Before employees can support change in an organisation, they have to understand its rationale. This is where positive leadership is vital, especially in terms of the owner/s of the acquired business. They need to effectively act as cheerleaders for the deal, outlining to employees why the merger or acquisition is taking place and how it will strengthen and benefit employees and their company.
The ability to do this authentically, however, relies heavily on those at the top being genuinely engaged throughout the M&A activity, when they themselves are often dealing with their own experience of the changes.
To help mitigate this, the first step is for the owner/s of the acquired business to conduct their own thorough due diligence, so they are clear on exactly what the acquisition will mean at each stage, how their own roles will change and the plans for future hierarchy, systems and controls, and processes.
Even when that is clearly understood it can still be an emotive process and seeking third-party support can be very beneficial. Working with a coach can help business owners to explore different scenarios before they occur and to visualise their new role, purpose and control factors, as well as having a neutral sounding board for discussion.
3. Do not underestimate the resource requirements
The impact on resource during an M&A cannot be underestimated.
There will be a huge spike in work, especially relating to the due diligence process, both in terms of either having to provide a large amount of data as the acquired company, or asking for a huge amount of data and reviewing it as the acquirer.
For companies being acquired, it is vitally important to understand exactly what the due diligence process looks like and do as much preparation as possible. It is good to remember that the business owners do not have to do this alone and the process can include practice managers, subject matter experts within the business or even be outsourced.
If you are thinking about selling your business, it really pays to get a feel for what being audited in a due diligence process looks like and there is lots of work that can be done in advance, such as data cleansing, ensuring policies and procedures are up to date and generally getting your house in order.
4. Plan for success
As obvious as it may seem, having a project plan is essential if an integration is going to achieve its objectives.
This needs to be in place before the acquisition takes place and covers all tasks, milestones, key performance indicators and resource required. It provides both businesses with a means to track performance and drive progress, as well as being a critical communication tool.
