TKO Miller professionals are seasoned experts in mergers and acquisitions consulting. This experience differentiates our firm amongst others serving the middle market. We work tirelessly to provide big bank experience to our middle market clients.
Our staffing is unique in our industry. Your team will consist of one to two senior members of the firm working together with talented professional team members that provide analytical and due diligence support. This ensures that your transaction always has the attention of senior management.
George Apfelbach
Prior to joining TKO Miller, George Apfelbach spent seven years working for a large family office in Tulsa, OK, overseeing Kaiser Supply and Trading, a physical oil trading and logistics business, as well as directing midstream investments in the energy sector. While in Tulsa, George was responsible for more than $400 million in total investments in the energy industry and has significant experience navigating companies through volatile market conditions. In addition to direct investing, George also managed the firm’s oil and natural gas trading, risk management, and market hedging strategies. George was also an Analyst in the Global Healthcare Investment Banking Group at Barclays, advising on high yield and equity financing transactions.
In addition to his role at TKO Miller, George serves on the Board of Directors for PianoArts of Wisconsin. George earned a B.S. in Physics and a B.A. in Philosophy, both from Boston College.
Jack Cahalane
Jack Cahalane's responsibilities include supporting senior members of the firm, as well as executing M&A transactions, performing valuations, and conducting company research.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Jack was a finance, data analytics, and engineering intern at American Roller where he assisted the executive team in an ERP implementation and developed a new pricing model for the company’s various products. Jack holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Business from Calvin University, Cum Laude. While at Calvin University, Jack was a 4-year member of the men’s basketball team.
Aaron Cranfill
Aaron Cranfill joined the firm in 2018, after previously working at PwC. He has more than eight years of combined M&A transaction experience and has advised on 25+ M&A transactions across multiple industries including plastic and metal manufacturing, flexible packaging, building products, software/technology, and consumer products. Aaron is responsible for leading the day-to-day execution of M&A transactions, the production of deal materials, and the development of junior personnel.
Aaron is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Fraud Examiner. In addition to his role at TKO Miller, Aaron serves on the Board of Directors for the nonprofit America Scores-Milwaukee, the Associate Board of Directors for the Zoological Society of Milwaukee, and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Athletics Varsity Club. Aaron holds a B.B.A in Accounting & Finance, Magna cum Laude, as well as an M.S. in Accounting, both from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. While at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Aaron was a member of the men’s soccer team, earning all-conference honors.
Drew David
Drew David's responsibilities include supporting senior members of the firm, as well as executing M&A transactions, performing valuations, and conducting company research.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Drew was a legal intern at Uline where he assisted the legal department in providing practical business solutions to legal issues. Before Uline, Drew held a position with Modern Woodmen Financial. Drew holds a J.D. degree from Marquette University, and a B.S. in Finance, from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Noah DeGroot
Noah DeGroot's responsibilities include supporting senior members of the firm, as well as executing M&A transactions, performing valuations, and conducting company research.
Noah joined TKO Miller as an intern in 2022. He holds a B.B.A in Finance, Summa Cum Laude, as well as a Certificate in Investment Management, both from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He was also a two-time competitor and 2023 finalist in the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Cup competition.
Erik Eidem
Erik Eidem has 20 years of experience in investment banking and corporate finance involving such industries as financial services, automotive, pulp and paper, medical devices, insurance, plastic and metal manufacturing, agriculture and food products, retail, chemical, and professional services. Prior to joining TKO Miller, Erik was a Managing Director at Corporate Financial Advisors, LLC where he performed services to clients related to mergers and acquisitions and Corporate Restructuring.
Prior to Corporate Financial Advisors, Erik worked at InteCap where he provided financial and econometric analysis and dispute resolution related to intellectual property, anti-trust, and other commercial disputes. Over the years Erik’s clients have ranged from start-up companies to foreign governments in a wide variety of industries.
