Scott Bushkie

Scott M. Bushkie is the Managing Partner and Founder of Cornerstone Business Services, Inc., a national lower middle market mergers & acquisitions firm he founded in 2001 (the firm marked its 25th year advising business owners in 2026). Based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, he has more than 25 years of M&A experience and has personally executed hundreds of transactions, both domestically and internationally, selling companies to strategic buyers, private equity firms, and international acquirers. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater and holds FINRA Series 62 and 63 securities licenses.

Bushkie is a widely recognized authority on lower middle market M&A. He is the best-selling author of *Finish Strong: Sell Your Business on Your Terms*, and his commentary has been sought by major outlets including The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Associated Press, CBS, and iHeart Media. He holds an unusually deep stack of industry credentials — Certified Business Intermediary (CBI), Mergers & Acquisitions Master Intermediary (M&AMI), and Certified M&A Professional (CM&AP) — and has been named a Fellow of both the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA) and M&A Source. In 2025 he was inducted into the IBBA Hall of Fame; in each of these lifetime designations he was reportedly the youngest person in the world to receive them.

Beyond his own practice, Bushkie has been a builder of the M&A advisory profession. He founded the Wisconsin chapter of the Midwest Business Brokers & Intermediaries (MBBI) and served as its chair, was a past chair of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA), and was a founding president of a Wisconsin Entrepreneurs' Organization chapter. In 2018 he launched the Cornerstone International Alliance (CIA), a network that gives member firms broader buyer reach and shared best practices; by 2025 the alliance had grown to roughly 30 partner firms worldwide and facilitated the transition of approximately $2 billion in enterprise value. He lives in Green Bay with his wife, Cassie, and their three children.

• Role is intermediary, not investor: Cornerstone represents owners *selling* their businesses (and buyers acquiring them); Bushkie does not deploy his own capital into seed or early-stage startups.
• Market segment: The lower middle market — established, profitable operating companies, typically well below the size served by large investment banks but requiring institutional-quality deal process.
• Deal types: Sell-side engagements, buy-side/acquisition search, and business valuations, plus exit planning for owners.
• Value proposition ("the Cornerstone Process"): Bringing investment-banking-level rigor, competitive buyer processes, and confidentiality to owner-operated companies to maximize sale value.
• In his own words: *"You only get one chance to sell your business. I take great pride in using my 20+ years of M&A experience to create positive life-changing events..."* — and the ethos of his book, *Finish Strong: Sell Your Business on Your Terms.*