Dubbed a "merger maven" by Fortune magazine, Mitch Marks is recognized internationally as an innovator in developing approaches to making mergers, acquisitions, and alliances work. Since 1981, he has helped executives achieve the financial and strategic objectives of their combinations and partnerships by addressing human, cultural, and organizational issues. Mitch works directly with senior executives, as well as with internal Human Resources and Communications professionals. And, Mitch offers informative and engaging programs to all employees on the merger, acquisition, and alliance process.
Mitch has worked across all industry groups and in all types of combinations, including friendly and unfriendly deals, the acquisition and integration of smaller entities into larger organizations, and even the very rare case of true mergers of equals. With experience in over 100 combinations, Mitch provides services at each stage of the combination process:
PRE-COMBINATION PHASE
As the deal is conceived and negotiated:
• conducting cultural due diligence
• building a consensus among merger partners regarding the intent of the combination
• focusing executive attention on the factors that matter most in merger success
• articulating the desired "cultural end state" for the combination
• aiding executives in determining the key structural, strategic, and cultural options related to integration success
• building a shared view of the cultural characteristics to be retained fromthe pre-combination organizations and/or to be developed in the post-combination organization
• providing counsel to executives on tactics for managing employee-related issues, including retaining desired talent and handling the distraction from performance caused by combination-related stress and uncertainty
• training internal resources for their roles in making merger, acquisitions, and alliances work
COMBINATION PHASE
As integration planning ensues and implementation decisions
are made:
• designing an appropriate transition management structure
• launching integration planning teams in a positive and productive manner
• clarifying transition teams charters, working styles, deliverables and
timetables
• helping executives prioritize integration requirements and allocation of
resources
• alerting executives to key challenges in the integration process and
identifying opportunities for positive action
• assessing executive talent and determining selection criteria and staffing processes
• providing counsel to individual executives regarding their personal fate
in the post-combination organization and their leadership role during transition
• diagnosing and surveying employee perspectives on integration process and progress
• minimizing incidents of post-combination culture clash
• developing comprehensive communications programs
• working with internal communications professionals to design and deliver
an integration communications program
• working with internal human resources and organizational effectiveness
professionals to enhance their capabilities in facilitating integration
• designing and delivering workshops and training programs for senior
managers on the stresses and strains of the merger and acquisition process and
on how to maintain productivity and morale amidst the confusion and chaos of the
transition period
• working with internal staff to cascade interventions and programs through the employee ranks
POST-COMBINATION PHASE
As teams come together, the new organization settles
in, and the combined entity and its people regroup from initial implementation:
• working with partners to bring the desired post-combination organization
to life
• locking in the desired post-combination culture
• developing a sense of "one team" going forward
• building team work at the top and through the ranks
• identifying and addressing any lingering "integration hot spots"
• designing forums to share merger management insights and learnings for
future integration efforts
• conducting "post-mortems" to understand why previous combinations produced disappointing results and develop an enhanced approached to combination
management
In addition to working on specific combinations, Mitch also assists firms that anticipate future mergers, acquisitions and alliances by conducting workshops that acquaint executives with the integration process and the human and cultural issues that need to be managed to realize desired financial and strategic objectives.