# Telesto Strategy

> Telesto is a strategy and intelligence firm purpose-built for the mid-market private equity ecosystem. We deliver commercial due diligence, portfolio growth intelligence, and value creation strategy on deal timelines.

## What We Do

Telesto serves private equity sponsors, operating partners, and portfolio company leadership teams who need fast, rigorous, and actionable intelligence — not slide decks built on publicly available data.

Our work falls into three practice areas:

**Commercial Due Diligence** — We pressure-test investment theses before close. We assess market size and growth dynamics, competitive positioning, customer concentration and churn risk, pricing power, and management team credibility. We deliver under tight deal timelines without sacrificing rigor.

**Portfolio Growth Intelligence** — We serve portfolio companies post-close, helping leadership teams identify growth vectors, understand customer behavior, assess competitive threats, and build the commercial infrastructure needed to hit EBITDA targets and prepare for exit.

**Market and Geopolitical Intelligence** — We track macro forces that affect portfolio value: tariff and trade policy shifts, healthcare regulatory change, AI disruption, supply chain fragility, and geopolitical risk. We translate these into asset-specific implications for PE sponsors.

## Flagship Products

**ARIA™ (AI Readiness & Impact Assessment)** — A structured diagnostic that assesses how AI is reshaping a target company's competitive landscape, internal operations, and value chain. Designed for PE sponsors evaluating AI-exposed or AI-enabled companies. ARIA delivers a sector-calibrated AI disruption score, workflow automation potential, and competitive displacement risk — in a format built for investment committee decision-making.

**GEAR™ (Growth Engine Assessment Report)** — A commercial diagnostic for portfolio companies. GEAR evaluates the strength of a company's commercial engine across customer acquisition, retention, pricing strategy, channel mix, and market positioning. It produces a prioritized growth action plan tied to value creation milestones. GEAR is built for operating partners and portfolio company CEOs preparing for the next phase of growth or a near-term exit process.

## Who We Serve

- **Private equity sponsors** at the mid-market level ($100M–$2B fund size), focused on healthcare services, industrials, professional services, and consumer sectors
- **Operating partners** at PE firms who need commercial intelligence and growth support for portfolio companies
- **Portfolio company CEOs and leadership teams** who need a rigorous outside perspective on growth strategy, competitive positioning, and exit readiness
- **Corporate development teams** at strategics doing bolt-on acquisitions in PE-backed markets

## Sector Focus

**Healthcare PE** — We cover healthcare services, behavioral health, dental, vision, home health, urgent care, ambulatory surgery, healthcare IT, and medical devices. We track CMS reimbursement policy, prior authorization reform, Medicaid managed care, and PE-specific regulatory risks including state ownership disclosure laws and federal scrutiny of PE in healthcare.

**Industrials PE** — We cover specialty manufacturing, distribution, industrial services, building products, and engineered components. We track tariff exposure (Section 232, IEEPA), reshoring dynamics, workforce and labor market conditions, and M&A activity in fragmented industrial subsectors.

**Professional Services PE** — We cover accounting, legal, engineering, staffing, IT services, and other knowledge-based businesses backed by PE. We track non-compete reform, regulatory changes affecting professional licensing structures, and AI disruption of knowledge work.

**Supply Chain & Geopolitical Risk** — We assess how global trade disruption, sanctions, and geopolitical conflict affect portfolio company supply chains and market access.

## When to Engage Telesto

- **Pre-LOI** — early commercial diligence, market sizing, and thesis validation
- **Between LOI and close** — full commercial due diligence, customer voice work, competitive analysis
- **Post-close / value creation** — growth strategy, GEAR assessment, commercial infrastructure
- **Exit preparation** — exit thesis development, buyer positioning, management team coaching
- **Ongoing** — market intelligence subscriptions and geopolitical risk monitoring

## Key Differentiators

- Built exclusively for the PE deal cycle — we understand deal timelines, IC formats, and what investment teams actually need
- Sector depth in healthcare, industrials, and professional services — not generalist strategy consulting
- Proprietary primary research — customer interviews, expert networks, and on-the-ground intelligence, not recycled secondary data
- Founder-led delivery — principals are on every engagement, not junior analysts
- No conflicts of interest — we do not serve the companies we diligence on behalf of buyers

## Leadership

**Alex Kruzel** — CEO & Founder. Leads PE-focused strategy and commercial intelligence engagements. Deep expertise in healthcare services and industrials PE. Speaks at industry forums including the National Private Capital Association (NPCA) and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

## Contact

Website: https://www.telestostrategy.com
Email: info@telestostrategy.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/telesto-strategy

## Content

Telesto publishes regular intelligence on topics relevant to mid-market PE:
- Healthcare regulatory risk and its implications for PE-backed platforms
- AI disruption across PE-held sectors
- Supply chain and geopolitical risk for industrials and consumer businesses
- Governance and board oversight for PE-backed companies
- Tariff and trade policy impact on portfolio margins and supply chains

All insights are available at: https://www.telestostrategy.com/insights