How do you evaluate a firm that offers post-merger integration consulting?
These are the 5 most important areas to consider:
- Expertise
- Experience
- Thought Leadership
- Flexibility
- Methodology
- Expertise
PRITCHETT LP's competitors have very little content about M&A integration on their web sites relative to the wealth of ‘how to’ guidance on our site, MergerIntegration.com.
Why? Because post-merger integration is a sideline business for them. It generates a small fraction of their sales. They are general practitioners whereas we are specialists. The true experts in any field are specialists and PRITCHETT has maintained a singular, unwavering focus on post-merger integration for over 35 years.
- Experience
PRITCHETT consultants have worked on more than 650 integrations in over 50 industries on transactions ranging from $5 million to $80 billion in value. Every one of our consultants has led a minimum of 20 integrations. We deliver stellar results which is why acquirers sing our praises and our client list is impressive.
- Thought Leadership
Many of the most influential pieces on M&A integration have been written by PRITCHETT. We have sold two million of our books on post-merger integration, more than the sales of all other authors combined on that subject. Additionally, over 30,000 managers have attended our merger integration workshop making it the most successful M&A integration training program in the world. Plus, our web site, MergerIntegration.com, is the most visited online resource on M&A integration. It features over 100 presentations, 100 tools, and 20 playbooks from more than 100 of our consulting engagements.
- Flexibility
Our firm has consulted on the largest pharmaceutical, oil and gas, financial exchange, and bank M&A integrations in history. And on smaller deals in practically every industry. We can easily staff a project with many senior, well-experienced M&A integration consultants, or even just one, based on the size and complexity of the acquisition and bandwidth of an acquirer's integration teams.
PRITCHETT consultants have subject matter expertise in many areas including IT, communications, HR, finance and accounting, sales and marketing, operations, procurement, and supply chain. We can turn on a dime to meet a client's resource needs.
- Methodology
PRITCHETT’s post-merger integration methodology is easy to follow and well-organized. It’s a streamlined, repeatable process not weighed down by extraneous junk. We made room for more of what matters by eliminating what doesn’t. Some M&A advisors pitch integration methodologies with complicated rules that create confusion and add no value. In some cases, acquirers feel compelled to hire consultants on an ongoing basis to navigate the very complexity built into the process by the same consultants.
An effective methodology should make an organization more capable and less dependent on outside experts. PRITCHETT’s approach is highly teachable. Not over-engineered. A person needs common sense and resolve, not an advanced physics degree to understand and apply it.
Contact Us
Call +1-214-239-9600 or +44-203-936-2220 to speak with the leaders of our firm about our post-merger integration services:
- Joe Aberger, EVP, leads PRITCHETT's M&A integration and divestitures consulting practice that has worked with clients on transactions valued in total over $350 billion.
- Price Pritchett, CEO, has authored the all-time best sellers on M&A integration (more than 2 million copies sold), and is regarded as a premier thought leader on acquisition integration.
- Jon Crockett, VP of M&A Consulting, has led more than fifty successful M&A integrations all over the world including multinational transactions in Asia, Europe, and Latin America.
PHASE 1
HIGH-LEVEL PLANNINGPHASE 2
DETAILED PLANNINGPHASE 3
EXECUTIONStep 2: Determine M&A Integration GovernanceStep 3: Conduct Integration Management Office (IMO) MeetingStep 4: Provide Post Merger Integration TrainingPHASE 2
DETAILED PLANNINGStep 5: Develop Post Merger Integration Risk Management PlanStep 6: Develop M&A Culture Integration PlansStep 7: Develop M&A Communication PlansStep 8: Develop M&A Staffing & Retention PlansStep 9: Develop M&A Project Integration PlansPHASE 3
EXECUTION
PRITCHETT, LP consultants assist in all aspects of M&A integration:
Post-Merger Integration Planning
PRITCHETT helps executives define the integration's "finish line" and ensures teams develop clear, logical plans on how to get there. Our approach eliminates common mistakes and streamlines the planning process. We lead and educate integration teams, prioritize and synchronize their work, and create a consolidated master plan so everyone is aligned with a common integrated view of the path forward.
Post-Merger Integration Execution
We offer advice and counsel, flanker support, and a structured, disciplined approach to integration implementation. In particular, we know how to handle the defining moments, those make-or-break times when your strategy is most at risk. Our job is to protect the integration plan, front to back.
PRITCHETT knows what to expect and how you should respond. We help you maintain momentum and keep your integration on track. This is no cakewalk. It calls for well-conceived, carefully timed moves, and they must be carried out decisively. We know the drill.
M&A Integration Playbook Development
Every integration is different, but all successful, efficient ones require processes for governance, scope definition, planning, scheduling, issue management, risk management, and reporting. Many acquirers let these M&A processes evolve over time with patches made here and there. As experience is gained, tools and techniques are often missed or not captured and properly documented.
PRITCHETT can help you build a flexible, scalable M&A integration playbook tailored to your needs. Whatever the particular soft spots in your approach, we can address them as we develop and document a methodology for your acquisitions.
Post-Merger Culture Integration
We help acquirers develop and execute a plan to identify and reconcile the most meaningful cultural differences. All too often, management adopts a passive approach and never seriously addresses cultural integration. Several things may account for this:
- Managers have no methodology on how to create a cultural integration plan
- They lack insight into the cultural differences between the two firms
- They become preoccupied with short-term concerns
The reality of the situation, however, is that success of a merger is often a function of how well the two firms’ cultures are integrated.
Post-Merger Communication Planning
Mergers create an insatiable demand for more information. Our senior advisors can save you hundreds of hours by implementing communication best practices, tools, and techniques that will help keep your people focused, productive, and engaged.
Organization and Retention Planning
Deciding how to staff the combined organization is the most delicate task in M&A integration. There's almost always a need to eliminate redundancies and identify and retain people who are needed transitionally, but not indefinitely. PRITCHETT advisors help you develop a staffing process that is fair, fast, and appropriate for your deal.
Capturing Lessons Learned
Our consultants systematically debrief teams to capture lessons learned about the integration process. PRITCHETT helps ensure the know-how gained from an acquirer's experience is not lost. We document the hard-won wisdom.
For information about our consulting services, call 800-992-5922.