Prepare for and Handle a Merger or Acquisition
Key Points
- Mergers, acquisitions and other corporate restructures can present a number of challenges for HR professionals. In today's volatile economy, restructures are common and HR should be prepared to evaluate corporate practices and compare them with the company to be acquired or merged (the "target" company).
- HR should be heavily involved in the process of communicating with the executive board or upper management to ensure it is familiar with the goals and purposes of the restructure. That information should drive the "due diligence" and "cultural compatibility" assessment that HR will perform.
- Up to 50% of all mergers or acquisitions fail to produce increased shareholder value. Accordingly, HR should be vigilant to address and prevent loss of productivity before, during and after a restructure.
