Jake Tobin earns CM&AP credential as South Florida M&A focus expands

Fort Lauderdale business intermediary Jake Tobin completed Kennesaw State University’s Certified Mergers & Acquisitions Professional program, adding a credential that supports his push into lower-middle-market and middle-market M&A. The move positions him among 11 Transworld-affiliated professionals in Florida with the CM&AP designation.

Why it matters: - Tobin’s new credential strengthens his work with owners of privately held companies that need more sophisticated M&A support than a standard business brokerage process. - The certification aligns with transactions where valuation, buyer targeting, structuring and due diligence can have a direct effect on price, deal certainty and closing. - Tobin is now one of 11 Transworld-affiliated professionals in Florida confirmed to hold the CM&AP credential.

What happened: - Jake Tobin, also identified as James H. Tobin III, completed the Certified Mergers & Acquisitions Professional Certificate Program through Kennesaw State University’s Michael J. Coles College of Business. - Tobin operates as a Florida-licensed real estate professional through James H. Tobin III, P.A. and as a Business Intermediary with Transworld Business Advisors. - The completion comes as Tobin expands his focus on lower-middle-market and middle-market business sales. - Tobin is based in Fort Lauderdale and works across Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, with assignments elsewhere in Florida.

The details: - Tobin’s transaction work includes business valuation, market positioning, financial recasting, exit preparation, confidential marketing, buyer identification and qualification, transaction structuring, negotiations, due diligence coordination and management through closing. - His client base includes founder-owned and closely held companies that may appeal to strategic acquirers, private equity-backed platforms, independent sponsors, family offices and other sophisticated buyers. - His primary industry focus includes construction, manufacturing, marine, healthcare, aviation and B2B service businesses. - The article says these sectors often depend on operational scale, management depth, recurring customer relationships and financial quality to influence enterprise value and buyer interest. - For lower-middle-market companies, Tobin says the process can include evaluating normalized EBITDA, quality of earnings, working-capital requirements, customer concentration, recurring revenue, management depth, capital expenditure needs, owner dependence and transferability after a change in control. - Tobin said owners should understand how sophisticated buyers, lenders and investors will evaluate earnings quality, risk, transferability and enterprise value before a sale process begins. - Kennesaw State’s CM&AP program trains professionals in financial statement analysis, quality of earnings, cash flow, working capital, projections, valuation methodologies, value drivers, negotiation, transaction structuring, tax issues, legal issues, letters of intent and purchase agreements. - Following completion, Tobin joins 10 other confirmed CM&AP professionals affiliated with Transworld in Florida, with credentialed professionals represented across South Florida, Orlando, Jacksonville and Tampa Bay.

Between the lines: - The credential signals a shift from general brokerage toward a more institutional M&A advisory model. - That matters because lower-middle-market deals often depend on financial presentation and operational readiness before the company is ever shown to buyers. - Tobin’s focus on preparation suggests a strategy built to improve buyer confidence before a formal sale process starts. - Tobin said the strongest transactions typically begin well before a company is formally marketed.

What’s next: - Tobin is likely to keep building a practice centered on financial analysis, buyer qualification and transaction readiness for privately held companies. - His positioning suggests continued work with owners who are preparing for sale, recapitalization or succession events. - The expanded credential base inside Transworld Florida may support more referrals and more complex deal work across the state.

The bottom line: - Tobin’s CM&AP completion adds technical firepower to a South Florida practice aimed at more complex private-company sales and lower-middle-market M&A.