Mergers & Acquisitions Integration Handbook: Helping Companies Realize The Full Value of Acquisitions

CHAPTER 11

Cultural Integration and Assessment

In this chapter, you will learn the following:

• Some guiding principles and objectives for managing cultural integration as part of the integration process.
• Assessment guidelines to topics to address when assessing culture.
• The relationship between cultural integration and change management.

Almost every merger involves processes that help to assess and select talent for virtually all levels of an organization. Cultural assessment activities are often overlooked or ignored altogether.

Assessing culture is important as part of a merger or an acquisition. If you think a robust cultural assessment is going to be a considerable undertaking during an integration, it’s recommended that you seek advice and support from companies like Pritchett that specialize in this area and have a wealth of experience and tools to help you through the process (see www.pritchettnet.com for more information). Finding additional thought leadership to help shape your plans is money well spent.

It is important that you know enough about cultural integration to recognize when you need help and know how to get it. Cultural clashes are bound to occur on some level with any integration, but if left to fester, they can become a cancer that destroys morale and productivity and can adversely affect business results. So don’t underestimate the challenge of integrating cultures between the acquiring company and the company being acquired.

MANAGING CULTURAL INTEGRATION ...