Registration & Exhibits

The AM&AA Registration & Hospitality Desk will be located right off the lobby to welcome and check you into the conference as you arrive on Monday. Visit with exhibitors and learn how their services can take your deal to the next level!

Welcome Luncheon featuring Keynote Speaker Wes Henderson - Think Like a Founder: The Entrepreneurial Mindset

Kick off the 27th Annual Winter Conference with a keynote and luncheon designed to inspire and connect. Network with fellow M&A professionals over lunch before heading into an afternoon filled with meetings and valuable content. In Think Like a Founder: The Entrepreneurial Mindset, Wes Henderson shares what it takes to build a brand that disrupts a category, captures hearts, and leaves a lasting legacy while becoming a model for successful acquisition and integration.

AM&AA Deal Connect Marketplace

The exclusive and highly anticipated Deal Connect allows M&A professionals to request meetings with table hosts who are focused deal makers. Stop by to make the most of your conference experience with this valuable opportunity!

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General Session - M&A Market Update: Statistics, Surveys, and a Look Ahead into 2026

Join Industry professionals as they present statistics and insights on completed lower middle-market M&A transactions and also offer up highlights of the most recent AM&AA Market Survey Report. 

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

Breakout Session - Enhance Efficiency, Drive Value, and Reduce Risk Across Your Investments

AM&AA Executive Education - The M&A Buyer's Playbook: Own Your Deal Flow

By Invite Only - Exclusive to AM&AA Members

This AM&AA Member Exclusive executive session is designed to help you stop waiting for deals to come to you and start owning your deal flow. You’ll learn a practical, repeatable framework to proactively pinpoint the right targets, dig up the intelligence that actually matters, and reach decision-makers in a way that cuts through the noise. We’ll dig into how to avoid the most common outreach missteps, sharpen your messaging so response rates climb, and build a cleaner, more strategic pipeline that reflects your growth goals—not just what happens to hit the market. Perfect for company buyers, investors, M&A professionals, and corporate development executives who are ready to move beyond “reactive” and compete at a higher level.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

General Session - An Exclusive Mainstage Program for Middle Market Leaders

The AM&AA Business Owner Series (BOSS) takes center stage at the Winter Conference as a dynamic, live panel featuring three accomplished business owners and CEO's sharing their real-world journeys through growth, capital events, and transition. This session provides the AM&AA community with a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the strategic and personal decisions that define success in the middle market.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

Opening Reception

Kick off the conference at our jazz-themed opening reception, where M&A professionals can connect over smooth sounds, smoother cocktails, and an energetic atmosphere. It’s the perfect setting to spark conversations, build relationships, and set the tone for a high-impact event.

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CM&AA Reunion Breakfast

Members of CM&AA are invited to a special breakfast recognizing their achievements and providing opportunities to network with other CM&AA members.

Invitation only for CM&AA instructors and recipients of the CM&AA designation

Breakfast & Networking

Get fueled for the day with a delicious breakfast. Maximize your meeting time and invite a colleague to join you! 

Registration & Exhibit Hall

The AM&AA Registration & Hospitality Desk will remain open throughout the day to assist with any questions you may have. Be sure to connect with exhibitors to learn how their services can help your business. 

Roundtable Discussions - AI in M&A

Strategic and Balanced - AI in M&A: Redefining the Deal Process
This roundtable brings together leading dealmakers to explore how artificial intelligence is transforming the M&A landscape. Participants will discuss how AI is being applied to deal sourcing, due diligence, valuation, and integration—along with the strategic, legal, and ethical considerations shaping its adoption across the deal ecosystem.

Forward-Looking and Dynamic - The AI Advantage: How Technology Is Changing M&A Strategy and Execution
From accelerating due diligence to enhancing predictive insights, AI is reshaping every stage of the M&A process. This conversation brings together lawyers, private equity professionals, and investment bankers to examine real-world applications, evolving best practices, and emerging risks.

Putting It into Practice - Dealmakers + AI: Crafting Smarter Prompts & GPTs for Smarter Transactions
This hands-on session guides participants through creating and refining prompts that unlock ChatGPT’s value across the deal lifecycle. You’ll explore how AI can enhance diligence, valuation, deal structuring, and negotiation support—helping advisors work faster and deliver sharper insights. Please bring a laptop to participate in real-time practice and actionable, take-home AI skills.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

Breakout
Speed Networking

Uncover new opportunities and expand your professional network during this dynamic session of speed networking. Participants will rotate through designated tables during timed sessions prompting rapid yet meaningful interactions to exchange information, share insights, and explore potential synergies.

