Answers to FAQs about M&A Integration Plans

Planning should start two to three months before close or when the letter of intent is signed, whichever is earlier. It is difficult to deliver a smooth, effective Day 1 and achieve quick successes without adequate pre-close planning. Starting early creates the momentum to integrate rapidly after close.

During the initial step, executives agree on the integration's strategy, guiding principles, objectives, assumptions, and non-negotiables. The integration plans will draft off the direction set by senior management so there should be early discussions to identify and resolve divergent opinions.

1. Define Integration Strategy and Guiding Principles  
2. Determine M&A Integration Governance  
3. Conduct Joint Integration Management Office (IMO) Meeting  
4. Provide Post Merger Integration Training  
5. Develop Post Merger Integration Risk Management Plan  
6. Develop Culture Integration Plans  
7. Develop Post Merger Integration Communication Plans  
8. Develop Post Merger Staffing & Retention Plans  
9. Develop M&A Project Integration Plans  
10. Execute Acquisition Integration Plans (Includes Day 1 Plans)  
11. Capture M&A Integration Lessons Learned

An integration plan should always include these 5 elements:

1. End States - Integration complete" should be defined. If it isn’t, teams will feel like they are in a race without a finish line.
Related presentation: End-State Transition

2. Governance - Determine the integration hierarchy, decision-making protocols, and escalation routes so problems requiring senior-level input can be quickly addressed and resolved.
Related presentation: Post-Merger Integration Framework

3. Communications - Planning communications in M&A takes much more effort than it does under more stable circumstances.
Related playbook: Day 1 M&A Playbook: Employee Communications

4. Tasks - Each task in a team’s plan should have an assigned owner plus start and completion dates.
Related playbook: M&A Integration Playbook

5. Early Wins - Acquirers can help silence the skeptics by achieving goals that provide hard evidence the merger is rapidly bringing benefits.
Related article: Engineer Early Success in Your Merger

A charter specifies the baseline expectations on the responsibilities, objectives, deliverables, success measures, and timeline for each integration team. Charters should be created prior to beginning detailed work plan development.

A 100-Day Integration Plan includes the steps, their timing, and the necessary resources to achieve the integration objectives for the period ending 100 days after the close of the deal. Development of this plan should begin before close, no later than when the letter of intent is signed.

That depends on the rationale for the deal. For example, if an acquisition is being made to achieve economies of scale, then a full integration may be the best approach. However, if the deal is done to expand into new regions or acquire new talent, then the best way to create value may be to selectively integrate in only areas that overlap.

The end state is the point at which the integration teams will disband. When teams struggle to complete their plans, it is often because their end states have not been determined. They do not know what they are integrating to. There is no defined finish line.