Do the Right Deal, Do the Deal Right: 35 Success Factors for Mergers and Acquisitions

Following is quoted from inside flap of the book: Are Mergers and Acquisitions a way to promote growth or an act of greed? The answer may depend on whom you talk to, or how you frame the discussion. More likely, it will depend on the specific deal at hand. What remains undeniable, though, is that we live in a business age that increasingly turns to M&As as a way to solve various problems both for the consumer and for the owner. M&As represent the most viable option at times for a business looking to grow and flourish, but this is not to say that M&As are without very certain risks. There are, of course, numerous accounts of M&As that have failed to live up to their expectations. The costs of such failures are lower profitability, lower credit rating, long-term stagnation, or even bankruptcy for the acquirer. Circumstances beyond the control of management, such as the timing of macroeconomic fluctuations and global events, can impact the outcome of the deal. For all of the above reasons, one must therefore be attuned to the fine points of any M&A, just as one should be aware of all of the complexities that have become associated with conducting M&As in our current and future business climates. Despite all of the various complexities involved in such a discussion, the core point of Do the Right Deal / Do the Deal Right is that mergers and acquisitions involve an intense effort and that they require committed leadership that is focused on the disciplined pursuit of specific fundamentals. Although M&A deal success is certainly never a guarantee, a deal maker can substantially improve the probability of success by adhering to the 35 M&A success factors that are outlined in this book. Each of these success factors are addressed in detail, and together, they present a solid course of action for pursuing M&A deals. Doing the right deal, then, entails an understanding of the industry s current and future dynamics. It involves aspiring toward securing a stronger position for the firm in the face of a changing industry environment. Using clear criteria, the acquirer that is seeking the right deal makes value added decisions to capture a good opportunity while abandoning any deals that would be a poor fit. All aspects of the target s business operational, financial, cultural, environmental are included in an assessment of the target s value. In the right deal, shareholder wealth is enhanced because the acquisition price is in line with its strategic value to the acquirer. Doing the deal right, in a similar way, requires a clear business case and an ongoing due diligence that starts at the beginning of the M&A process and is powered through the use of information technology. Doing it right depends first and foremost on senior leadership, and on detailed planning by gaining early insight into the integration phase challenges. Doing the right deal likewise involves a fast tempo during integration through strong program management and the timely realization of synergy benefits. With the above aspects taken together, Do the Right Deal / Do the Deal Right explores M&A success factors from a management perspective built upon years of experience working on mergers and acquisitions and extensive research. The book is an essential resource for deal makers as well as for managers and employees of businesses undergoing an M&A deal, or for those simply interested in learning more about M&A deal making to prepare better for future possibilities. Comprehensive, clear, and smart, Do the Right Deal / Do the Deal Right is a valuable addition to the field of business studies.