AM&AA Deal Connect Marketplace

Meetings for dedicated deal makers and Deal Connect table hosts. This is where deals are made

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General Session - The Brand Premium: How Strong Branding Drives Higher Valuations

In today’s competitive M&A environment, a company’s brand is more than a marketing asset, it’s a value driver. Buyers increasingly recognize that strong brands command customer loyalty, pricing power, and strategic differentiation, all of which translate directly into higher multiples and faster deal processes.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

General Session -  From Deal-by-Deal to Committed Capital: The State of Emerging Manager Fundraising 

This discussion will examine the current fundraising environment for emerging managers, comparing the independent sponsor model with the transition to committed capital. Panelists will share how strategy positioning, track record, and market dynamics are shaping LP decision-making today.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

Lunch & Awards Ceremony

Continue connecting with your peers over lunch and help us recognize the recipients of the Thought Leader of the Year Award and Chapter Leader of the Year Award!
 

AM&AA Deal Connect Marketplace

Calling all M&A professionals! This is the last opportunity of the conference to connect with Deal Connect table hosts who have active transaction opportunities.

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Breakout Session - How To Turn a Business Insurance Expense into a Tax Efficient Profit Center for a Business Owner and an Advisor

How would you like to participate in a strategy that rewards your company’s effective risk management, identify and fund catastrophic risk, and qualify for a tax efficient expense in doing so? The team at Madison Insurance Group will show you how to fund future losses while allowing investors to participate in the insurance profits that would otherwise be lost to Big Insurance.

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Breakout Session - What the Model Doesn’t Show: Technology, Cyber, AI, and the Hidden Risks in M&A

Technology, cyber, and AI risks rarely break deals on paper, but they often determine how value is realized after close. While traditional diligence identifies issues, it often fails to capture how these risks evolve once transactions are underway. This session surfaces the patterns and judgment calls most reports miss, exploring how timing, growth strategy, and execution shape pricing, integration, and value creation without slowing deal momentum.

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General Session - Tariffs, Taxes & Transactions: Policy Shifts Reshaping 2026 M&A

This session explores how evolving tariff regimes, corporate tax reforms, and global minimum tax adoption are reshaping deal valuation, structure, and cross-border strategy. A panel of experts—a private equity investor, investment banker, and tax advisor—will translate these policy shifts into practical guidance: how to model tariff and tax exposure, build flexibility into deal structures, and uncover opportunities amid uncertainty. Attendees will gain clear, actionable insights for pricing, diligence, and negotiation in a rapidly changing 2026 policy environment.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

High Tea, Higher Returns

Afternoon Tea hosted by the Women of AM&AA to celebrate and strengthen the female networks within our community — all are warmly welcomed to attend.

General Session - Full Court Press: Sports in Private Equity

Dive into the fast-paced world where sports, business, and private equity collide. This panel explores the growing investor momentum fueling private equity’s expansion into the global sports industry — highlighting emerging opportunities for lower middle market firms to get in the game.

CPE Credit: 1 - Specialized Knowledge

Closing Reception | Saints & Sinners: Networking Confessions

Join us for the AM&AA Winter Conference Closing Reception at Church and Union, one of Charleston’s most iconic venues. Set in a beautifully restored historic church, this unique space offers the perfect backdrop to celebrate the close of an impactful conference. Just a 5-minute walk from The Charleston Place, this event marks the pinnacle of the conference, offering unparalleled networking opportunities you won’t want to miss.

We look forward to closing out Winter Conference together in true Charleston style.

Address: 32 N. Market Street, Charleston, SC 29401

AM&AA Advisory Council Meeting

The AM&AA Advisory Council will discuss the organization's initiatives & strategies.

Invitation only to AM&AA Advisory Council Members.

AM&AA Chapter Executive Committee Members Workshop

This interactive workshop is designed for Executive Committee Members to identify and implement chapter growth strategies through multiple outlets, such as events, sponsorships and resources.

Invitation only for AM&AA Chapter Executive Committee Members