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Bridgesline Advisory

Method

Openness about process is what we offer instead of client names.

We cannot show you who we have worked with. We can show you exactly how the work runs, including the step where we tell you we are not the right people. Six steps, in order.

  1. Step 1: A written brief

    We ask you to put the requirement in writing, in your own words, at whatever length it takes. Most of the value of this step is that it forces a decision you may not have made yet: what would make a counterparty unacceptable. A brief that lists only what you want is not yet a brief.

    You receive
    A one-page requirement, agreed by both sides.
    Typically takes
    One conversation, then a few days.

  2. Step 2: We tell you where we stand

    Before any work starts, we say what coverage we have in your sector and market, and where we have none. If the honest answer is that we would be starting from nothing, we say so and you can stop there at no cost. This is the step most firms skip.

    You receive
    A written position on our reach, with the gaps stated.
    Typically takes
    Within a week of the brief.

  3. Step 3: The search

    We work through the relationships we hold, and we go outside them where we have to. We ask people who know the market a narrower question than most searches ask: not who could do this, but who they would put their own name behind. We keep a record of who we ruled out and why, because that record is often more useful to you than the shortlist.

    You receive
    A shortlist with reasoning, including the rejections.
    Typically takes
    Three to eight weeks, depending on the market.

  4. Step 4: Approach on a no-names basis

    Nothing about you reaches a counterparty until you have approved it. Where the situation is sensitive, such as an ownership change or an exit from an existing partner, we approach without naming you and introduce the parties only when both sides have said they want to proceed.

    You receive
    Confirmed interest from named counterparties.
    Typically takes
    Two to four weeks.

  5. Step 5: The introduction

    We make the introduction ourselves and we attend the first meeting. An introduction that arrives from someone both sides trust starts in a different place than a cold approach, and that difference usually shows up in the terms.

    You receive
    A first meeting, with us in the room.
    Typically takes
    Scheduled within days of agreement.

  6. Step 6: Through to terms, if you want us there

    Some clients want us to step back once the parties are talking. Others want us present through the commercial terms, because we know both sides and can say when a deal is drifting. Either is fine. We ask you to choose at the start rather than at the point of friction.

    You receive
    Signed agreement, or a documented reason not to sign.
    Typically takes
    Varies.

Confidentiality

Four rules, in force from the first email.

  • We do not publish client names. Not on this site, not in a pitch to another client, not after the relationship ends.
  • We approach counterparties on a no-names basis by default, and name you only with your written agreement.
  • We do not work for both sides of the same transaction.
  • Where we hold a relationship that could create a conflict, we disclose it before the work starts, not after.

Fees

We charge for the work, not for the outcome.

Engagements run on a fixed fee for a defined scope, or on a monthly retainer for standing advisory work. We agree the number before step three, and it does not move unless the scope moves.

We do not take success fees or commissions on introductions. A fee that only arrives if a deal closes gives us a reason to push a counterparty we should be warning you about, and you would have no way of telling the difference. Removing that incentive costs us money on the deals that work, and it is the reason our advice is worth reading on the ones that do not.

Steps one and two are unpaid. If our honest answer at step two is that we have no useful coverage in your market, you have lost a conversation and nothing else.

Start at step one