Our Team

Jon Byun is a Senior Vice President at Northern Edge and among the most accomplished M&A advisors serving the middle market, with over twenty years of experience in the investment banking industry across several leading M&A firms.

Prior to joining Northern Edge in 2014, Jon was a Director of the Corporate Finance Americas Group at the Royal Bank of Scotland plc where he worked on several of the firm’s more significant cross-border M&A transactions. He previously worked as a Principal in the Global Industries M&A Group of The Bank of America Corporation and served as Vice President in the US M&A Group of CIBC World Markets Inc. and in the Global M&A Group at The Credit Suisse Group.

Jon has many years of experience working in leadership roles in serving his corporate and financial sponsor clients and is proud to have mentored countless junior bankers during his career.

His M&A experience is comprehensive: he has completed transactions in virtually every industry and advised both large public companies and private middle market businesses. Several transactions led by Jon have won industry awards, most recently the acquisition of Direct Line, Inc. by an investor group led by Guardian Capital Partners, which was awarded Private Equity Deal of the Year ($10 – 50 million) by the M&A Advisor in 2018. Based in the New York office, he has a comprehensive understanding of the transaction process, financing markets and buyer strategies, which enables Jon to provide expert advice to his clients.

Corina Cioroianu joined Northern Edge in 2015 and is based in the New York office. As Senior Marketing Manager, she works closely with senior management and leads every aspect of the Firm’s marketing activities, including strategy development, vendor selection and management, and execution and measurement of programs and initiatives.

She has sixteen years of broad marketing experience, with over ten years focusing on B2B marketing and business development in the financial services and technology industries.

With expertise working in both traditional and digital marketing channels, Corina plays an integral role in building Northern Edge’s brand and connecting the Firm with its prospective clients.

As the Senior Finance Manager for Northern Edge, Lyn Culpepper is responsible for a broad range of essential corporate functions for the Firm and its offices across the United States and Canada. Working closely with senior management and with a focus on maintaining operational excellence, she supervises the Firm’s internal accounting and human resources activities, and also oversees its general office management and banking relationships.

Lyn brings extensive experience to her role, having worked in a diverse range of corporate environments across multiple industries during her professional career, which spans over forty years. She joined the Firm in 2009 and is based in the New York office.

Paul B. Daitz is a founder of Northern Edge and as Chief Executive Officer is responsible for establishing the Firm as a leading financial advisor to middle market private companies.

Paul brings unique experience to his role, having worked in investment banking for over thirty years across virtually every industry and through all types of market conditions, and having served as the lead advisor on completed transactions in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. He was a Managing Director in the Investment Banking Division and a senior member of the Global Mergers & Acquisitions Group at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he worked for nearly two decades and where he also served as the Chief Operating Officer of the Investment Banking Division in Europe. During his tenure at Goldman Sachs, he advised on several of the largest M&A transactions in history.

Paul subsequently was appointed to be a Senior Managing Director at Macquarie Capital (USA) Inc., a division of the global financial services company The Macquarie Group, where he was involved in both principal investing and advisory activities and was the head of the Telecommunications, Media, Entertainment & Technology Group for North America.

Paul leads the strategic direction for Northern Edge and is directly involved in maintaining relationships with clients and market practitioners and developing the Firm’s roster of talented bankers. In addition, he is passionate about utilizing his extensive experience selling private companies – positioning businesses with prospective purchasers, managing processes, structuring transactions, negotiating terms, and, most importantly, handling unforeseen challenges – to achieve the financial and personal objectives of the Firm’s clients.

As a Senior Account Manager, Lisa Dunlap plays an instrumental role in managing client relationships for Northern Edge, where she is a main initial point of contact for private business owners in the early stages of evaluating their alternatives.

Leveraging her extensive client support experience and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs, Lisa expertly guides business owners through the various educational resources offered by Northern Edge and provides them with insights regarding the transaction process and the Firm’s capabilities.

With a professional career of over thirty years, Lisa is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs, founders and families plan their first steps towards a successful business exit.

Based in Ohio, she has been with Northern Edge since 2017.

As an Account Manager based in the Fort Worth, Texas office of Northern Edge, Landon Fisher is a valuable member of the Business Development team.

Landon is one of the main initial points of contact for private business owners in the early stages of evaluating their alternatives.

His primary responsibility is to engage with potential clients, forming relationships and effectively presenting our services and skills.

Originally joining Northern Edge as a Buyer Engagement Specialist, Landon has gained a thorough understanding of Northern Edge’s process and is able to answer a spectrum of potential concerns business owners may have.

