Jonathan Bates
Partner, Patriot Growth Capital
Jonathan Bates served as a Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) officer — a role that demands pattern recognition under lethal pressure, total procedural discipline, and decisive leadership when the margin for error is zero. Those instincts translate directly to acquisition due diligence, integration planning, and the high-accountability environment of running a lower-middle-market company. He writes on leadership frameworks, acquisition criteria, and what it takes to actually operate a business you own.
Areas of Expertise
Articles by Jonathan Bates
What private equity firms look for when buying a business
May 22, 2026
PE firms run the same acquisition checklist on every deal. Most founders never see it. Here's what gets businesses bought and what gets them passed on.
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Entrepreneurship through acquisition: how ETA works
May 22, 2026
ETA lets operators skip startup risk entirely. Buy a profitable business, run it as CEO, and earn returns the Stanford data says average 35% IRR.
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EBITDA multiples in the lower middle market
May 20, 2026
What EBITDA multiples actually close at in the lower middle market — from GF Data and IBBA research — and what drives a 4x deal versus a 7x deal.
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Search fund due diligence: what most buyers miss
May 20, 2026
Most search fund acquisitions fail before the close. Here's what experienced operators check in due diligence — and what first-time buyers almost always skip.
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Operational value creation in PE: where returns come from
May 19, 2026
In lower middle market PE, leverage averages 3.2x EBITDA. Financial engineering doesn''t drive returns. Operational professionalization does.
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Veteran business exit planning: what owners get wrong
May 15, 2026
Most veteran business owners leave money on the table — and risk losing their federal contract pipeline — because exit planning comes too late.
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