#16 | Jimmy Tran: Led $2B in M&A and Tripled CBRE's Earnings

More than 15,000 Johnson Controls engineers became CBRE employees on day one. Jimmy Tran spent two years on the buyer's side of that carve-out.More on Jimmy Tran and this episode: thedealtablepodcast.com/episodes/jimmy-tranHe led over $2 billion in acquisitions at CBRE, closing roughly a deal a month, and earnings tripled across eight years. Two years of work on the carve-out came down to about 90 days of real diligence, and he is candid about what that pace does to a team and to a thesis.Then he went the other direction. An area development agreement signed in 2019, a Code Ninjas center opened in Preston Hollow months before COVID shut customer-facing businesses, two more centers bought from an owner who wanted out, 15 staff, and all three sold this January. Escrow, lawyers, and a seller's perspective on what a small business is actually worth.Both ends of the same job produce the same conclusion: culture eats strategy for breakfast, three in ten deals near $50 million die between letter of intent and closing, and you can destroy an enormous amount of value in an acquisition that looked good on paper.Jimmy Tran is the founder of Oak Lawn Ventures and the former vice president of corporate strategy and M&A at CBRE, where he led over $2 billion in acquisitions. He consulted at Bain and Company in Dallas, Hong Kong and Singapore, holds a joint Harvard degree, and serves on the board of the Dallas Economic Development Corporation.KEY MOMENTS00:00 Refugee, not immigrant11:05 Bain paid for Harvard, on a deal33:05 Why you buy: capability or market35:55 A deal a month, a dozen a year36:28 The Johnson Controls carve-out40:41 Two years of work, 90 days of diligence42:32 Culture eats strategy for breakfast53:53 Sellers who think it is worth $20M01:01:11 3 in 10 deals die after the LOI01:03:56 How M&A destroys valueNewsletter: thedealtablepodcast.com/connectLane Carrick on selling a business, The Optima Advantage: amzn.to/48nLElWInstagram: instagram.com/thedealtablepodcast/LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/the-deal-table/The Deal Table is hosted by Ryan Harper and Lane Carrick, filmed in Dallas, and produced by Harper Belmont Media.