Activistmonitor, an Acuris comprehensive shareholder activist platform that covers shareholder activist data and intelligence, including 13F filing analysis, has released its findings for the first half (H1) of 2017 for shareholder activism in North America
Historically it was not uncommon for HR to get a “seat at the table” late in the M&A process, if they were offered a seat at all. We are happy to report that we have heard from many of our HR colleagues that HR is engaged earlier and at a more strategic level. If HR is engaged late in the M&A process it can result in unrealized synergies and additional deal value erosion for domestic M&A deals.
As M&A professionals, we’re all familiar with the statistics about deal failure rates. And at the root of these failed deals, you’ll often find people and culture issues that could have been anticipated and addressed if HR leaders had been included on the deal team. The best serial acquirers have learned (sometimes the hard way) that it’s important to make HR a part of an interdisciplinary deal team.
We talk a lot about various failure factors from a standpoint of helping executives recognize what to do and not do in the midst of a live and fast-moving deal. For my two cents, avoiding an epic failure during integration begins with a clear understanding of what we like to call "Deal-type DNA," or the fundamental code of what really drives value in a given transaction.
A Modern Model of Competencies and Responsibilities
That’s a question we get from a lot of organizations which are attempting to improve their M&A capabilities and develop their internal M&A resources. First, let’s talk about the differences between M&A Program Management and M&A Project Management. While both are essential to integration success, the roles and responsibilities of classic Program Managers and Project Managers are distinct.
Winston Churchill once cautioned, “Those that fail to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it." So today we’ll take a quick look at one of the most famous M&A disasters in history as a means to keep us focused on skills and insights for future integration success. And I’d be willing to bet that in spite of all the media coverage this deal has received over the years, you’ve never heard the biggest mistake Daimler made…
Have you ever heard the phrase “put the moose on the table?” That’s a humorous way of saying it’s time for a group to finally deal with the big, hairy issue everyone’s been putting off. A consultant friend and mentor of mine has an even better way of making that same point -- “let’s get the skunk on the table.” And today, that’s exactly what we are going to do by looking at the hard, stinking truth about what happens when executives fail to provide adequate strategic directional guidance prior to launching integration.
Spin-Offs Offer Opportunities for High-Value Growth
by Jim Jeffries, Chairman, M&A Leadership Council
In the recent past, more corporations are managing their businesses as a portfolio with many moving parts rather than attempting to grow into static behemoth brands. Therefore spin-offs have become a type of divestiture that is just as strategic for high value growth as acquisitions. A spin-off is a form of divestiture that typically can generate new value by demerging current business units back to shareholders in order to operate them more independently.