The main idea in a merger is to bring two entities together to create a more competitive and competent company. While there are plenty of excellent reasons behind a merger, more often than not, businesses that choose to merge do it in an attempt to combine force and secure their collective competitive edge against big players on the market. On paper, the addition of skills and expertise can be hugely appealing. It greatly outweighs other competitors on the market, and it can also help the new merger to reach out to a broader audience group – in theory, you add up your customers and demographics together.
But, that’s the theory. In practice, you can’t combine teams like two pieces of a Lego game. You need to create a path toward collective teamwork if you want the merger to be a success. How do you best get teams that don’t know each other to communicate and perform like one?
Share data and projects
Merging two teams with different customer bases doesn’t happen overnight. Your first priority should be to develop an IT solution that can ensure a smooth continuation of all activities. You don’t want your merger to stumble on the ground of ineffective solutions. But, more importantly, you need to introduce a cloud system in the early stage of the merger. Indeed, your cloud should serve as a source of information bot different teams. Using real-time data sharing, you can not only keep everyone updated, but you can also support collective projects. Ultimately, the purpose is to get teams to understand how their skills and expertise fit together long before they can meet in person. The cloud provides the platform of exchange as well as the sense of real-time collaboration.
Your get-together event is key
Team building events are designed to enhance productivity and cooperation within the same company. With a merger, they also serve as a get-to-know-each-other activity. Indeed, the two companies might not share the same culture. Additionally, it can be difficult for employees to accept each other – if survival instinct kicks in, employees are more likely to battle for power rather than cooperate. But team building events can provide the platform people need to create a new cultural, professional and social understanding of their mission. Activities, however, need to focus on fun and playful elements that break the ice, such as creating a sports challenge or puzzle solving games. Organizing a golf contest gives your employees plenty of time to chat and connect, for instance. You can even provide equipment for everyone – rockbottomgolf is the ideal address for affordable gear. But there are other options such as escape games or even a parkour challenge.
Don’t squeeze all the productivity out of the team
Last, but not least, don’t your new team will need time to create a routine. You can’t combine two different groups of skills and expect people to hit the ground running. On the contrary, during the first months of the merger, your employees define new processes and familiarize themselves with their surroundings. In short, you shouldn’t set high goals from the start!
When the team isn’t the point of focus, even the most successful M&A on paper tend to fail. You need to create a merger strategy that works for your people if you’re going to increase your business profitability.
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