Most PE funds pick a sector then hunt for companies. Strada Partners flipped it: they back the team first, then build the roll-up.

Nicholas De Poorter (investment team, Strada Partners) joins Dylan to break down how a Belgian PE fund runs 15 buy-and-build platforms across Europe.

Topics covered:

• Why Strada backs teams with a thesis, not deals

• Lighthouse deals vs carpet bombing on the first acquisition

• Deal structures: equity, rollover, vendor loans and the earnout trap

• The two-bucket AI framework and inverting the AI-native roll-up

RolyPoly is the podcast about all things roll-up. New episodes every Tuesday.

Connect: pmistack.com | linkedin.com/in/dylan-harrocks

He sold 6 companies, watched a billion-dollar IPO walk out the door, and bought a 116-year-old Spanish football club. Mac Lackey on how to actually win an exit.

Mac Lackey (founder, Exit DNA) joins Dylan to discuss why most founders leave life-changing money on the table - and how to be irresistible to buyers.

Topics covered:

• Why AI today is the early internet of 1995

• The integration mistake that emptied a billion-dollar IPO

• Strategic value vs. EBITDA multiples

• The founder's paradox and how to escape the critical path

RolyPoly is the podcast about all things roll-up. New episodes every Tuesday.

Connect: pmistack.com | linkedin.com/in/dylan-harrocks

The brutal question every VC asks an AI roll-up founder: where's the headcount going to drop? Sam Hields breaks down what separates a venture case from a financial engineering pitch.

Sam Hields (Partner, OpenOcean) joins Dylan to discuss why services will eat software in the AI era and what VCs actually look for in roll-up founders.

Topics covered:

• Why services is a 10x bigger market than software
• Front office vs back office automation (and why it matters)
• Green flags, red flags, and "tourism" in AI roll-up pitches
• Capital stack reality — equity, debt, and rollover equity
• Where AI expands TAM (and where pricing collapses instead)

RolyPoly is the podcast about all things roll-up. New episodes every Tuesday.

Connect: pmistack.com | linkedin.com/in/dylan-harrocks