SF Executive’s Post

Change is constant. As your organization navigates growth, transformation, or downsizing, it provides a vital time to solidify your position, mission, values, brand, and business model. The real challenge - and what keeps executives and leaders up at night - is managing the impact on their workforces and cultures.   Our experience shows that as organizations approach integrations, transformations, or downsizings, employees are filled with uncertainty regarding their future, wondering: - Will they have an ongoing role? - How will changes affect compensation, benefits, and titles? - What will change in how they do their work? - What will change in their day-to-day work and reporting relationships? - What new tools and systems will they need to master? - How will their organization's mission and values change? - What will this mean to the culture and day-to-day work experience? Korn Ferry recently highlighted prioritizing people and culture in their article "5 Lessons from M&A Leaders." Developing a comprehensive plan that addresses the concerns of both employees and leaders accelerates the realization of the merger's value and shows goodwill and transparency. This includes robust integration approaches, alignment at the top, and clear detailed communication to support the transition. While the answers may not yet be available, understanding the questions and getting this underway is critical. "Providing middle managers with the training, preparation, and support to guide their teams through this transition is an essential part of a comprehensive integration plan and key to accelerating value realization" according to FlexPaths consultant David Lawlor. FlexPaths, LLC excels in helping manage and communicate change at all levels of an organization through effective planning, identifying/overcoming resistance, aligning the C-suite, and empowering all stakeholders to embrace the necessary shifts. If your organization is considering or undertaking any integration, transformation, or downsizing, we are glad to discuss your proposed approach and provide helpful perspectives. #changemanagement, #merger, #downsizing, #staffing, #humanresources, #integrationstrategies, #csuite, #alignment, #mergersandacquisitions, #downsizing, #change

Are you navigating through a merger or acquisition? Wondering how to manage your talent effectively during this transition? 🤝 Look no further! Here are some key strategies to ensure a smooth journey: Communication is Key: Keep your employees informed every step of the way. Transparency breeds trust, and in uncertain times, clear communication can ease anxieties and foster engagement. Assess and Align Skills: Take stock of the talent on both sides of the merger. Identify skill gaps and areas of overlap. By aligning skills and roles early on, you can streamline operations and minimize disruptions. Culture Integration: Recognize the importance of company culture. Merge the best aspects of both cultures to create a cohesive environment where employees feel valued and motivated. Retention Strategies: Retaining top talent is crucial for success. Implement retention strategies such as competitive compensation packages, career development opportunities, and recognition programs to keep your best performers on board. Cross-Training and Development: Encourage cross-training and skill development initiatives. This not only prepares employees for potential role changes but also promotes collaboration and knowledge sharing across teams. Leadership Development: Invest in leadership development programs to groom future leaders from within the organization. Strong leadership is essential for steering the company through periods of change and uncertainty. Stay Agile: Mergers and acquisitions are dynamic processes. Stay agile and be prepared to adapt your talent management strategies as the integration progresses. Remember, managing talent during a merger or acquisition is not just about filling positions—it's about nurturing a thriving workforce that drives the success of the new entity. By following these strategies, you can effectively manage talent and position your organization for long-term growth and success. 💼✨ #TalentManagement #MergersAndAcquisitions #LeadershipDevelopment #HRStrategy #letsconnect Henry Baskerville Julie Herzog Jennifer Tierney

Communication: The Key to Successful Mergers Drawing from my firsthand experience with two company integrations, I've learned that the backbone of any successful merger lies in masterful communication. During the integration phase, maintaining an open and transparent communication channel is critical. It reassures employees and helps alleviate any uncertainties about their future. Leadership must take an active role in communicating the integration's goals and visions clearly and consistently. Effective communication also ensures that the integration process is cohesive across all departments, helping to eliminate silos and encourage collaboration. It's crucial for keeping productivity high, as employees who feel included and valued are less resistant to change. Moreover, communication during these times isn't just about transmitting information; it's equally about active listening. Addressing concerns, welcoming feedback, and considering suggestions can smooth potential obstacles and promote an inclusive culture. As we navigate the complexities of company integration, emphasizing effective communication strategies is essential. It aligns our teams, empowers our employees, and sets the stage for a successful merger. What is your experience in merges and success pathways in it? #CompanyIntegration #Leadership #BusinessCommunication #ChangeManagement #CorporateCulture