In his role, Landon uses his keen communication skills, knowledge of a broad range of businesses and industries and thorough research abilities to help evaluate our potential client’s needs and future business objectives.

A graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Management, Landon joined Northern Edge in 2019.

Based in Ohio, Mandy has been with Northern Edge since 2018, first as an Account Manager, and more recently as a Buyer Engagement Specialist.

In her current role, Mandy leverages her past training as an Account Manager as well as over eighteen years of sales and consulting experience, to initiate and establish relationships with designated prospective purchasers during the marketing phase of the transaction process.

Throughout her interactions with prospective purchasers, Mandy employs her relationship building skills and knowledge of middle market private businesses to highlight the unique attributes of our clients’ companies in order to generate acquisition interest, ultimately contributing to securing an optimal outcome for our clients.

With over twenty years of professional experience, including the last decade in investment banking, Jessica serves as a Senior Project Manager for many of the Firm’s most important transactions and has been involved in an extensive list of successful completions. In her role, she is the daily point of contact for clients and prospective purchasers and, among her extensive and varied responsibilities, she monitors essential project metrics, smoothly managing the transaction process and coordinating client communications and the flow of information with key transaction participants.

Jessica has built strong relationships with M&A industry associations and makes key contributions to maintaining Northern Edge’s position and reputation in the marketplace.

Jessica joined Northern Edge in 2013 and, in addition to her key Senior Project Manager position, was appointed to serve as the Office Manager of the Firm’s Fort Worth, Texas office in April 2021.

As Chief Operating Officer, Phil Gavey supervises the transaction execution activities of Northern Edge, among other leadership responsibilities at the Firm. In this capacity, Phil utilizes his strong background in accounting and finance and extensive transactional experience to provide valuable insights and resolve complex issues on behalf of our clients. In addition, Phil has expertise and understanding of a wide range of industries, including consumer finance, information technology, healthcare, professional services and manufacturing.

Phil formerly worked at General Electric Capital Corporation for over twenty years, most recently serving as Managing Director in the M&A group, where he was responsible for leading multiple acquisitions, divestitures and partnerships for the Consumer Finance business.

Also, he has broad international experience, acting as the lead advisor on transactions in Europe, Asia and the Americas, including advising on the purchase and sale of the third largest bank in Central America.

Phil joined Northern Edge in 2017 and is based in the New York office. While his prior experience was focused on larger enterprises, Phil is dedicated to assisting middle market, privately owned businesses navigate every stage of the sale process and he works closely with clients to clearly understand transaction structures, legal processes, and the steps required to successfully completing a transaction.

Bob Goldsmith founded the predecessor to Northern Edge in 2006, developing its unique advisory model, building a talented team of experienced professionals and establishing offices across North America.

Bob brings thirty years of business ownership and management experience to his role and focuses on the development of new client relationships, advising private business owners in their evaluation of alternatives, engagement with the broader business community and nurturing the core values and culture of Northern Edge.

Previously, Bob enjoyed a successful international business career as an entrepreneur and senior executive across a range of industries and geographies. He spent nine years as a Country Manager and then senior staff member in the Corporate Strategy & Investment Unit at Continental Grain Company, a global investor, owner and operator of food, agribusiness, bioscience and commodity companies, in their Geneva, Bucharest and New York City offices.

He subsequently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Elie Tahari, a luxury apparel manufacturing company with annual revenues over $300 million, where he managed operations and played a central role in developing and executing the company’s brand strategy shift including its significant expansion into retail. Bob began his career at the Council on Foreign Relations focusing on international intelligence, trade, and security issues for the now former Chairman of the National Intelligence Council.

In addition to his leadership responsibilities at Northern Edge, Bob dedicates significant time towards sharing his comprehensive insights obtained over the past fifteen years on the dynamics in the M&A market for private companies and advising entrepreneurs and families on their strategic and financial options. He is a sought-after speaker on the important issues facing private business owners, and he is a published author and contributor to major publications.

Glenn Harrison is a Senior Vice President at Northern Edge and a seasoned investment banker with extensive corporate finance and M&A expertise.

His experience is exceptionally broad, having successfully completed both sell and buy-side transactions and having advised both private and public companies. In addition, Glenn has significant knowledge across multiple industries, including consumer products, energy services, healthcare, industrials, and media.

He joined Northern Edge in 2018 from FBR & Co. Capital Markets (now part of B. Riley Financial), where he served as Managing Director, leading the firm’s Oilfield Services practice and successfully raising over $1.0 billion in institutional capital for private companies.

