[kjellsbells]

First of all, its excellent news that the FAANG is willing to talk about this. That deserves congratulations alone.

That said, if this is the first conversation, be cautious. After all, what stops them from using the conversation to identify who your star people are, and simply poaching them after your company winds up?

Assuming that you are further along, you need to identify which big org division of the FAANG you fit in and agitate for that, eg get time with the CVP or the Level X person and make your case. They are typically measured on how much contribution margin acquisitions bring, so make sure you have numbers, and if you dont have great numbers, have a very compelling story. Maybe you unlock a segment for one of their products by being "better together" for example.

You should also be prepared to answer deep questions onnthings like security, not because they suspect you of having a virus or anything so 1990s like that, but because if you want your product to survive and evolve into a first party offering from the acquirer, you will be expected to go through the compliance that all their other services go thru. Trivial examples: is there a software BOM for every package in your stack. Is your code control up to par with their standards. Etc.

[b20000]

what does CVP stand for? same thing as corporate development?

[kjellsbells]

My apologies. Corporate Vice President. Typically senior-ish execs, but not board level and not quite in the inner sanctum of the senior leadership team of direct reports to the CEO.

[MagnitudeFC]

excellent advice, thank you!