Mergers & Succession Planning

Successful combinations of organizations, whether on the buy side or the sell side, come partly from thorough financial and legal preparation and from execution driven by numbers, data, and facts. In practice, though, the "soft" factors turn out to be the hard criteria for success. Owners and management need to be aligned, to have clear goals, and to speak the same language. Just as important is planning for the period after the change from the very beginning — and, where relevant, understanding the cultures involved and deciding deliberately how they should come together.

Succession works much the same way. The long-term survival of the organization, and a sound financial and legal handover without emotional conflict, matter enormously. It cannot be assumed that the essential conversations happen in the period before responsibility and ownership change hands. A great deal is treated as historically established and taken for granted.

Clarity, purpose, and transparency about the goals; negotiating expectations openly; genuine involvement of the key people in planning and execution; and professional stakeholder management — these are at the core of success.