ACG Cleveland Special Editorial 2022: M&A expected to continue its robust growth streak

2021 was the best of times and the worst of times. All businesses have been impacted by the challenges of COVID; some to a great extent and some to a lesser extent. More importantly, our families and loved ones have been impacted as well. In order to help businesses and families, the government has provided several stimulus packages in the form of PPP loans, Employee Retention Credits and extended unemployment benefits to name a few. One of the unintended consequences of all this stimulus is inflation (and hopefully not stagflation). Prices are rising across the board, from raw materials to wages. In order to maintain margins, businesses are trying to pass these price increases along to their customers, but trying to keep up with the next round of price increases is becoming more and more challenging.