Merging two existing organisations can be a complex disrupter on an otherwise balanced company ecosystem. At the end of settlement, the post-merger workforce requires a renewed outlook by management and employees alike.
Setting aside the challenges of the workplace socio-environment; the change to user systems, preferred technologies and general procedure requires a deft use of a well-timed strategy and a mutual understanding of the end goal for which the acquisition took place.
With the right help and guidance from existing departments, management and change management specialists, your business can integrate successfully and come out twice as strong in the process.
Develop a strategy
Once the chaos of the initial migration begins to subside, you’ll likely value having an action-plan in place to keep momentum up. Stay ahead of the post-merger environment by developing a strategy early on. In planning a strategy, engage the leaders of each facet of your business, from IT to product development. Each can provide realistic requests and proposals that will indicate focus areas that sustain the core functions of the company.
Once all the relevant information is gathered, set goals and indicate milestones for the planned execution of this strategy. An organisation post-merger is vulnerable to the risk of compromising knowledge management essential to keeping operations running smoothly. By keeping track of what will be passed on and what will be phased out, boundaries are set and expectations exceeded.
Work with existing assets
An acquired organisation represents a value proposition, with many company assets being fine-tuned to the needs of the existing business, stakeholders and customers.
User systems already in place have the benefit of possessing the data needed to run the procedure smoothly. If possible, the company can benefit by keeping existing assets. By accommodating for change to the user process in the migration; management can minimise disruption to work-flow by conducting upgrades and digital architecture reconfiguration while also saving on costs to the company long-term.
With the support of your change management team, technology assets that will increase value and opportunities for growth should be identified and structurally installed into the post-merger organisation.
Do your user systems have capacity to scale with the growth of the post-migration business? This is the kind of question you should be asking your team and service technicians. If the answer is no, it may be time to open the floor to recommendations from a trusted specialist.
Review existing products, processes and services
Products and services will also benefit from review at this stage, considering what works in the outset of the reformed company. Do certain products no longer offer the value they once did? Do they cost more to run in the new business model? By making a swift decision to phase out what no longer serves purpose, room for innovation takes its place.
In cases of a transitional government sector or entity, the 9Yards team has experience in supporting reviews associated with a Machinery of Government (MoG). These assessments make way for greater outcomes in policy and procedure, while accommodating a prearranged budget.
Find new resources
In the review process, it’s common to discover that some of your user systems, software apps or even products have run their course. Finding new technology or building new platforms can be an exciting equaliser in the post-merger environment, but it’s important to take your time to find the right solution.
The merger budget should accommodate the creation and design of new technology infrastructure. In essence, the IT budget should account for the people who use the systems, the products or services on offer and the data housed by the company to run business efficiently. While staying on budget is a conversation for another blog, allowing room for flexibility to the financial plan can ease strain on plans that may grow or change.
When the 9Yards team partnered with the NSW Government, we learnt that building on existing systems can lead to extra maintenance on old products, while trying to maintain the new. This not only costs more but takes valuable time away from assets that bolster revenue and generate interest.
9Yards can help
No company is an island, with immense change comes the potential for unseen challenges or overspend that could be avoided. At worst, missing vital facets of either business in the move may lead to friction later. By engaging the help of change management and merger specialists, management can be supported to make thoughtful evaluations about the post-merger organisation they will operate in. Consultants trained over many acquisitions can pose valuable resources that fit the business, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.
9Yards specialise in pre- and post-merger consultancy to strengthen the value of future business and its digital assets. In our experience we understand a well-planned strategy should reflect the aligned mission of an organisation and honour the commitment made at first acquisition to share common ground.
Our consultants have years of experience in transformation projects ranging from small scale projects to $500 million, with a client base just as varied. Get in touch with our team today to find out how we can support your post-project.
