What The Sleeter Group does

The Sleeter Group, founded in 1994 and headquartered in Pleasanton, California, is a privately held advisory and angel investment firm operating with 1-10 employees. Originally built as an international network of accounting software consultants and the producer of SleeterCon (an annual accounting professionals conference), the company was sold by founder Doug Sleeter in 2015. Following the divestiture, the firm has operated as a personal advisory practice focused on executive coaching, M&A consulting, strategic advisory, software marketing strategy, software development consulting, and blockchain/cryptocurrency consulting. Revenue is generated entirely through professional services fees (quote-based, not publicly disclosed) plus unrealized and realized returns on a portfolio of 15+ angel investments in accounting, fintech, payroll/HR, inventory, and blockchain-software companies.

The firm serves software developers, accounting firms, educational organizations, and small businesses primarily in the small-business accounting technology vertical, with secondary activity in Brazil (ContaAzul) and global markets. Its differentiation rests almost entirely on Doug Sleeter's personal reputation — 30+ years in the profession, former Apple Computer Evangelist, CPA Practice Advisor Hall of Fame inductee (2017), and eight-time Accounting Today's Top 100 Most Influential Person (2008-2015) — and on an extensive international network in the accounting software marketplace. Underlying technology is not a factor; the offering is human-delivered consulting.

Commercially, the firm runs a sales-led, referral-and-thought-leadership GTM with no published pricing. Distribution is direct engagement with CEOs and company leadership on a global basis, supplemented by inbound from Sleeter's content marketing, publications (15 books, articles in CPA Practice Advisor, SlideShare decks), social presence (@dougsleeter on Twitter), and the network effects of the SleeterCon community. Notable portfolio outcomes include Bill.com's IPO in December 2019 and Armatic's sale to BlueSnap in October 2019.

Name

The Sleeter Group

Legal name

The Sleeter Group

Website

https://sleeter.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Sleeter Group is a privately held advisory and angel investment firm providing executive coaching, M&A consulting, strategic advisory, and blockchain consulting to software companies, accounting firms, and small businesses, anchored by founder Doug Sleeter's personal brand and a 15+ company investment portfolio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting and Strategic Advisory Services

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Marketing Consulting Services (541613), Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Capital Markets Advisory (IPO Readiness, SPAC, ECM/DCM Advisory) (BPAHAOAL)

Keywords

• Management consulting services
• Strategic advisory
• Executive coaching
• Mergers acquisitions consulting
• Blockchain consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Pleasanton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Strategic Advisory Services: Provides executive coaching to CEOs, strategic advisory on product direction, marketing and sales channels, and marketplace understanding. Doug's 30+ years of experience in the accounting profession and software industry informs the advisory services.
2. M&A Consulting: Helps companies weigh tradeoffs of building, attracting venture capital, or pursuing partial or complete sale. Assists with identifying buyers, evaluating opportunities, negotiating deals, and closing transactions.
3. Software Marketing Strategy Consulting: Assists developers in building strategic plans for winning in the accounting software marketplace, including marketing to accounting profession, resellers, VARs, and small businesses.
4. Blockchain/Crypto Currency Consulting: Provides consulting on blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, and smart contracts, helping clients understand and navigate this fundamental shift in information storage, transmission, security, and consumption.
5. Executive Coaching: Provides executive coaching to CEOs looking to improve strategic thinking and planning, serving as a sounding board for ideas.
6. Angel Investment Returns: Generates returns through equity investments in portfolio companies including Bill.com (IPO 2019), Gusto, Botkeeper, and others.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Sleeter Group is a consulting and advisory firm providing six core professional services to software companies, accounting firms, educational organizations, and small businesses: Strategic Advisory, Executive Coaching, M&A Consulting, Accounting Software Marketing Strategy, Blockchain Technology Consulting, and Software Development Consulting. The firm also operates as an angel investor with a portfolio of 15+ software companies.

Product overview

The Sleeter Group is a consulting and advisory services firm (not a software product company) offering six distinct professional services: Strategic Advisory, M&A Consulting, Blockchain/Crypto Currency Consulting, Executive Coaching, Software Design Consulting, and Accounting Software Market Strategy. These services are provided individually or as integrated consulting engagements to software companies, accounting firms, and small businesses in the accounting technology space. Doug Sleeter, the founder, leverages 30+ years of experience as a CPA firm veteran and former Apple Computer Evangelist to provide expertise in accounting and technology innovation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Advisory

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• 500 Global (500 Startups): 500 Global is a global seed-stage venture firm and accelerator with active fintech investing. It parallels Sleeter's angel investment approach in early-stage SaaS and fintech, providing comparable capital and advisory support to similar founder profiles.
• Fenwick & West: Fenwick & West is a tech-focused law firm serving software and fintech startups on M&A, financings, and strategic matters. It is an adjacent ecosystem participant that frequently co-serves the same software founder and angel-investor clients as Sleeter.

Emerging players

• Constellation Research: Constellation Research is an advisory and research firm focused on enterprise technology transformation, with a similar briefing, advisory, and thought-leadership model for software buyers and vendors. Comparable as a thought-leadership-driven advisory firm serving software ecosystems.

Broad incumbents

• Houlihan Lokey: Houlihan Lokey is a global investment bank with active software M&A and technology advisory practices. It competes for the same M&A mandates Sleeter targets, though at vastly broader scale and with global coverage.
• Vista Equity Partners: Vista Equity Partners is a large software-focused private equity firm with deep relationships across the accounting software ecosystem (Acumatica, iPipeline, et al.). It represents the institutional capital and M&A counterpart at scale that Sleeter's advisory serves at the founder/early-stage level.
• Crowe LLP: Crowe is a top-10 accounting and advisory firm with a dedicated technology practice serving software and fintech clients. It operates in the same accounting technology and advisory space as Sleeter but at significantly larger scale and broader scope.

Direct peers

• CPA Practice Advisor: CPA Practice Advisor is a media and advisory publication specifically covering accounting technology - the same niche where Sleeter built his reputation and was inducted into its Hall of Fame (2017). It serves accounting professionals and software vendors evaluating the same ecosystem, making it a directly comparable thought-leadership and advisory counterpart.
• Software Equity Group: Software Equity Group is a boutique advisor and investment bank focused on software M&A and strategic advisory. It directly parallels Sleeter's M&A consulting, software strategy, and exit advisory work for SaaS and vertical software companies.
• Berkery Noyes: Berkery Noyes is a boutique investment bank focused exclusively on software and information services M&A. Like Sleeter, it targets software companies needing M&A advisory, with comparable focus areas in vertical SaaS, fintech, and accounting software.
• TopRight Partners: TopRight Partners is a marketing and strategy consultancy serving B2B SaaS and fintech companies. It is comparable as a boutique advisory firm helping software firms sharpen positioning, channel strategy, and go-to-market - mirroring Sleeter's software marketing strategy service line.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/dougsleeter
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-sleeter-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Sleeter Group