Jay Jung: Redefining M&A Advisory With A Personal Touch

In the ever-evolving landscape of M&A Advisory, some individuals stand out as true innovators, and Jay Jung is undeniably one of them. As Principal & Founder of Embarc Advisors, Jay has established himself as a visionary leader, leveraging his expertise in Mergers and acquisitions (M&A), Corporate Development, Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A), and Financial Modeling to drive growth success. His remarkable career trajectory has solidified his position as a prominent figure in the US M&A Advisory landscape and beyond.

Building Embarc Advisors: The “Jerry Maguire” Philosophy

Inspired by the Jerry Maguire philosophy of “fewer clients, more personal attention,” Embarc Advisors centers its mission on integrity over profit, delivering Wall Street-level execution tailored for Main Street businesses. With a deep personal understanding of the challenges entrepreneurs face, Jay focuses on delivering outcomes rather than churning out deals. Embarc Advisors’ innovative model prioritizes hourly billing and full accountability. And no minimum or tail periods, allowing them to be true advisors, not just dealmakers. By doing so, they provide personalized attention to each client, ensuring every hour spent counts and engagement is a big success.

From Wall Street to Entrepreneurship: The Defining Moment

Jay’s path to founding Embarc Advisors began with a moment of self-discovery. After the failure of his first startup, he took the conventional route—landing roles at McKinsey and Goldman Sachs. However, working with a gritty, visionary CEO of a $20M revenue startup left a lasting impression. A conversation with his wife sparked a realization: he wanted to build something that brought him joy and helped others. This equipped him to create Embrace Advisors, driven by a desire to provide valuable advice and make an impact.

Client Interaction and Leadership Lessons 

Jay’s leadership perspective was profoundly shaped by working with Meg Whitman during her tenure as CEO of HP Enterprise. Her decisive leadership and strategic vision, particularly during the company’s major restructuring, left a lasting impression. Jay learned that bold leadership is not about having perfect information but about making informed decisions, owning the risk, and adapting quickly.

Jay’s Values: A Quick Glance

For Jay, perseverance and tenacity are core values that have shaped his journey. He believes that grit is essential in navigating the inevitable challenges and uncertainties of business, whether advising on large mergers or building a startup. At Embarc Advisors, “Never give up” is a foundational value that enables the team to push through obstacles, find creative solutions, and deliver exceptional results.

The Secret behind Retaining Top Finance Talent 

Jay follows a unique approach to attracting and retaining talent. Recognizing that traditional finance careers often force a choice between high-pressure, long-hour roles or slower-paced positions with less upside, Embarc Advisors offers a third path. This approach combines high performers’ expectations with a human-centered focus on well-being, balance, and personal longevity. By prioritizing intellectual growth, professional development, and emotional health, Embarc Advisors creates an environment where ambitious individuals can thrive without burning out, building sustainable careers rooted in values, purpose, and continuous learning.

Building a High-Performance Team with Heart

Jay balances high-performance expectations with a fulfilling work culture by fostering a team dynamic like an elite sports team. Embarc Advisors’ values—“Kaizen“ (continuous improvement), “Striving for excellence,” and “Never give up”—guide the team’s approach, promoting camaraderie, trust, and shared purpose. By clearly communicating these values and expectations during the hiring process, Embarc Advisors attracts like-minded individuals who are driven to succeed and willing to put in the effort to achieve excellence.

From Solo Hero to Collaborative Leader: The Hardest Leadership Lessons

Jay’s hardest leadership lessons were recognizing the need for a complementary partner to balance his visionary tendencies. This required real self-awareness and humility to admit his limitations. He shifted from believing success meant doing everything alone to understanding that true success comes from collaboration and building a team that fills the gaps.

Nurturing Future Leaders

Jay has shifted from a “sink or swim” approach to monitoring, recognizing the need for structured talent development to deliver world-class advisory services. Embarc Advisors offers monthly learning sessions, webinars, and lunch-and-learns, with Jay personally teaching key topics. He is working to develop new skills, prioritizing Fortune 500-level mentorship for the team and making it a key focus for the firm’s growth.

Aligning Team Success with Client Impact and Personal Growth

At Embarc Advisors, Jay keeps his team aligned by anchoring everything in the company’s values, prioritizing client impact while fostering continuous learning and improvement, and recognizing that everyone grows at a different pace. This approach has allowed team members to focus on delivering exceptional client outcomes while developing their skills without burning out.

Fostering Accountability and Inspiration

Embarc Advisors implemented the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) to foster discipline, alignment, and execution. EOS brought structure and accountability through tools like To-Dos, Scorecards, and Quarterly Rocks, creating a common language and daily practice of accountability. After nearly a year, EOS has made a significant impact, and Jay is excited to see its continued benefits in driving the team’s growth and success.

Aligning with Clients Ready for Impactful Change

Embarc Advisors’ north star for strategic alignment is working with clients who are ready to embrace change and open to real advice. They prioritize projects where leaders are willing to invest time, effort, and capital to make meaningful improvements, focusing on delivering substantial ROI. By acting as a value accelerator, Embarc Advisors helps clients achieve significant outcomes, such as uncovering EBITDA and increasing enterprise value.

Jay’s Advice to Founder: Building a Culture in a Remote World

Jay advises founders to start with a blank slate instead of trying to retrofit an in-person culture. At Embarc Advisors, he invests heavily in quarterly offsites to build trust and relationships and uses digital tools to facilitate seamless remote learning and collaboration, such as screen sharing and asynchronous video recordings.

The Key to Sustainable Growth

When evaluating early-stage companies seeking growth capital, Jay prioritizes unit economics, focusing on customer acquisition costs, revenue per customer, and serving costs. Sustainable unit economics are crucial for scalability, and investors need to see a clear path to profitability. Companies that prioritize top-line growth without ensuring profitability on each customer can face significant risk, making it essential to fix unique economics before scaling.

Emerging Opportunities in a Shifting Landscape

Jay highlighted emerging opportunities driven by geopolitical shifts, evolving policies, and economic uncertainty. Notably, U.S.-based manufacturing is experiencing a resurgence, benefiting clients who prioritized quality and resilience despite initial cost disadvantage. The battery sector is also seeing innovation in non-lithium technologies, attracting investor interest. Additionally, domestic service businesses like IT services continue to attract strategic and private equity buyers, underscoring the potential for growth in specific sectors amidst broader market shifts.

Embarc Advisors’ Long-Term Vision: Expansion Plans 

The company’s long-term vision includes a 10-year target of $100 million in revenue. Embarc Advisors has expanded from M&A advisory to Quality of Earnings and Strategic CFO practice, addressing the needs of middle-market business owners. First, he sees a significant opportunity in this undervalued segment and plans to continue growing the team, expanding into new verticals, and evolving its offering while maintaining its commitment to no success based fees, prioritizing client needs above all.