Prior to FBR, Glenn served as Vice President in the Mergers and Acquisitions Group at RBC Capital Markets, where he supervised all aspects of the firm’s M&A advisory activities, including financial modeling, valuation, structuring, due diligence and negotiations.

At Northern Edge, Glenn serves as the senior deal leader on many of the Firm’s most important transactions, where he is a relentless advocate for our clients and a highly engaged professional. He is particularly adept at communicating the investment highlights of the Firm’s clients, especially in connection with complex business models, for potential buyers.

Jerry Ji is an Investment Banking Analyst at Northern Edge and serves in a variety of roles on the transaction execution team, working tirelessly to provide the best possible outcome for our clients.

He uses his in-depth experience with quantitative analysis and financial modeling to assist our clients in the thoughtful presentation of their historical and projected financial statements.

In addition, Jerry is highly involved in the description and presentation of the investment highlights of our clients’ businesses, prepares marketing and presentation materials, conducts prospective purchaser and market analysis, and assists with the due diligence process.

Graduating from Wilfrid Laurier University with a Bachelor of Business Administration,  majoring in Finance, Jerry is currently based in the Toronto office of Northern Edge.

An accomplished deal leader with extensive experience in international and cross-border markets, Usmaan Kitchlew brings over twenty years of investment banking success to Northern Edge as a Senior Vice President and head of the Canadian business.

He has worked extensively in the United States, Canada and internationally, where he has served as lead advisor on a broad range of M&A transactions involving both public and private companies and ranging in value from tens of millions to billions. Usmaan most recently served as Vice President at GulfMerger, a middle-market advisory firm based in the Middle East, where he focused on both sell and buy-side transactions, including the sale of the entertainment and hospitality group of Al Hokair Group to a leading regional private equity firm. Previously, he served as Vice President focused on origination and transaction execution within the Technology Software & Services group at Thomas Weisel Partners Group, Inc., (now part of Stifel Financial Corp.), where he worked on numerous initial public offerings (IPOs), public and private financings and M&A transactions, including the sale of XMPie to Xerox and the sale of Aldata Solutions to Symphony Technology Group.

Earlier in his career, he served in various investment banking roles at CIBC World Markets Inc., most recently as part of a dedicated M&A group where he worked on a number of transactions across a range of industries including Power & Utilities, Telecom Services, Mining, and Industrials, most notably played a key role on the sale of Bell Canada’s Yellow Pages unit to KKR and the sale of Corel Software to Vector Capital.

Usmaan joined Northern Edge in 2016 to pursue his passion for advising family-owned and private companies and to lead the expansion of the Firm’s activities in Canada. Since then, he has completed a number of transactions, including, the acquisition of Recovery Point Systems, Inc. by Abry Partners, which was shortlisted as finalist in the Information Technology Deal of the Year (over $100 million) category at the 2021 M&A Awards. He continues to dedicate his talents and resources to assist business owners to navigate their strategic and financial alternatives and to develop the exceptional Canadian team.

Blaine Lund serves as an Investment Banking Analyst at Northern Edge, and he has established himself as an invaluable member of the transaction execution team.

Blaine has an exemplary attention to detail and a strong background in finance, which he deploys in the preparation of complex financial models and analyses, as well as comprehensive research of prospective purchasers and various industries. Blaine has also been recognized for preparing outstanding marketing materials for the Firm’s clients and efficiently facilitating prospective purchaser due diligence.

Prior to joining Northern Edge, Blaine worked as an analyst at a boutique investment bank in New Orleans, where he supported various facets of the sell-side transaction process.

Blaine graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and works in our Fort Worth office.

Kaveh Mama works as Marketing Manager for Northern Edge and is based in the New York office. She brings to her role over twelve years of experience in branding and content production across multiple marketing channels.

Kaveh leads Northern Edge’s extensive and informative line-up of webinar and special event programs, as well the Firm’s community for former clients, “The Northern Edge Alumni”.

She has a thorough understanding of the M&A landscape, developed over many years working in the industry, including most recently on The Deal’s integrated marketing team. In addition, Kaveh has broad event production experience, having executed projects with a range of blue-chip clients such as Ernst & Young Global Limited, Latham & Watkins, LLP, Starbucks Corporation, and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Aaron Neuman plays a critical role as Senior IT and Compliance Manager maintaining and enhancing the technology and communications infrastructure of Northern Edge, including its hardware, software and network, to ensure the Firm operates a secure and reliable system to support its business and its clients. Among his many responsibilities, he oversees the firm’s technology initiatives, vendor relationships, disaster mitigation, and recovery protocols.

