Inadequate post-deal integration procedures are the most common reason for M&A failure. DealRoom helps companies avoid common pitfalls, and maximize the value of their M&A transactions by assisting in the post-acquisition process.
The emphasis, sequence, and pace of post-deal integration should be tailored specifically to support the objectives and sources of value that prompted the transaction in the first place. That sounds obvious, but we see many businesses rely on off-the-shelf plans and generic best practices that overemphasize process and neglect the specific elements of their deal.
One company was able to recognize that R&D was a significant source of value, but since the primary product of the acquired company was in development, it chose to focus on growth rather by leveraging the capabilities and sales channels of the new business in a strategically-oriented manner. In the future, they would reevaluate whether they wanted to fully integrate R&D.
Another key practice among successful mergers of a larger scale is to assign responsibility for capturing cost and revenue synergies over to line managers within the acquired company. That page ensures the line managers are given the right incentives and responsibilities to lead the strategic execution of the merger, and also makes it easier to track progress towards goals in real-time. We’ve found it beneficial to set up the capacity for short meetings that are iterative, with clear deadlines and targets, so that teams can align their goals and work as they move through PMI cycles.