My Failed Acquisition Pushed Me To Do More Due Diligence – Kevin Smith

Kevin Smith, CEO of Best of Care, joins host David Knack to pull back the curtain on a splashy but failed acquisition that taught him a brutal lesson about due diligence. Kevin opens up about buying an adult day health program's home care arm, a deal that made perfect sense on paper but fell apart at the seams, resulting in a massive revenue shortfall.

He reflects on the costly mistake of relying too heavily on his relationship-driven "gut" for a process that required forensic analysis, and how the timing—closing the deal the day before his first child was born—added immense personal pressure.

Kevin shares how this "abject failure" became the foundation for his subsequent successful acquisitions and offers hard-won wisdom on hiring, the trap of seeking the "perfect" candidate, and why the industry's obsession with the "10,000 hours per week" milestone is overrated. The discussion offers actionable advice on building a resilient, multi-service company that prioritizes its people.

Lesson Takeaways:

1. Due Diligence Over Gut Feeling: A strategic acquisition requires meticulous, data-driven verification. Relying solely on a good relationship or a "vibe" can lead to catastrophic financial and operational failure.

2. Hire for Potential, Not Perfection: Letting the "perfect" candidate be the enemy of the "good" one leads to hiring paralysis. Often, the candidate with 80% of the skills but great potential outperforms the theoretical perfect fit.

3. Celebrate Milestones, But Keep Momentum: Industry benchmarks like "10,000 hours per week" are arbitrary. While it's good to celebrate wins, a true leader is always focused on the next strategic goal to maintain growth and morale.

4. Build a Culture That Supports Real Life: Fostering a company culture that actively supports employees' lives outside of work is a powerful driver of loyalty and retention.

5. Don't Over-Invest in Low-Impact Marketing: A functional website and basic presence are essential, but over-engineering brochures and web copy is a poor use of energy. Home care is a trust and relationship business; focus your efforts there.

Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction to Kevin Smith and Best of Care's 44-year history

02:45 - The synergy between Medicaid expertise and a private pay senior living model

08:12 - David's "big mistake" question: What went wrong?

08:37 - The story of the failed adult day health home care acquisition

10:15 - The perfect storm: Closing the deal the day before becoming a parent

11:01 - The aftermath: Retaining only 30% of the expected revenue

12:13 - The key lesson: Applying extreme due diligence to future, successful acquisitions

13:47 - Kevin's "gut feel" approach and when it fails

14:27 - Hiring mistakes: Why the 80% candidate often beats the 100% candidate

16:40 - The most overrated thing in home care: The "10,000 hours per week" milestone

19:32 - The next big goal: One million service hours

21:29 - The leadership challenge of always moving to "what's next"

22:41 - The reward of building a coaching tree and developing leaders from within

23:45 - How a millennial leadership team fosters a culture of work-life balance

25:13 - The little mistake: Overthinking your website and marketing materials

27:50 - A recent win: The successful integration of diversified service lines

29:04 - A deep dive into the move management business and its synergy with home care

32:08 - What to plug: Best of Care's holistic suite of services for senior living communities

Quotes:
Kevin Smith: "When you fail in life, that's how you learn. You don't learn when you win, you learn when you fail, and when you fail, fail hard. And we failed really hard on that."

Kevin Smith: "The common denominator... is the lack of treating caregivers as family members of your company. They are the lifeline of your organization to grow."

David Knack: "I have a hypothesis... you strike me as somebody who, gut is a really strong asset for you, that a lot of times you make decisions based on feel and it goes well."

David Knack: "The purpose of a website is, does this business exist or not?... This is a relationship business. This is a trust business. This is a referral business."

Resources:

1. Connect with Kevin Smith on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-smith-04755422/

2. Learn more about Best of Care on their website: https://www.bestofcareinc.com/

3. Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-knack/

4. Powered by Zingage: https://zingage.com

5. Watch Episode on Zingage's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Zingage