Unrelated may not get you anywhere if the company is sufficiently large enough, which is probably true in any company large enough to actually have an M&A depar

Unrelated may not get you anywhere if the company is sufficiently large enough, which is probably true in any company large enough to actually have an M&A department. I happen to know someone in M&A at my company, but only because I worked with him on a project. Even then, he's in M&A integration, and not someone with negotiation authority. Most of my coworkers don't know anyone in M&A. If you randomly showed up on my doorstep, I wouldn't give you his name. You could be on to something, but I think you'd be better off talking to someone high up in the department you'd be acquired under.