Dealmakers Dialogue Chicago

Sean is Global Head of Lincoln’s Industrials Group and leads the firm’s initiatives in this area. With approximately 28 years at Lincoln, he has significant experience advising companies serving the energy transition, power and industrial technology markets.

Sean has an in-depth understanding of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) economics, focusing on market leaders in growth industries and selling high-quality businesses for premium valuations. He has worked on more than 100 transactions for Fortune 500, private equity and leading private company clients and advised niche-engineered product companies on numerous cross-border transactions. As one of Lincoln’s most tenured employees, Sean has been instrumental in the firm’s domestic and international growth initiatives.

Sean has spent his entire career at Lincoln, joining shortly after the firm’s founding as the sixth employee.

Sean earned a Bachelor of Science (with honors) from the College of Commerce and Business Administration at the University of Illinois and St. Andrews University in Scotland.

Stephanie Chambliss Gaffin is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of SLS Capital Advisors, a boutique investment bank specializing in lower middle-market mergers and acquisitions. She brings more than two decades of experience advising business owners and leadership teams on growth, exit strategy, and capital planning, with particular expertise in healthcare and service-based industries, as well as women-owned businesses. Before founding SLS, Stephanie built her career in healthcare leadership and strategy roles with Evolent Health, The Advisory Board Company, and Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she led strategic and operational consulting engagements with hospitals and health systems nationwide.

Stephanie is also a skilled facilitator, designing and leading strategic conversations for boards and executive teams—helping leaders align around critical decisions, strengthen collaboration, and drive clarity and momentum in their organizations.

Nick Hoffman is Associate General Counsel - Mergers & Acquisitions and Venture Capital and a member of the Legal Transactions Team for Koch. He also serves as general counsel for Koch's venture arm, Koch Disruptive Technologies, founded by Chase Koch in 2017. Nick and the Transactions Team provide strategic and legal support for all transactions across the Koch operating companies and investment divisions, including M&A, joint ventures, structured investments, co-invests, venture investments and other strategic transactions. He routinely advises board members, senior management, general counsel’s and family office members on those transactions and on portfolio, corporate and other related matters.

Prior to moving in-house to Koch, Nick was a partner in the Corporate Finance Division at Stinson LLP, where he advised public and private companies and private equity funds on capital markets, M&A, joint venture, investment and other transactions as well as on corporate, governance and fund-related matters.

Jon Way is a senior member of Cognitive Capital’s investment team where he is responsible for developing investment strategies, deal sourcing, due diligence, transaction execution and portfolio management. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Thaler Defense Systems and Maverick Environmental Equipment. Prior to joining Cognitive, he worked for at Arbor Investments, where he focused on investing in and the management of U.S. based food and beverage companies. Mr. Way began his career at Lincoln International as an investment banker and holds a BSBA from Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA from Northwestern University.