Free Resource
PE Technology Diligence Checklist
A one-page checklist I use during pre-close technology diligence and the first 100 days after. Built from actually running the post-close execution, not from reading diligence reports.
Five sections: stack inventory, team capability read, integration and data debt markers, first 100 days decisions, and investment thesis alignment scorecard. Letter-sized. Printable.
No email required. Direct download.
What is covered
- 01Stack inventorySix categories across ERP, commerce, data and BI, infrastructure, security and identity, and vendor concentration. Two columns per row: what is in place, what is unknown.
- 02Team capability readFive operational signals that the technology organization can execute the thesis, and three disqualifiers that mean it cannot. Not a resume review.
- 03Integration and data debt markersFive things to look for in the first call with the CTO or head of engineering. Focused on master data, systems of record, and the shape of the last major migration.
- 04First 100 days decision templateFive decisions a PE-backed CEO or CTO will face in the first 100 days, with the default answer that is usually right and the specific condition under which the default is wrong.
- 05Investment thesis alignment scorecardSix rows mapping common PE theses (geographic expansion, roll-up, margin improvement, digital channel, pricing power, operational turnaround) against the capabilities the technology stack must support. Scored in place / partial / absent.
Why this checklist exists
Most PE technology diligence reports catalog the stack, produce a red-yellow-green heatmap, and sit in a folder after close. The document the operating partner actually needs is smaller, sharper, and written against the investment thesis.
This checklist is built from experience running the kind of post-close work the diligence report was supposed to be preparing for. I led the ERP conversion at Ashley Global Retail after the Dufresne Group acquisition (130 US and 60 Canada stores retained through absorption into a 265-store enterprise). The questions that surfaced during integration are the same ones a sharper pre-close read would have surfaced before the papers were signed.
Nothing on the checklist produces a clean slide for an IC memo. That is the point. The checklist is for the person who has to actually execute the thesis after the deal closes, not the person who has to defend it before it does.
Who this is for
- ·PE operating partners running pre-close technology reads
- ·Deal teams scoping portfolio technology risk
- ·Incoming PE-backed CEOs scoping the first-100-day technology agenda
- ·CIOs and VPs of Technology running portfolio-level reviews
Not a replacement for formal IT diligence from a Big Four. A companion, and often a sharper one on the technology organization read specifically.
Frequently asked questions
How is this different from a generic IT diligence checklist?
Generic IT diligence checklists are written by people who have only sat on the diligence side of the table. This one is written by someone who has actually run the post-close execution, including a full ERP conversion after an acquisition. The questions on the checklist are the ones that surface real risk against the investment thesis, not the ones that produce a clean-looking deliverable.
When in the deal cycle should I run this?
Three useful moments. Pre-LOI for thesis validation, where the checklist surfaces whether the technology organization can plausibly deliver the thesis at all. Pre-close for final confirmation, where the checklist becomes a red-team against the CIM. Day 1 for execution planning, where the checklist becomes the first-100-day decision inventory.
Can I use this for a platform investment or only for add-ons?
Both, with one adjustment. Platform investments need a sharper read on the section 5 thesis alignment scorecard, because the platform's technology will define the integration shape of every future add-on. Add-ons care more about sections 1 and 3 (stack inventory and integration debt) since the thesis is usually cost-out or channel expansion, and the question is whether the stack will survive absorption.
Related reading
Private Equity Technology Advisory
How I work with PE firms and operating partners. Diligence, post-close value creation, and portfolio-level quarterly reviews.
ReadGuidePE Technology Diligence Guide
The long-form companion to this checklist. How to use each section, when it applies, and what separates a useful diligence from a slide-reading exercise.
ReadGuideERP Selection for Multi-Site Retail
Selection framework for the most common value-creation program in PE-backed retail portfolios.
Read