Reorganize for Resilience

2

Lever 1: Coordination

Aligning Activities and Information Around the Customer Axis

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS can be dangerous liaisons. On paper, they seem to add depth and breadth to an organization. In practice, they often introduce new stumbling blocks to overall resilience. The top brass on both sides might be on the same page, but warfare down the ranks can create paralysis from top to bottom. Yet for business leaders, M&A often proves an irresistible attraction, and sometimes a fatal one. Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), one of the largest global real estate management firms, was very nearly a case in point.¹

Established in 1968 as U.S.-based LaSalle Partners, the company had enjoyed years of growth, culminating in a successful 1997 public ...