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Most AI initiatives in private equity portfolios never translate into EBITDA uplift. This article explains why value gets lost, how ROI fog forms, and what operating partners consistently underestimate.

Private equity has poured billions into MSP roll-ups over the last decade. The thesis is familiar: acquire strong regional operators, standardise operations, unlock scale, and expand margins. On paper, it works. In reality, most MSP platforms hit an invisible wall somewhere between acquisition #2 and #4.

Across private equity portfolios, the same conversation repeats itself. An AI pilot shows promise. A proof of concept is funded. Early results look encouraging. Then time passes.

Here’s a truth most leaders don’t want shouted in boardrooms: "every inefficiency you quietly “fix” is a nickel you’re handing to your competitors".

Transport. Manufacturing. Logistics. Industrial supply. The backbone of every modern economy — and the sectors least likely to appear in an innovation keynote.

Let’s start with an uncomfortable truth: Cheap leads aren’t cheap if they don’t close.

Most companies don’t fail because they choose the wrong technology — they fail because they choose the wrong partners.

Many digital transformation programmes look good on paper — dashboards, platforms, pilots — yet still fail to deliver meaningful results. When leaders ask “Is this working?”, the answers are often vague.

Digital transformation is meant to simplify business. Yet for many SMBs, it often feels like wading through quicksand — expensive platforms, scattered teams, and a “strategy” that never leaves the slide deck.