Building trust during a merger is crucial for smooth transitions and team cohesion. Discover how to create a supportive environment and foster trust in times of change. Understanding the Challenge: Mergers often bring uncertainty and fear, leading to distrust among employees. Addressing these emotions head-on is essential to ensuring a successful integration and maintaining morale. Emma’s Approach: Emma, a manager at a company undergoing a merger, noticed that her team felt uncertain and distrustful of the new management. To build trust, she focused on creating a supportive environment and fostering open communication. Here’s how she did it: Open Dialogue: Emma initiated regular meetings where team members could express their concerns and ask questions. She ensured transparency about the merger process and its implications. Consistent Communication: She maintained consistent communication, providing updates and addressing any rumors promptly. This helped to reduce uncertainty and build trust. Inclusive Decision-Making: Emma involved her team in decision-making processes related to their work, making them feel valued and heard. Support Networks: She established support networks within the team, pairing employees from both companies to encourage collaboration and mutual support. Empathy and Understanding: Emma demonstrated empathy by acknowledging the challenges and emotions her team was experiencing. She made herself available for one-on-one discussions, offering support and reassurance. Outcome: Through her efforts, Emma was able to build a foundation of trust within her team. The open dialogue and consistent communication helped to alleviate fears, while inclusive decision-making and support networks fostered a sense of belonging and collaboration. As a result, the team navigated the merger more smoothly, maintaining productivity and morale. Conclusion: Trust is the cornerstone of successful change management, especially during a merger. By prioritizing open communication and empathy, leaders can build trust and support their teams through challenging transitions. Learn more about fostering trust and effective change management strategies in Vanessa Auditore’s Mastering the Psychology of Organisational Change. Discover More and Purchase Your Copy Today https://buff.ly/3A2ts34 #ChangeManagement #Leadership #OrganisationalPsychology #PeopleCentredChange #VanessaAuditore #BusinessSuccess #LeadershipDevelopment #HR #ChangeStrategy #OrganisationalChange #BuildingTrust

In life, people often say the small things really are the big things. This concept holds true in the corporate world ... the "soft skills" are the hard skills. Great insights here from Maril Gagen MacDonald and the team at Gagen MacDonald on M&A activity and how companies fall short on integrating cultures, communicating and connecting the dots. #mergers #acquisitions #corporatecomms #leadership #internalcommunications

M&A culture integration - 3 top tips   Careful integration of teams is fundamental for the success of any merger or acquisition. This often involves bringing together people with different values, behaviours, leadership styles, mindsets, and symbols. To effectively bring two cultures together, I have 3 top tips:   ★ The first is to Invest time in building great relationships with the acquired organisation. This can pay dividends later on and will ensure the transition is as seamless as possible. Too often, leadership teams turn inwards and fail to build relationships with their new colleagues, usually letting ego get in the way. Settling leadership roles early on is also good so leaders can help stabilise the rest of the organisation.    ★ Second, put culture at the top of the agenda. This isn't just a box to tick; it's a crucial step in the integration process. From a culture and ways of working perspective, it is worth figuring out the organisations' two cultures and how to knit them together to win' hearts and minds'. The best way to do this is through a steady cadence of visible acts of change or “symbols of change.” These introduce a new way of doing things, for example, sharing success stories, having leadership visible at crucial customer sites, or co-creating a new vision and purpose together. I’ve found it necessary not to try to resolve every cultural difference or issue immediately. From a leadership perspective, it is impossible, and situations inevitably evolve and change over time.   ★ Finally, as we know, the first significant milestone of any merger or acquisition is ‘day one’. It's not just a date on the calendar; it's a crucial moment that sets the tone for the future. It’s essential to have a clear blueprint for how you will operate that everyone buys into, including how the newly formed organisation will manage and work together. Every detail is essential and needs to be well communicated. Getting ‘day one’ right is vital in creating momentum and credibility and signalling the future culture, so it’s not one to get wrong.   In my experience, mergers and acquisitions are always a challenge from the perspective of people. Still, when organisations pay close attention to the cultural aspects of a merger or an acquisition, they significantly increase the chances that the deal will achieve its full value potential. #people #culture #mergersandacquisitions #leadership Image courtesy of Philipp Potocnik on Unsplash

When two companies merge, it's not just about integrating processes and aligning goals; it's about merging minds, hearts, and managing the interpersonal dynamics of leaders across all levels—1, 2, and 3. This is where the real make-or-break factor for the merger's success lies. - Is there a fear that sharing information makes one vulnerable? - Are some leaders worried that not fighting hard enough might make their people think they're being walked over by the other group? - And post-right-sizing, is there still a leader who believes that quickly building an empire will safeguard them from future rounds? These fears, whether spoken or unspoken, can derail the very essence of what a merger aims to achieve. This is where the Top Leadership Team must step in—not just once, but continuously—to ensure that Level 2/3 leaders don't fall into these traps. Over-communication and counselling are key. Leaders need to be reminded of the basics—"natural xenophobia" and humility. By natural xenophobia, I mean the tendency many leaders have to believe that their pre-merger ways were the only right ways. There's a dangerous mindset that says, "Our side is better, smarter, and the collective IQ resides solely within our team." (OK, I might have stretched that a bit with the hopping on one leg analogy! 😄). But here's the surprising element that often gets overlooked—Humility. In the early days of a merger, it's easy to come off as arrogant or dismissive, often driven by the xenophobia mentioned earlier or the "our side is better" syndrome. So, what should the Top Management do to foster a successful merger? - Monitor Interactions: Keep a close eye on the sub-task-forces set up for post-merger integration. - Share Profiles: Introduce function heads and sub-unit heads to each other quickly by sharing CVs or LinkedIn profiles. Everyone has done great work to reach this stage—let's acknowledge that. - Personal Connections: Share personal profiles—extra-curricular interests, family details, hobbies, favorite music, achievements—to build out the human sides of the unit heads. - Socialize: Sanction additional budgets for merged leadership teams to bond over dinner and drinks. - Intellectual Exchange: Send leaders from each side reports and articles developed by the other, to establish respect for each other's intellectual capabilities. - Co-Branded Gifts: Create co-branded gifts (bags, caps, T-shirts) for all leaders from both sides to symbolize unity. - Family Acknowledgment: Send letters to leaders' families, highlighting the strength of the joint entity and thanking them for their support. The sooner everyone realizes that we are all "people like us," the sooner pretenses and artificial barriers can come down. At the end of the day, it's a merger of minds and hearts. Numbers and results will follow on their own! #Leadership #MergersAndAcquisitions #ChangeManagement

