MERGE, Part 1: Map. Start the integration before you sign

This is the first of five weekly posts on MERGE, the method we use to run a deal from first look to the next acquisition: Map, Estimate, Realise, Go Live, Evolve. One stage a week.

The problem Map solves

Integration is where the deal delivers, and it is also where most deals go wrong. In one survey of failed acquisitions, integration was named as the primary problem in 83% of cases (source). But we're veering in the typical '80% of mergers fail' message that is so appealing as a sensational newspaper headline, but doesn't resonate for us in the industry - as we dont want mergers to fail and work hard to avoid it.

The problem isn't integration; it's the sequence, which is typically diligence first, signing second, integration planning third.

That gap is what merger synchronisation closes. We synchronise the merger before it is signed, then run it. Map is the first step.

What 'Map' is

Map is diligence done with the integration in mind. We look at the technology, the operations and the people, and we ask one question of everything we find: what does this mean for the first day, the first hundred days and the deal thesis?

• The thesis, shared. If the people running diligence do not know why you are buying, they cannot tell you what threatens it. We cover this in getting aligned before you sign.

• Technology at the heart of revenue. Half or more of the savings and gains the deal was priced on are strongly linked to IT (source), so the estate is mapped for what it costs to change, not just what it costs to run.

• The people. Who holds the knowledge, who is likely to leave, and where two teams will rub. See stakeholder mapping.

Map does not stop at signing

Map keeps running through Estimate and Realise. What you learn after signing updates the map, and the map updates the plan. It is not a report that goes in a drawer, and as we have said before, it is about risk, not perfection. But too often, firms don't share their thesis or DD details, and when they do, people don't read them before integration. That's why we built Lens: Merger OS, which we use for integration and carve-outs.

What you leave Map with

You don't need an audit; you need informed action. Map provides risks, dependencies, opportunities and hidden work understood, with unbudgeted spend uncovered before you commit. That becomes the input to Estimate, next week.

If you have a target in view, remember that every deal should be easier than the last. Discuss that ethos with us.