Preliminary Due Negotiation Deal evaluation diligence completion 50% abandonment 2/3rd abandonment 80% abandonment Abandonment can occur after each stage in the process. In other words, of 30 deals to go through preliminary evaluation in a year, about 15 will go through due diligence, five through the negotiation phase, and one will finally reach completion. The time and resources required at each stage are summarized in the table below: Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Preliminary Due diligence Negotiation Deal completion evaluation Process 150 120 80 100 Time hrs/transaction hrs/transaction hrs/transaction hrs/transaction Resource Junior Mid-level Senior professional Senior professional professional professional As many of the deals are sourced from personal and professional networks, it is important that the same senior professional who negotiated the deal completes the transaction. Other than deal making, senior professionals must also spend time on activities such as firm management, deal sourcing, mentoring and training, and project management. For the purpose of planning, it is reasonable to assume that junior, mid-level, and senior professionals need to spend 25%, 50%, and 2/3 of their time respectively on other activities. Junior professionals typically work 65 hours per week, and mid-level and senior professionals work 60 hours per week. All of them work 49 weeks per year