Dresner Partners Advised Group Management Services In Its Acquisition Of Synergy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CHICAGO – February 24, 2021 – Dresner Partners, a leading FINRA-registered, middle-market investment bank and Mergers Alliance member firm, is pleased to announce that it advised Group Management Services, Inc. (GMS), a growing national Professional Employer Organization (PEO) headquartered in Richfield, Ohio, in its acquisition of Synergy, a leading provider of PEO and Human Capital Management services.  Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.    

GMS is a PEO and a Benefits Administrator with eight offices in the United States.  GMS serves companies of all sizes nationwide.  The company was founded by Mike Kahoe in 1996 and has helped thousands of organizations take control of their HR functions.

Chicago-based Synergy was founded by Jon Skulborstad and has been in the human resources management business since 1989.   Synergy, with the significant contributions of Jon’s brother Dennis Skulberstad, has been delivering high quality PEO services to the Chicago and Midwest SMB market for over 30 years.

"Last fall we engaged Cliff Sladnick of Dresner Partners to assist with GMS’s strategy to grow nationally.  In Synergy, the Dresner team identified the ideal PEO for GMS to enter the Chicago market,” said Mike Kahoe, President and Founder of GMS.  "Both organizations are excited to continue upon the success and growth each has experienced over the past 30 years, while providing the same level of exceptional service to all our clients.”

Jon Skulborstad, Founder of Synergy, said, "I have worked with Cliff Sladnick for over 10 years and appreciate his perseverance in finding the right partner for Synergy in GMS.  I look forward to seeing what both companies can accomplish together.”  

"The GMS and Synergy teams did an outstanding job getting this transaction closed in a relatively short period of time.  I am very happy to have found GMS to be the right home for Synergy and its people,” said Clifford M. Sladnick, Managing Director, Dresner Partners.  

Steven M. Dresner, President of Dresner Partners, said, "We brought Cliff Sladnick back to Dresner last fall to continue his success in the PEO and payroll spaces.  This transaction is the first of many we expect Cliff to close at Dresner and the first of many Dresner PEO and payroll deals.” 

More information on Group Management Services, Inc. can be found at www.groupmgmt.com.  More information on Synergy can be found at www.mysynergy.com.       

About Dresner Partners

Dresner Partners is a FINRA-registered, middle-market investment bank headquartered in Chicago, with offices in New York City, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Palo Alto, Calif.  For nearly 30 years, Dresner Partners has provided financial advisory services to middle-market companies throughout the world including merger and acquisitions advisory, institutional private placements of debt and equity, financial restructuring, valuations and strategic consulting services.  Dresner Partners has extensive international and cross-border transaction experience and is a member of Mergers Alliance, one of the world’s leading global mergers and acquisitions partnerships focused on the middle market.  An affiliated company, Dresner Corporate Services, is a strategic communications firm specializing in public relations, investor relations and corporate development. More information is available at www.dresnerpartners.com. You can also follow Dresner Partners on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DresnerPartners. 

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For Media Inquiries

David Gutierrez, Head of PR, IR and Corporate Development, (312)780-7204, dgutierrez@dresnerco.com    

For Transaction Related Inquiries

Steven M. Dresner, President, (312)780-7206, sdresner@dresnerco.com
Clifford M. Sladnick, Managing Director, (847) 840-3460, csladnick@dresnerco.com