Karen Isely, Author at Isely Associates International

Karen Isely

10 posts

Karen is an M&A specialist and the founder of Isely Associates International, a niche advisory business that brings focus to critical people issues in mergers and acquisitions, positioning organizations to capture expected value quickly while avoiding collateral damage. At every deal stage, clients draw on Karen’s experience as an HR professional, business leader and management consultant to anticipate and manage risks associated with leadership capability, incompatible cultures and communication challenges.

Why M&A Deals (Still) Fail

5 years ago

M&A Failure, M&A Strategy

Some hints: Strategy usually is not the problem; sometimes financial projections don’t include important considerations; and almost always it’s execution that falls short. At the start of a recent research…

Merger Communication Effectiveness – Lessons from the Trenches

6 years ago

M&A Clarity

When top executives are asked about lessons learned following a merger, acquisition or business sale, more often than not they say they would have invested much more energy and effort…

How Culture Operates – First 3 Months of a Merger

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Leadership

Two organisations come together. Each group gets to see what the other looks like. Specifically what you see are the behaviours, symbols and systems of the other organisation. They may look like…

How to Manage Emotions in Mergers

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Leadership

Mergers are a unique situation culturally. During a merger or acquisition you have to manage culture in a different way. Mergers accentuate cultural issues, which might have simmered along unnoticed…

Put Culture on M&A Agenda from the Start

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Leadership, M&A Strategy

Senior executives and deal team members are best placed, but often under-prepared, to drive effective cultural outcomes. Environmental cues for expected behaviour Culture – “patterns of behavior encouraged or tolerated…

Cultural Diligence in Mergers: Make it a Priority

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A People Diligence

Make cultural diligence a priority to ensure that culture enables, rather than detracts from, merger success. These fundamentals, reinforced in content from earlier posts, are crucial in the strategy and early…

Merger Integration: Choosing the Most Effective Culture Strategy

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Execution, M&A Strategy

In the heat of a deal, too many organisations leave culture to chance because they mistakenly think that they can’t (or shouldn’t) make decisions about it until a deal has…

Culture Strategy in M&A: Where Context is Everything

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Strategy

It may seem the obvious thing to do, but many organisations undertaking M&A do not effectively articulate and communicate the business case that underpins their decision to merge or acquire.…

Culture Strategy Trumps Culture Fit

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A People Diligence, M&A Strategy

The most effective work on culture begins well before a deal is in full swing. With thoughtful preparation, a clear strategy and commitment to cultural alignment, organisations can improve their…

M&A: How to Avoid Culture Clash

6 years ago

M&A Culture, M&A Execution, M&A People Diligence

Every merger or acquisition is undertaken to enhance business value, yet many fail to achieve expected outcomes because of a failure to effectively manage cultural risks and harness cultural opportunities.…