Private Equity Deal Selection and Portfolio Value Creation Training Course for Investment Leaders

Programme Summary

Private equity deal selection and portfolio value creation is the subject of this five-day training course for investment leaders at strategic level, ending in a deal and value creation file for one investment case. Investment committees must choose between competing opportunities, price them and then raise the performance of what they own, often with partial information. The approach moves from fund economics and screening through due diligence and valuation to structuring, ownership and exit. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme in private equity deal selection and portfolio value creation.

The Business Case

Capital committed to private companies is illiquid for years, so a weak selection or a missed value lever cannot be corrected quickly. Boards and limited partners expect each decision to rest on documented evidence and a defensible valuation.

• Selection Quality: Improves as screening criteria and diligence findings are scored and compared across opportunities.
• Valuation Defensibility: Rises as fair value is supported by stated methods, inputs and sensitivity ranges.
• Holding Period Performance: Strengthens as ownership plans set measurable levers and monitoring from the first day.

Principles and Evidence Base

• ILPA Principles: These set out expectations for fund terms, alignment and governance, and Sessions 1 and 4 apply them when reading partnership terms and reporting.
• IPEV International Private Equity and Venture Capital Valuation Guidelines: Their approach to fair value frames the valuation work in Sessions 2 and 3.
• Discounted Cash Flow Valuation: This method converts forecast cash flows into value and is tested against assumptions in Session 3.
• Valuation by Multiples: Comparable company and transaction multiples are used as a cross-check on each case in Session 3.

Intended Participants

• Leaders who approve or recommend investments in private companies on behalf of an institution.
• Executives who sit on investment committees and must challenge deal papers.
• Heads of function responsible for sourcing, structuring or monitoring private holdings.
• Senior managers who report on fund commitments to boards.

The programme serves sovereign and family investment offices, pension and insurance investors, banks and corporate development teams.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to evaluate a fund structure and its terms for alignment between investors and managers.
2. Participants will be able to prioritise investment opportunities against defined screening criteria.
3. Participants will be able to diagnose risk in a target through financial, commercial and operational due diligence findings.
4. Participants will be able to construct a valuation using cash flow and multiples methods and justify its range.
5. Participants will be able to design a transaction structure and an ownership plan with measurable value levers.
6. Participants will be able to justify an exit route and timing to an investment committee.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Fund Economics and Opportunity Screening

How do fund terms and screening criteria shape which opportunities deserve attention?

• Limited Partner and General Partner Economics
• ILPA Principles Terms Review
• Investment Thesis Definition
• Screening Scorecard Design
• Sourcing Channel Mapping

Day 2: Due Diligence and Risk Diagnosis

What does the evidence say about the quality and risk of a target company?

• Financial Due Diligence Findings Register
• Commercial Market and Customer Assessment
• Operational Capability Review
• Management Team Assessment
• Red Flag Escalation Protocol

Day 3: Valuation and Pricing the Deal

What is the target worth, and how sensitive is that figure to assumptions?

• Discounted Cash Flow Model Construction
• Comparable Company and Transaction Multiples
• IPEV Fair Value Guidelines
• Leveraged Buyout Returns Model
• Sensitivity and Downside Case Analysis

Day 4: Structuring and Portfolio Value Creation

How are the transaction and the ownership period organised to create value?

• Capital Structure and Debt Capacity Design
• Shareholder Agreement and Governance Terms
• Value Creation Plan Levers
• Board Reporting and Monitoring Dashboard
• Exit Route and Timing Options

Day 5: Applying Deal Selection and Value Creation to a Case

Is the investment case ready for the committee to decide?

• Applying Day 1 Screening Scorecard to the Case
• Reconciling Day 2 Findings with Risk Pricing
• Stress Testing the Day 3 Valuation Range
• Aligning Day 4 Value Plan with Exit Options
• Completing the Deal and Value Creation File

Methodology

The programme is built around case analysis and data exercises. Participants examine anonymised investments in industrial, healthcare and consumer businesses, build valuation models from sample statements and defend conclusions before peers acting as a committee.

• Suggested activity: Scoring four opportunities against a screening scorecard and ranking them.
• Suggested activity: Building a valuation range for a target from sample accounts.
• Suggested activity: Presenting a value creation plan to a simulated committee.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a deal and value creation file for one investment case. It contains a thesis, a scored screening record, a diligence findings register, a valuation range with sensitivities, a structure proposal and an ownership and exit plan. It is used at work to prepare a committee paper and to agree monitoring measures after investment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is private equity deal selection and portfolio value creation suitable for leaders without direct deal experience?

Yes. It is set at strategic level for leaders who approve or oversee investments, and it assumes working knowledge of financial statements rather than prior transaction experience.

Which standards and methods does private equity deal selection and value creation rest on?

It rests on the ILPA Principles, the IPEV valuation guidelines, discounted cash flow valuation and valuation by multiples, each applied to a case rather than recited.

How is the private equity deal and value creation file used at work?

You take it back to prepare an investment committee paper and set monitoring measures for the holding period.

How does private equity deal selection differ from a programme on corporate finance?

Private equity deal selection concentrates on choosing, pricing and growing private holdings through to exit, while corporate finance addresses funding and capital decisions inside an operating company.