A common way for companies to meet their growth objectives is through mergers and acquisitions. This is a fundamental shift and not a passing fad.
Achieving excellence in M&A starts with an honest self-appraisal of your current capabilities. And, according to a recent global study, many companies are far more confident than they should be. In the study, companies that achieved their stated merger objectives more than 75% of the time were classified as “high achievers” and those that met objectives less than 25% of the time were called “low achievers.”
You’d think, given their poor track record, these low achievers would be gun-shy about doing more deals… and, you’d be wrong. They are just as likely as the high achievers to “go for broke” and try to improve their business in this fashion– over and over again.
To beat the odds, companies need to improve their capabilities in every phase of the M&A process, from pipeline management and deal execution to integration and ongoing operations. The goal is to make M&A fast, efficient, and repeatable… and to manage risk effectively.
As deals become an increasingly important part of corporate strategy, a “good enough” approach to M&A probably isn’t.
About Wendi McGowan