Members may download one copy of our sample forms and templates for your personal use within your organization. Neither members nor non-members may reproduce such samples in any other way e. Tens of thousands of mergers and acquisitions take place each year globally, leaving many employees of the acquired entities feeling unsettled and unsure of their place in the new organization. Sedgwick Claims Management Services Inc. Since Browne started at Sedgwick 18 years ago, the number of employees at the company has soared to 27,, spanning 65 countries, from less than 1, in the early s.
About half of this growth has been organic, and half has come through acquisitions. Particularly as Sedgwick has increased its geographic footprint, the HR team has had to contend with different laws, regulations, cultures and norms in the various jurisdictions. WEX, based in Portland, Maine, has almost 5, employees and acquired four companies last year alone. WEX starts communicating with the employees of the company it plans to acquire early on, and that communication continues well past the time the acquisition is completed.
Communication should be coordinated by both organizations during the investigatory stage of the merger or acquisition, rather than trying to keep information under wraps, Sorenson says. Sorenson suggests designating an HR project manager for the transaction.
Be as open and candid as you can. It buys you a lot more credibility with the workforce. A study by The Conference Board found that companies that were more successful when merging were more likely to engage with middle managers. More than three-quarters of companies that successfully acquired other organizations embraced that approach, compared with about half of less-successful companies. In addition, employees look to middle managers for reassurance. That may be because there are often just 10 or 15 people in the C-suite but hundreds or even thousands of middle managers.
A merger may take months or years to complete, and organizations still have both internal and external clients to take care of in the interim. He recommends creating a document with frequently asked questions and establishing a process that allows employees and managers to seek updates. To keep employees on board, organizations may offer retention bonuses for those who stay until the transaction is completed or provide bonuses for those who meet specific performance metrics during that time, Sorenson says.
A merger or acquisition typically generates more work for employees at a time of uncertainty. Because of that, companies may consider assigning some employees to focus on the work that needs to be completed on a daily basis and asking others to focus on the integration. Or a company might consider outsourcing some of the workload, Kompare says.
There, they share information about Sedgwick and its vision for the future, Browne says, and meet the new employees to put names together with faces. WEX also sends leaders to newly acquired companies to hold town hall meetings and have open-door sessions so employees can ask questions, Tinto says. Company leaders may offer virtual meetings with new employees as well.
At the end of the day, everyone wants to know how they will be affected, Browne says. Having members of the integration team be fully prepared to recognize and leverage the diversity among the combined employees is critical.
This may require some cultural awareness training during the integration phase for both sides. Early commitment by management to learn as much as possible about the various culture s of a target company is key. Many mergers and acquisitions are planned with a financial and operational strategy in mind, and HR is often the last to get involved. And yet, the human integration piece is the most difficult. Those involved will benefit from having a strategy mapped to the cultural differences, both before and after the deal is signed.
As part of this, a plan to educate managers on how to address and leverage these cultural gaps corporate and national will make the transition much smoother and faster. With clear communication based upon a commitment to integrate the best of both organizations, the new company will be stronger and more innovative in the long term. With more than consultants and nearly 4, country specialists, Aperian Global has the power to ensure a smoother merger.
Categories: Global Mindset , Global Teams. On Monday morning, employees from both companies arrived to new offices on different floors instead of just placing Gillette employees into the already established layout.
Involved internal stakeholders in their decision-making process — The decision-making was not limited to the highest-level executives. It required CEMEX leaders to establish a post-merger integration process that: Formed the best team for the task — Changing processes is difficult enough for an internal team, but it gets even more complicated in a merger involving teams from two different cultures.
This allayed fears that the Rugby team had. Instead of viewing the PMI team as coming to take their jobs, they saw them as fellow — and temporary — team members who would work alongside them. The PMI members took the time to listen to their Rugby counterparts, actively seeking their advice. The CEMEX experts also recommended keeping all local managers who were interested in retaining their positions. Once Rugby employees better understood the principals and processes behind CEMEX, they were motivated to join the team, igniting change among other Rugby employees when they returned.
Insightfully, CEMEX saw the challenges of working with different cultures and viewed it as an opportunity to bridge cultural gaps. The PMI team underwent cross-cultural training in British culture, learning what was accepted and how they needed to adjust their current processes to align with expectations.
They achieved a successful merger thanks to a plan that: Enlisted the participation of Saatchi employees — At the Publicis welcoming retreat, Saatchi played a leading role in the meeting. Instead of expecting Saatchi to assimilate into their corporate culture, Publicis made it clear that Saatchi would be integral to forming this new company. Instead of working to bring these two visions and identities together — or defining how they could exist in unison — Daimler-Benz neglected to address the issue.
Established mutual trust and respect — A key of successful mergers and acquisitions is creating mutual trust and respect among the two different companies. Through communications and actions, other companies made it a point to highlight the importance of the acquired company talent, seeking advice and establishing teams that worked together for the greater good.
In this case, however, both sides were reluctant to work together and share their resources. Daimler-Benz exacerbated this issue by trying to dictate the terms of how the new company should work. Instead, the goal is to make a company better by adopting new talent, processes and philosophies.
Daimler-Benz had a hierarchy that was based on respect for authority and a clear chain of command. They took a team-oriented approach. Your team needs to: Help the often highly emotional and culturally diverse employees navigate through the process Communicate the change effectively and establish processes that are transparent Act as hosts welcoming the new employees Show they are eager to learn from the acquired company Build relationships that cross-cultural differences Work closely with HR to build positive connections across functions and informal networks A Complete Integration of the Two Companies Without integrating the two companies fully, you have two separate entities that are losing out on valuable connections.
To fully integrate, you need to: Identify the processes that offer the best value and adopt them Consider those systems that need to be consolidated and centrally-run financial systems vs. To alleviate fears, build trust and motivate your new combined team, you need to: Provide a human face behind the new company that employees can relate to Offer a consistent message Provide opportunities for employees to engage in the discussion, such as town-hall-style meetings Communicate regularly with updates on the process and notices of upcoming changes Cross-Cultural Training Companies involved in any global merger or acquisition activity face the added challenge of integrating national cultural differences in addition to corporate or organizational differences.
When other national cultures are involved, one can expect additional complexity around the following activities, among others: Communication style indirect vs. Through effective cross-cultural training, employees: Become aware of their own work style vs.
Contact Us. More deals fail due to poor integration than any other factor, so begin planning as soon as the target is identified. Develop your plans according to function and accountability and concentrate on those issues raised during due diligence that threaten your ability to realize value.
Compensate : If you want existing management to stay, make their targets achievable and compensate appropriately. People will respond to uncertainty by assuming the worst. Care : How you react to challenges can make all of the difference.
Even small inconveniences can generate ill feelings. Respond quickly and completely. Cull : If you must say goodbye to any members of management, make your decisions quickly, but carefully. Skip to content. Business Cards. Payment Solutions. International Payments. Business Class. Summary Thinking about merging with or acquiring another business? Check your own liquidity and financial health Before you enter any transaction, says Burmeister, determine if you have the financial wherewithal by performing a thorough financial health check.
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