Readiness Check
How ready is your company today?
Fourteen plain questions, about four minutes. You'll get a readiness score and practical next steps. This is a self-check to help you prioritise. It is not a valuation. No responses or scores are stored or sent.
Fundamental data and forecast supplied by management of the Company. Such projections may not be realized. Past performance may not recur, and there is no guarantee of future results.
Privacy notice
How we handle your information
We collect very little: only what you send us so we can reply. We don't use cookies, we don't track you around the web, and we don't sell your information.
Last updated: November 3, 2026
Who we are
This website is run by The Big Picture Advisors, a DBA of TBP Global Assets, LLC, registered at 1931 Cordova Rd Unit 2009, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316. We decide how the information described here is used, which makes us the "controller" under European data protection law.
For any privacy question or request, email privacy@bigpictureadvisors.co.
What we collect
- When you send a message through our contact form: your name, email address, company, role, the stage you choose ("where are you today?") and your message.
- When you book a call: booking happens on Google Calendar's appointment page, not on this website. Google collects the details you enter there under Google's privacy policy, and shares your booking details with us.
- When you email or speak with us: the information you choose to share.
- When you use the Exit Readiness Check: nothing. Your answers and score stay in your browser. No responses or scores are stored or sent.
- When you visit the site: our hosting provider keeps standard server logs (such as IP address and pages requested) for security and to keep the site running. We count visits in aggregate using Netlify Analytics, without cookies and without identifying you.
Cookies
This website does not use cookies or similar tracking technologies, so there's nothing to accept or decline. Our fonts are served from our own site, not from a third party. If that ever changes, we will update this notice and ask for your consent where the law requires it.
Why we use your information
- To reply to your message and arrange a conversation you've asked for. Under European law, our basis is taking steps at your request and our legitimate interest in responding to enquiries.
- To keep records we are required to keep. Because Max Thomas is a Registered Representative of Finalis Securities LLC, business communications may be retained and reviewed under U.S. securities regulations.
- To keep the website secure and working.
We don't sell your information, we don't use it for advertising, and we don't make automated decisions about you. We won't add you to a mailing list unless you ask us to.
Who we share it with
Only with service providers who help us run the website and our business, and only as far as needed:
- Netlify, which hosts this website and delivers contact form messages to us.
- Google, for calendar booking through Google Calendar appointment scheduling.
- Finalis Securities LLC, where required for compliance supervision and record-keeping.
We may also disclose information where the law requires it.
International transfers
We work from Amsterdam and the USA, and our service providers are based in the United States. If you are in Europe, your information may be transferred to and processed in the U.S. Where that happens, we rely on recognised safeguards such as the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework or the European Commission's standard contractual clauses.
How long we keep it
Answers and scores from the Exit Readiness Check are never stored. They exist only in your browser while you use the page, are never sent to us or anyone else, and are cleared when you leave or reload the page.
We keep enquiry details only as long as needed to respond and to meet our legal and regulatory obligations. Records that securities regulations require us to keep are retained for the period those rules set.
Your rights
Depending on where you live, you can ask us to:
- show you the information we hold about you, or give you a copy
- correct it
- delete it
- limit or object to how we use it
Email us at the address above and we'll respond within one month. Some information may need to be kept to meet legal or regulatory obligations, and we'll tell you if that applies. If you're in the EU, you can also complain to your local data protection authority. In the Netherlands, that's the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens.
If you live in a U.S. state with its own privacy law, such as California, the same rights are available on request. We don't sell or share personal information for advertising.
Changes to this notice
If we change how we handle information, we'll update this page and the date at the top.
Contact
Start a conversation
The quickest way is to book a 30-minute introductory call. Or send a note and Max will reply within two working days.
Book a call
Pick a time that suits you. Calls are by video.
Elsewhere
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/maxthomas
Founder Perspective: founderperspective.substack.com
Based in Amsterdam, NL, and the USA.