Standard Private Equity Dictionary
"Turnaround opportunity " | Lost cause
"Strategic investor " | Investor will pay a preposterous valuation
"Feeding frenzy " | At least one interested new customer
"Basically on plan " | 25% revenue shortfall
"Currently revising the budget " | Financial plan is a total disaster
"Investing heavily in R&D " | Trying desperately to catch the competition
"Well below plan " | An outright, unmitigated disaster
"Limited downside " | It can’t get much worse
"Window of opportunity " | Without more money, the company is dead
"Opportunistic investment strategy " | Absolutely no investment strategy
"Considerably ahead of plan " | Hit plan in one of the last three months
"Major opportunity " | Last chance
"Cyclical industry " | Posted a huge loss last year
"Volume-sensitive " | Massive fixed costs
"Entrepreneurial CEO " | Totally uncontrollable, bordering on maniacal
"Acquisition strategy " | Current products have no market
"Long selling cycle " | Yet to find a customer who likes the product
"Ingredients are there " | Given two years, might find a workable strategy
"Value-added investor " | Generally comes to board meetings but spends most of the time on “emergency” phone calls
"Somewhat below plan " | 75% revenue shortfall
"Niche strategy " | Small-time player
"Work closely with the management " | Talk to them on the phone once a quarter
"Possibility of slight shortfall " | 50% revenue shortfall
"Unique " | No more than six competitors
"Upgrading the management team " | The organization is in complete disarray
"Reposition the company " | No market for current products
"On a manufacturing learning curve " | Can’t make the product with positive margins
"Rifle-shot approach to a few investors " | You’re the only potential investor left
"Core business " | Obsolete product line
"Too early to tell " | Results to date have been grim
"Passive investor " | Phones once a year to see if company is still in business
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