Since 2012 Erik has served as an Adjunct Professor teaching Corporate Finance at Mount Mary University’s M.B.A. program. Outside of work Erik enjoys coaching youth baseball, traveling, and tennis. Erik holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Economics and a Master of Business Administration and Economics both from the University of Umeå, Sweden. Erik is a native of Sweden and keeps a good network of Scandinavian and European companies and resources.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Joe Froehlich served as President of Milwaukee-based Corporate Financial Advisors, LLC for 13 years and a Managing Director for a Chicago-based investment banking firm for 7 years. During his time in investment banking, he completed numerous transactions in the manufacturing, distribution, industrial, business services, and technology industries. His previous experience also includes six years with Lubar & Co, a leading Milwaukee-based private equity firm. At Lubar & Co, he was responsible for making direct equity investments including acquisitions, management buyouts, and venture capital transactions. Earlier in his career, Joe was an executive in the electronics industry, serving such companies as Intel, Raychem, and Sony.
Joe received his B.S. in Electrical Engineering, Cum Laude, from Stanford University and his M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School. Joe serves on the Board of Directors of Herzing University, Novum Structures, Badger Logistics, and Titus Group. Joe is also an officer of the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin and is involved in a number of civic organizations in the Milwaukee area.
Jack Hastreiter
Jack Hastreiter's responsibilities include supporting senior members of the firm, as well as executing M&A transactions, performing valuations, and conducting company research.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Jack was a private equity intern at Summit Group where he assisted execution of multiple acquisitions in the lower-middle market. Before Summit Group, he was a private wealth management intern for Morgan Stanley where he helped manage financial plans for ultra-high net worth clients. He also spent two years as a finance intern for Wisconsin Distributors where he assisted the CFO in day-to-day operations. Jack grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and holds a B.B.A. in Finance, Investment & Banking from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Nick Kozik
Nick Kozik has been with TKO Miller since its inception in 2015. Nick has advised on 40+ active M&A transactions totaling roughly $1.0 billion in aggregate transaction value. Nick’s transaction experience spans multiple industries, with a particular focus on industrial and construction products/services, software/technology, and consumer products. In 2020, Nick was named one of America’s Rising Dealmakers by Global M&A Network. In addition to his role at TKO Miller, Nick serves as an adjunct instructor at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Lubar School of Business. Nick is responsible for leading the day-to-day execution of M&A transactions, developing junior personnel, and new business development. Additionally, Nick manages the majority of the firm’s private equity and family office relationships.
Prior to TKO Miller, Nick was an investment banking analyst at Grace Matthews. During his time at Grace Matthews, Nick supported clients in a variety of industries including scaffolding, insulation, industrial services, and metal fabrication. Prior to Grace Matthews, Nick held a position at Northwestern Mutual Financial.
Nick holds a B.B.A. in Finance as well as a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where he was a member of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Association and a Dean's List student.
Charlie Lorge
Charlie Lorge has completed numerous transactions working with clients in the branded consumer products, business services, and industrial services areas. His current responsibilities include managing merger and acquisition processes, overseeing analyst work product, and supporting senior members of the firm. Prior to joining TKO Miller, Charlie worked as an intern for two different Chicago-based private wealth management firms where he helped manage financial plans for ultra-high net worth individuals, families, and endowments.
Charlie grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin and has a B.S in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Tammie Miller has over 20 years of investment banking experience with an extensive background in healthcare, business process outsourcing, manufacturing, industrial services, and food ingredients. Prior to forming TKO Miller, Tammie was a Managing Director at Grace Matthews where she was responsible for managing transactions in a variety of industries. Tammie particularly enjoyed working with family-and-founder-owned businesses.
Tammie’s operating background developed when she acquired 8 companies to create Innovative Resource Group as part of Cobalt Corporation (Formerly Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wisconsin). She served as Senior Vice President of Operations at Innovative Resource Group (now APS Healthcare), where she oversaw 400 employees and was responsible for $50 million in revenues.
Tammie's prior investment banking experience includes positions at Alex. Brown & Sons, First National Bank of Chicago, Kidder Peabody, and Lehman Brothers.
