Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy

Find purpose and prosperity by becoming a business owner.

Train.

Acquire is an executive education coaching experience that trains experienced professionals on small business strategy in order to become effective owner-operators of their own $1 to $10 million company.

Search.

Upon completing Acquire, you are eligible to apply for acceptance into a search accelerator program. This program provides the data, framework, resources and connections needed to find a company to buy.

Buy.

Searchers can qualify for investment capital through Sleeping Giant Capital—a $50 million, West Michigan-focused buyout fund. Sleeping Giant aspires to generate financial, social and educational returns by backing the next generation of principled business leaders.

Discover a new career path.

Apply here today

Intensive coaching

In-person coaching available

Great value

Individualized and personal

Learn from experts

Real-world cases and prospects

Course comparison

Educational Modules	1-Day Intro Bootcamp	8-Week Deep Dive
Module 1: Why acquire a small business	Full	Full
Module 2: Reflection and leading your acquisition process	Full	Full
Module 3: Thesis development and sourcing process	Half	Full
Module 4: Leading selection and evaluation	Half	Full
Module 5: Leading negotiation and offer	Half	Full
Module 6: Leading due diligence and closing	Not included	Full
Module 7: Leading growth and transition	Not included	Full
Bonus module: Financial modeling help and more	Not included	Full
Additional Included Materials
Weekly coaching calls	Not included	Included
Financial modeling coaching	Not included	Included
Webinar lectures	Not included	Included
Three graduate-level course credits through Western Michigan University	Not included	Included
Employer reimbursement	Not included	Included
Cost of course	$500	$5,000

Acquire will grow your knowledge about acquisition possibilities. You will learn about sourcing and deal flow, negotiation and thesis development. The program positions you to acquire, own and operate a small business. Choose the option that's right for your future.

Learn more about the Acquire course

Meet Your Instructors

Derrick McIver and Doug Lepisto are founders and managing directors of Sleeping Giant Capital, co-directors of the Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy, and associate professors at Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business. Their research has been published in top management journals and their consulting and industry experience has taken them to Fortune 500 companies.

Your path can lead you to ...

Understand and overcome the hidden fears and obstacles preventing you from becoming a business owner.

Discover a viable path that will transform you from experienced professional to effective business owner.

Explore various pathways to define targets and create deal flow.

Evaluate potential targets by applying various personal, strategic, and financial filters and models to assess the attractiveness of targets.

Develop a thesis on post-acquisition growth strategy.

Learn how to structure a deal.

Utilize tactics and best practices as you transition into the ownership role.

In the News

Investment firm with ties to WMU launches $50M fund to acquire local companies

KALAMAZOO, MI — A private investment firm has formed with a goal of acquiring West Michigan small businesses, and those owned by alumni of Western Michigan University. Sleeping Giant Capital, a Kalamazoo-based private investment firm with ties to Western Michigan University’s Haworth College of Business, recently announced the launch of a $50 million investment fund to generate economic, social and educational returns in West Michigan by acquiring small businesses...

MLive Kalamazoo

New $50 million VC fund aims to keep businesses local for next generation

KALAMAZOO — A new $50 million venture capital fund that organizers launched in Kalamazoo seeks to offer opportunity to a new generation of business executives while keeping established businesses local. Formed by two business professors at Western Michigan University, the Sleeping Giant Capital Principled Impact Fund I LLC has already secured “significant” commitments from investors, said Doug Lepisto, an associate professor at the Haworth College of Business...

MiBiz

New $50M fund set up to acquire West Michigan businesses

A private investment firm with ties to Western Michigan University recently launched a fund that will help aspiring owner-operators acquire small businesses in West Michigan. Kalamazoo-based Sleeping Giant Capital, a firm launched out of WMU’s Haworth College of Business, said it established a $50 million investment fund with a goal of generating economic, social and educational returns by acquiring small businesses primarily based in this region...

Grand Rapids Business Journal

Acquire is offered by Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy.

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