Why M&A Deals (Still) Fail
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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.…