📌 What are the secrets to successful merger and acquisition cultural integration? M&A cultural integration is crucial for the success of combining organisations. But M&A practitioners often say cultural fit is the primary reason their deals #fail. So, how do you ensure a smooth cultural integration? 📖 Read on for best practices to align organisational culture throughout the merger and acquisition process: https://lnkd.in/dd9DU9qT #M&A #CulturalIntegration #ChangeManagement #Leadership #BusinessTransformation #Prosci

Lessons from M&A Leaders. For the eyes of the chosen few delving into the complexities of successful mergers, it draws upon insights gleaned from CEOs involved in major mergers over the past quarter-century. From these leaders, it uncovers pivotal lessons and reflections on what makes—or breaks—merger success. Key among these lessons is the imperative to swiftly establish a cohesive leadership team. According to survey in a CEOs Magazine 2022, setting up governance early on is pivotal for providing stability and direction amid the tumultuous integration phase. As the survey puts it, selecting adept leaders for critical roles, from the C-suite to key operational positions, sets the tone and momentum for the entire merger process. In the realm of communication, transparency reigns supreme. It stresses the importance of consistent and candid communication to manage uncertainties and quell misinformation. Maintaining alignment among leadership and providing regular updates are critical strategies to foster trust and mitigate disruption. Moreover, prioritizing people throughout the merger journey emerges as a non-negotiable principle. It underscores the necessity of addressing talent decisions promptly and objectively, aligning roles with the expanded scope and demands of the merged entity. Balancing the integration of business processes while respecting the cultural fabric of both organizations is equally crucial for sustained success. Lastly, amidst the whirlwind of change, It emphasizes the enduring focus on customers and cultural alignment. By rallying teams around shared strategic goals and fostering a unified, aspirational culture, leaders can steer the new entity towards achieving its full potential. In summary, navigating a successful merger demands foresight, decisive leadership, unwavering communication, and a steadfast commitment to people and culture. These principles, drawn from the experiences of seasoned CEOs, illuminate the path towards achieving seamless integration and sustainable growth in the dynamic landscape of mergers and acquisitions. S&P Consulting #Hiring #Recruitment #HR #JobSearch #CareerAdvice #TalentAcquisition #InterviewTips #JobOpening #EmployerBranding #HRTech #DiversityandInclusion #Staffing #RecruiterLife #JobInterview #WorkforcePlanning #JobPosting #TalentManagement #Onboarding #JobSeekers #ExecutiveSearch #Employment #JobMarket #HRLeadership #RecruitmentStrategy #TalentDevelopment #CareerGrowth #ResumeTips #RecruitingTools #JobFair #JobOffer

44% of M&A leaders cited cultural friction and poor fit between the acquiring and target companies as top reasons acquisitions fail. Cultural issues often present themselves through misaligned values, communication styles, and differing workplace norms and policies.   It's all too common to see top talent leave and employee morale take a hit when they live the misfit daily. This is what causes the planned synergies and performance goals not to be realised.   It's not just internally that you will feel these pains, it can have a knock-on effect on relationships with clients and suppliers who can feel the friction and even share your pain of losing your top performers. Long-standing relationships can be fractured or destroyed entirely, staining your reputation and performance.   Successful M&A culture integration starts during due diligence and extends past close. We have helped highly acquisitive companies reduce lag time by:   🔶 Diagnosing Culture: We provide a picture of the acquiring and target company's culture, identifying areas of differences and commonalities while providing actionable recommendations to close the gap.   🔶 Find 'Quick-Wins': Both companies will have certain policies that are more advantageous to employees. Leaders should quickly identify and action them to boost morale after the acquisition has closed.   🔶 Integration Workshops: These provide the ideal opportunity to invest in your people and deepen integration through aligning employees skills and approaches.   By investing in these strategies you can preserve the value of your acquisition and enhance it.   We would be delighted to discuss integration and cultural challenges with you, please arrange a chat here: https://lnkd.in/eayzqHut   #Culture #Leadership #EmployeeEngagement #mergers #acqusitions