Early-stage searcher: Can anyone help with Professional Services? (Australia)

Hi everyone, I’m an early-stage searcher based in Sydney, Australia, currently in the learning and calibration phase before launching a formal search. My background is in finance / risk management and I’m particularly interested in small, transferable B2B professional services businesses (e.g. compliance, corporate services, governance-adjacent), where continuity, system and succession matter more than rapid growth. I’m spending the next few months: • understanding transferability risks • learning how owner-dependence is typically managed • speaking with brokers and practitioners • studying what makes first-time acquisitions succeed or fail in this space For those who have acquired or evaluated professional services businesses as a first deal: • what surprised you most? • what did you underestimate early on? • what would you do differently in hindsight? Appreciate any perspectives, I’m here to learn quietly and properly. Thanks in advance. Vanessa / Tien