Why GTM due diligence matters now for private equity

Private equity used to make its money by buying well, borrowing and selling at a higher multiple. That formula has weakened. Revenue growth accounted for 71% of the value created in 2024 exits, and buyers now hold companies for around seven years. GTM due diligence exists because of that shift: when the return depends on the sales plan, someone has to test whether the sales team can deliver it. This post collects the numbers behind that argument, each with its source, so you can check them yourself.

Why does GTM due diligence matter now?

GTM due diligence matters now because three things changed at once. Returns depend on revenue growth instead of financial engineering. Holding periods have stretched to around seven years, so the growth plan has to hold for longer. And AI has become a standing question in every investment committee and board meeting. Each one puts the sales engine at the centre of the deal.

Accountants check the numbers and lawyers check the contracts. The engine that is supposed to produce the next seven years of growth often gets a few slides. GTM due diligence checks what those slides leave out: pipeline, forecast, process, people and the data underneath.

What does the data say?

Six figures carry the argument. All come from public 2025 and 2026 research, and every source is linked so you can read the original.

Read together, they say one thing. The plan needs more growth than before, it has to last longer, and the people and tools meant to deliver it are less stable than the model assumes.

Where do private equity returns come from today?

They come mostly from revenue growth. Revenue growth accounted for 71% of the value created in 2024 exits, up from 64% in 2023, according to Moonfare's 2026 outlook. Cheap debt and rising multiples used to do much of that work. With both gone, the company has to sell more, and the deal model assumes it will.

The bar is high. A typical deal now needs average annual EBITDA growth of around 10% to 12%, according to Bain's Global Private Equity Report 2026. That is a sales and marketing target as much as a finance one.

At the same time, the plans are being missed. In Bain's 2026 B2B Growth Agenda survey, 86% of executives expected to hit their 2025 growth goals and 42% fell short, up from 32% the year before. A forecast is a claim until someone tests it, and a sales forecast can be tested in a week.

Why do longer holding periods raise the stakes?

Because a weak sales engine has more years to show. Holding periods at exit are now around seven years, up from five to six between 2010 and 2021. A plan that depends on one strong quarter, one large customer or one star seller will not survive seven years. The diligence question moves from "is this year real?" to "is this repeatable?".

There is also a backlog. Funds hold about 32,000 unsold companies worth USD 3.8 trillion. Every one of them needs a growth story a buyer will believe, backed by pipeline and retention data that hold up when the buyer's own team opens the CRM. The work is the same before a purchase and before a sale.

Leadership turns over faster than the hold. The average chief revenue officer lasts 1.8 years, level with chief marketing officers and well below the 4.3 years of a chief executive, in Pave data on 14,000 executives reported by SaaStr. Over a seven-year hold, expect three or four sales leaders. Each change is a moment to re-check the engine, and to write a 100-day go-to-market plan the new leader can run.

How has AI changed the diligence question?

AI added two questions to every deal: does it threaten what the target sells, and does the target use it well enough to keep up? Around 60% of fund managers report increasing diligence on AI disruption risk, according to EY. Technology fell from about 30% of global private equity deployment by value last year to 12% in the first quarter of 2026.

Inside the companies, use is wide and results are thin. 87% of sales organisations use some form of AI and 54% of sellers say they have used agents, according to the Salesforce State of Sales report for 2026. Yet in the B2B Growth Agenda survey, 90% of executives are experimenting with AI while 60% say their data foundation or their technology is not ready to scale it.

That gap is testable. Score what runs in production, not what was shown in a demo, and check whether the CRM data is clean enough for an agent to act on. We cover the method in the AI exposure question every investment committee asks.

What should investors and CEOs do about it?

Test the sales engine with the same discipline as the accounts. Ask for the CRM data, not the summary. Compare the forecast with what closed over the last four to eight quarters. Talk to people from the chief executive down to the front line. Then tie each finding to price, deal conditions or the first 100 days.

For investors, that is Deal DD for GTM, run inside the exclusivity window. For a chief executive, the same check on your own company is the GTM Health Check. You can also score yourself first with the scorecard.

If your return depends on a growth plan, I am happy to look at it with you. Book 30 minutes with me and bring the go-to-market question that worries you most. You leave with a straight view on where the risk sits and what to test first.

Key takeaways

• GTM due diligence matters now because revenue growth produced 71% of the value in 2024 exits.
• Deals need 10% to 12% EBITDA growth a year, held for around seven years.
• 42% of B2B executives missed their 2025 growth goals, so a forecast is a claim to test.
• The average sales leader lasts 1.8 years. Plan for several over one hold.
• About 60% of fund managers have increased diligence on AI risk. Score what is in production.
• The same check works before a purchase, after it and before a sale.

Frequently asked questions

What is GTM due diligence?

GTM due diligence is an independent check of a company's go-to-market engine: pipeline, forecast, sales process, people, tools and AI use. It uses the company's own CRM data and interviews to test whether the growth plan in the deal model can be delivered.

Why is revenue growth more important for private equity than before?

Because the other sources of return have shrunk. Debt costs more and multiples no longer rise by themselves. Revenue growth accounted for 71% of the value created in 2024 exits, up from 64% in 2023, and a typical deal now needs 10% to 12% EBITDA growth a year.

How long do private equity firms hold companies today?

Around seven years at exit, up from five to six years between 2010 and 2021, according to Bain's Global Private Equity Report 2026. The growth plan therefore has to be repeatable for longer.

When should a company run a go-to-market check?

Before a purchase, in the first 100 days after it, after a missed quarter, when a new sales leader starts and six to eighteen months before a sale or funding round.

How do I start?

Book a 30-minute call with us on the contact page. Bring one go-to-market question. You get a direct answer on which check fits, or whether none does.