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Implement and Sustain Cultural Integration Post-Merger or Acquisition

Move beyond the standard practice of unguided cultural evolution to strategic cultural integration.

  • Few M&As consider culture pre-transaction, and even fewer have comprehensive plans for integrating cultures post-transaction.
  • Traditional approaches to change and culture management cannot be comprehensively applied to M&A situations due to the confidential nature and legal requirements that delay communication with employees in most cases.

Executive Summary

Critical Insight

In mergers and acquisitions (M&As), cultural integration cannot be ignored. Organizations that leverage change management and communication around organizational values, cultural drivers, and leadership buy-in move beyond the standard practice of unguided cultural evolution and toward achieving their M&A objectives.

Impact & Result

  • Leverage the power of the employee voice to establish a future state of organizational culture based on shared values that provide the integrated organization a cultural vision to work toward.
  • Promote effective change management strategies, accounting for M&A considerations. This includes communicating effectively to drive organizational effectiveness, improve employee engagement, reinforce desired behaviors, and create value within the integrated organization.

Research & Tools

1. Assess and define future state

Conduct a cultural assessment, select and define focus values for the integrated organization, and develop culture initiatives to support the desired future state.

2. Implement culture change

Identify HR and leadership’s role in managing culture change after an M&A and prepare for the long-term process of culture change.

3. Sustain cultural integration

Establish metrics and boundaries to monitor cultural integration and identify areas of opportunity to sustain cultural integration.

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