Tammie is a Chartered Financial Analyst and holds a B.A., with High Honors, in Latin American Studies, as well as an M.B.A. with an emphasis in finance, both from The University of Chicago.
Griffin Oleszczuk
Griffin Oleszczuk's responsibilities include supporting senior members of the firm, as well as executing M&A transactions, performing valuations, and conducting company research.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Griffin was the Legal and Business Management Intern at StartingBlock, where he assisted local startup companies with their business and legal issues. Before StartingBlock, Griffin was a Student Associate with the Law and Entrepreneurship Clinic.
Griffin holds an M.B.A. with a Finance Certificate from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, a J.D. with a Business Law Concentration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a B.A. in Political Science and Legal Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Tim Oleszczuk has over 25 years of experience in consulting and corporate finance involving diverse industries, such as construction services, telecommunications, publishing, insurance, manufacturing, retailing, information technology, and professional services. Prior to forming TKO Miller, Tim was Managing Director and General Counsel at Grace Matthews, where he worked with clients in a variety of industries. He managed the Milwaukee office of Resource Financial Corporation, where he was Vice President and General Counsel. Previously, Tim was a shareholder at the Milwaukee, Wisconsin law firm of Godfrey & Kahn, S.C., where his legal practice focused on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and insurance law.
From his legal and mergers and acquisitions background, Tim brings a broad base of experience to managing client engagements. His practice at Grace Matthews consisted primarily of working with manufacturing and service companies, with a specific emphasis in the construction market.
Tim holds a B.B.A. degree and an M.B.A degree, both Summa Cum Laude, in Finance and Risk Management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Michigan in 1990. Tim was a Founder and served as a Director of Silicon Pastures, a network of Midwestern angel investors and strategic partners that is focused on providing capital and other services to early-stage companies with the potential for significant and rapid growth. During his career, he has also served as a Director to a number of privately-held companies.
Jim Rogers
Jim Rogers has more than 20 years of financial and strategic experience building global presence by leading mergers and acquisitions around the world.
Prior to joining TKO Miller, Jim was the Vice President of Corporate Development for BrandSafway. During his time at BrandSafway, he completed more than 20 transactions in North America and Europe. His previous experience also includes 16 years with Honeywell International where he grew the Security and Fire Detection business units from $425M to over $4B through multiple M&A transactions.
Jim received his B.S. in Business Administration and Accounting from Wright State University and his MBA from Xavier University. Jim is also a Certified Public Accountant.
Steve Yahnke has over 25 years of professional experience in the commercial lending and investment banking industries. Prior to joining TKO Miller, Steve spent 7 years at a Chicago-based Investment Bank sourcing debt capital for middle market companies. This process included placing senior debt, mezzanine capital, minority equity and/or distressed sales for companies that either were experiencing tremendous growth or were in the midst of a turnaround.
Steve began his career at Firstar (now US Bank) in the early 90’s in Madison, WI as a participant to their Management Trainee and Credit Underwriting programs. He spent a number of years underwriting middle market companies and their financing needs, including syndicated bank transactions from $5 million to $250 million in a broad range of industries.
Steve later worked for M&I Bank (now BMO Bank) and held several senior management positions in the Community Banking arena, as well as non-bank financing sources such as GE Capital, allowing him to bring in-depth knowledge, building and modeling complex capital structures.
Steve is a Milwaukee native and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he earned his Bachelor’s of Science degree. He also has an M.B.A. in finance with a concentration in investments from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Graduate School of Business.
Katie Yde
Katie Yde joined the firm in 2018 and serves an integral role in the planning and execution of the firm’s sales and marketing activities. In addition, she provides administrative support and oversight of the firm’s general operations.
Prior to TKO Miller, Katie held an administration role with the largest youth sports organization in the United States. In addition to her role at TKO Miller, she also serves on the marketing committee for the Christmas Clearing Council, a nonprofit organization serving children in Waukesha County.
Katie has a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.