We proudly announce that Opus Connect has named two of Benchmark International's esteemed team members to 2023's Top 25 Women in M&A. Amy Alonso, Senior Transaction Director, and Kendall Stafford, Managing Partner, have both been awarded the outstanding honor.

Benchmark International’s own Kendall Stafford has won the Top USA Woman Deal Maker Award from the 4^th Annual USA Growth Intelligence Forum and the USA M&A Atlas Awards.

The award singularly honors the A-list of the most talented, respected, and brilliant women dealmakers from private equity, venture capital, investment banks, legal, and restructuring transactional communities. It is officially “award winner recognition,” unlike industry lists, rankings, editorial praise, or write-ups.

A special congratulations to Managing Partner, Kendall Stafford at Benchmark International who was recognized and awarded by Insights Success Magazine as one of the top 10 most successful businesswomen to watch in 2019.

Insights Success Magazine focuses on leading companies, their style of conducting business and ways of delivering effective solutions to strengthen market share.  

Kendall was recognized for her compassionate leadership skills and M&A knowledge that continue to shine throughout her career and success with Benchmark International.  

Kendall began as a Director at Benchmark International’s US headquarters in Tampa, Florida. She now resides as the Managing Partner at Benchmark International’s Austin office, where she continues to lead with compassion, empathy, and transparency not only for her clients but for her team.  

She is responsible for motivating and mentoring the team in Austin, ensuring customer service standards are consistently met, and effectively transacting duties the team was hired to perform.  She says, “If I do these three things successfully, everything else falls in line. My effective communication, organization, and negotiation skills serve me well in this role.” 

Kendall's reaction to receiving this recognition and award demonstrates her determination to continue to be a leader in this space and an inspiration for other women. “I’m honored to have been recognized for this award. I think it is a testament to the values I hold for myself but also for the values I continue to evoke as my role as Managing Partner at Benchmark International.”  

Kendall added in the article that for budding women leaders, she advised, “Young women who would like to start their own business should just go for it. There’s no time like the present and you must believe in yourself. Don’t listen to anyone that says you can’t do something and never let fear stop you from trying. You will learn a lot about yourself and your business during the journey and, ultimately, you will be surprised at what you accomplished along the way.” 

Check out the complete article here, and again a special congratulations to Kendall Stafford for being acknowledged and receiving this prestigious honor.