In addition, Aaron manages the implementation of policies for data privacy and other security protocols, ensuring compliance to FINRA and SIPC standards.

Aaron also works on selected transaction execution teams, where he brings his extensive knowledge of technology and middle market businesses to undertake research of prospective purchasers. Aaron joined the New York office of Northern Edge in 2007 and is one of the Firm’s longest serving employees.

Ari Paget has been part of the Northern Edge team since 2009 and serves as a Senior Vice President, leading the Firm’s activities in advising private business owners and prospective clients on the requirements and challenges involved in selling a private company.

Drawing on his extensive experience working in the M&A markets and as an entrepreneur, he leads seminars and other presentations across the United States and Canada, counseling private business owners on the selling process and the considerations in structuring a successful exit strategy.

In particular, Ari offers invaluable expertise in navigating the M&A market for private companies, having established and developed multiple companies from “the ground up” and completing the sale process directly with two family companies in the food service industry.

Beth Rieger joined Northern Edge in 2017 and serves as the Senior Operations Analyst based in Ohio, working in tandem with senior management and the Firm’s marketing team.

With a unique combination of thirty years of experience in sales and marketing and training as an engineer, Beth plays a central role in managing the Firm’s client relationship information, with a focus on maintaining the highest standards of confidentiality.

With superior quantitative skills, Beth performs complex data analyses to draw valuable and timely insights, which guide the Firm’s highly tailored outreach to private business owners.

With a strong quantitative background, including specialized experience in portfolio analysis and forecasting, David Ryan is an Investment Banking Analyst based in the Toronto office of Northern Edge.

He works closely with a range of important clients in their pursuit of a sale transaction.  In this regard, David provides broad and important contributions to all stages of the transaction process.

His many responsibilities include preparing and reviewing sophisticated financial models, analyzing key performance metrics, preparing best-in-class marketing materials, researching and contacting prospective purchasers, and overseeing the due diligence process.

David graduated from Wilfrid Laurier University with a Bachelor of Business Administration, majoring in Finance.

Emily Williams joined Northern Edge in 2017 and serves as a Project Manager for many of the Firm’s transaction engagements. She brings to her role nearly fifteen years of experience in project management and administration, together with an acute attention to detail and instinctive focus on client service.

As a Project Manager, Emily ensures seamless communications with clients and prospective purchasers, oversees key project-related performance indicators, and tracks and monitors adherence to the timetable for important project deliverables. In her many years at Northern Edge, Emily has been an important contributor to the successful completion of dozens of transactions across a range of industries and geographies. Emily was appointed as alderwoman in her local Missouri district.

A veteran deal leader with a passion for advising private business owners, Andy Wood has twenty-five years of experience that he brings to his role as a Senior Vice President at Northern Edge.

Andy started his investment banking career in the United Kingdom, where he developed expertise in the particular issues facing owners of private businesses and in executing cross-border transactions. Obtained over his nearly three decades working with hundreds of companies in the pursuit of sale transactions, Andy has a unique understanding of middle market M&A and has extensive knowledge across multiple industries and geographies.

Andy moved to the United States in 2009 to lead Northern Edge’s Texas office. Since that time, he has advised on the completion of over thirty-five private company sale transactions across a variety of industries.

Among many transaction highlights, in 2019 Andy advised on the successful sale of Garvin Industries, Inc. to Southwire Company, LLC, which was awarded M&A Deal of the Year ($25 – 50 million) by the M&A Advisor. And in 2021 he was the lead banker on the sale of Blue Chip Group, Inc. to 3 Rivers Capital, LLC, which was recognized as M&A Deal of the Year ($50- 100 million) by the M&A Advisor.

He is a specialist in sell-side M&A who understands that middle-market transactions have critical personal and financial implications for private business owners, which drives his exceptional persistence in delivering an attractive outcome for his clients.

With over five years of experience specifically focused on advising middle market private companies, Derek Yamamoto is a Senior Associate in the Toronto office of Northern Edge. Derek is a consummate professional with an exceptional attention to detail, which he employs in facilitating all aspects of the transaction process and guiding private business owners through every stage of the M&A process.

Derek is highly involved in many of the most critical elements of our sell-side processes, including undertaking a detailed review of a client’s financial information, translating a client’s business model into compelling investment highlights, crafting tailored confidential information memoranda and marketing materials, researching potential purchasers, managing due diligence processes, and negotiating financial terms. His quantitative acumen and broad experience have proved to be an invaluable asset to Northern Edge in completing several recent transactions with aggregate value of $300+ million across a range of industries, including healthcare, transportation, fulfillment, distribution, consulting, IT services, and health services.