The Closing Call
Every deal has a defining moment – the closing call. Hosted by Shane Seelig and Zach Haarer of Kaizen Equity, this podcast takes you inside the stories of entrepreneurs who built and sold their companies. Hear firsthand what it takes to grow a business, navigate the sale process, and reach the finish line of an acquisition. Blending real-world deal insights with personal founder journeys, The Closing Call offers a rare look at the highs, lows, and lessons behind successful exits.
The Closing Call
Behind HubSync’s More Than $100M Growth Round with Thoma Bravo to Automate Tax & Accounting Workflows
HubSync founder and CEO John McGowan joins The Closing Call to share how he transformed his Big Four experience into a leading SaaS platform that modernizes tax and audit workflows for accounting firms. McGowan discusses building HubSync from scratch, bootstrapping through consulting, raising $100M from Thoma Bravo, and the lessons learned while running one of the tightest growth processes in M&A.
Follow John McGowan & HubSync
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/jqmcgowan/
HubSync – https://hubsync.com/
Key Lessons & Insights
• How a Big Four CIO bootstrapped HubSync into a market leader
• Why mid-tier CPA firms (Top 5–200) are adopting unified platforms
• The importance of hiring a banker and running a formal process
• How to evaluate institutional investors beyond valuation
• Lessons from managing a high-velocity Series B process with 23 term sheets
• Building investor relationships before a capital raise
• How Thoma Bravo scaled HubSync post-investment through acquisition and AI integration
• Why founders should prioritize partnership fit over check size
• Building a product-led culture that turns clients into advocates
• The future of AI, automation, and e-sign capabilities in tax tech
Timestamps
[00:00] Episode Introduction
[01:30] Introduction: John McGowan and the HubSync story
[04:40] Leaving Deloitte to bootstrap HubSync and validate the mid-market opportunity
[06:23] Breaking through with Top 25 firms and market-leading retention
[07:42] Preparing for growth and the decision to raise capital
[08:41] Dating investors and learning early valuation lessons
[12:19] Deciding to hire a banker and structuring the Series B process
[15:25] Managing 23 term sheets and multiple investor tranches
[17:37] Handling diligence across tech, finance, and operations
[20:04] Learning from investor feedback on scaling strategy
[21:14] Post-transaction roadmap: acquisitions, AI, and payments integration
[25:05] Building a partner-led client culture inside HubSync
[27:41] The weekend that closed the Thoma Bravo deal
[30:12] Advice to founders raising institutional capital
