Chris Vanderzyden

Chris Vanderzyden leads the Legacy Partners Worldwide Division of The DAK Group. She is a trusted advisor to clients and peers, an industry trailblazer in exit planning, and a mentor and leader to a team of top financial and M&A professionals.

Chris created the Master Exit Plan® process – a comprehensive tool that helps privately held, middle-market business owners create and execute successful exit strategies, resulting in the harvesting and preservation of their wealth for future generations

Chris brings extensive expertise in Mergers and Acquisitions. Starting her career as a CPA for Coopers & Lybrand, the company that later became PricewaterhouseCoopers following a merger, Chris gained valuable expertise in the financial sector. She then broadened her financial experience as an asset manager with Northwest Asset Management in Los Angeles. She subsequently served as an M&A Advisor at a global investment bank.

Following her positions in the corporate world, Chris became an entrepreneur and has successfully built and sold multiple businesses. She has over twenty years of experience consulting for privately held businesses as they grow and ultimately execute their exit plans, while navigating complex deals on their behalf.

Chris speaks internationally on exit planning and mergers and acquisitions, is an expert contributor for media outlets, and a lecturer for Harvard University’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation class. She is also the bestselling author of 7 Steps to Entrepreneurial Victory.

Chris graduated from the State University of New York College at Oswego with a B.S. in Accounting/ Economics. She is also a Certified Value Growth Advisor, and Certified Public Accountant (inactive).