45 min
S2 - Ep8: M&A Stories on Importance of Technology in M&A Integration with Hutton Henry Fifth Chrome Business Insights
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- Management
Interview on "M&A Stories on Importance of Technology in M&A Integration" with Hutton Henry
Show Notes:
M&A Integrations most often miss out on the “people” element. And if you miss this early in the integration process, it tends to come back and hurt you in a much bigger way.
Cultural sensitivity is a key part of any integration especially if it is an international acquisition. Left unaddressed it can quickly turn into animosity amongst people from the acquired company towards the acquiring company. As a result, other projects during the integration period often get impacted as people lose motivation and don’t necessarily care as much, and even sharing of information gets radically reduced.
Even though a single company has a technology platform, however, technology expertise is not necessarily critical in all integrations!
Technology can provide a competitive advantage or help in cost reduction in an integration.
There are 3 pillars in technology M&A due diligence: people, visibility on landscape and technology integration plan.
When it comes to tech integration, you must consider that imperfection is normal. Both sides have to open up and share what each other is doing even if it is not perfect. It is hard because technology people tend to be perfectionists. On the other side, when people start sharing their imperfections, it leads to greater trust and thus, possibilities of greater collaboration.
Technology integrations are also very exciting as in each integration there is something that needs to be built new like using Lego bricks to build a new structure.
What is observed in due diligence can be very different post-acquisition in terms of people and team. Therefore, attention must be paid to understanding “people” in technology integration.
There is a certain level of intelligence in understanding people, leaders, and team dynamics when it comes to integrating technology teams. One of the best tools to do is Kolbe’s conative assessment.
Three words of advice on technology due diligence:
- Try to get a copy of tech dd. See if it was internal or external
- Try to see if you can get a copy of commercial dd since it can give real insights on why a certain acquisition was conducted
- Listen for nuances from the people interactions. This one is critical since nuances are not about whether you can solve the problem or not. It is about getting a hook by which you can continue the dialogues further.
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Watch this episode and learn more about what Hutton Henry has to say about the importance of technology and people in any Post-Merger Integration. Hutton is a people-centered and technology-focused, seasoned M&A professional. His M&A career spanning more than two decades is a treasure trove of expertise and nuanced stories. He is the founder and CEO of Beyond M&A, a company that provides technology due diligence and post-deal advisory services for private equity/venture capital investors and within their portfolios.
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https://www.linkedin.com/in/hutton-henry/
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The hosts of the interview are: Anirvan Sen, CEO Fifth Chrome: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirvansen/
Marcella Hall, HR M&A Expert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hallmarcella/
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This interview is part of a series run by Fifth Chrome (https://www.fifthchrome.com), a firm that enables experienced professionals to build "Future Capabilities for Business to thrive".
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Training mentioned: - Anirvan Sen's On-demand M&A Integration Training: https://fifthchrome.com/ma-integration-masterclass-6wk/
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Books mentioned:
- Hutton Henry's book : People First: Unite your tech teams to deliver successful M&A integration projects: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1781333041
Interview on "M&A Stories on Importance of Technology in M&A Integration" with Hutton Henry
Show Notes:
M&A Integrations most often miss out on the “people” element. And if you miss this early in the integration process, it tends to come back and hurt you in a much bigger way.
Cultural sensitivity is a key part of any integration especially if it is an international acquisition. Left unaddressed it can quickly turn into animosity amongst people from the acquired company towards the acquiring company. As a result, other projects during the integration period often get impacted as people lose motivation and don’t necessarily care as much, and even sharing of information gets radically reduced.
Even though a single company has a technology platform, however, technology expertise is not necessarily critical in all integrations!
Technology can provide a competitive advantage or help in cost reduction in an integration.
There are 3 pillars in technology M&A due diligence: people, visibility on landscape and technology integration plan.
When it comes to tech integration, you must consider that imperfection is normal. Both sides have to open up and share what each other is doing even if it is not perfect. It is hard because technology people tend to be perfectionists. On the other side, when people start sharing their imperfections, it leads to greater trust and thus, possibilities of greater collaboration.
Technology integrations are also very exciting as in each integration there is something that needs to be built new like using Lego bricks to build a new structure.
What is observed in due diligence can be very different post-acquisition in terms of people and team. Therefore, attention must be paid to understanding “people” in technology integration.
There is a certain level of intelligence in understanding people, leaders, and team dynamics when it comes to integrating technology teams. One of the best tools to do is Kolbe’s conative assessment.
Three words of advice on technology due diligence:
- Try to get a copy of tech dd. See if it was internal or external
- Try to see if you can get a copy of commercial dd since it can give real insights on why a certain acquisition was conducted
- Listen for nuances from the people interactions. This one is critical since nuances are not about whether you can solve the problem or not. It is about getting a hook by which you can continue the dialogues further.
-----
Watch this episode and learn more about what Hutton Henry has to say about the importance of technology and people in any Post-Merger Integration. Hutton is a people-centered and technology-focused, seasoned M&A professional. His M&A career spanning more than two decades is a treasure trove of expertise and nuanced stories. He is the founder and CEO of Beyond M&A, a company that provides technology due diligence and post-deal advisory services for private equity/venture capital investors and within their portfolios.
---------
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hutton-henry/
-------
The hosts of the interview are: Anirvan Sen, CEO Fifth Chrome: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirvansen/
Marcella Hall, HR M&A Expert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hallmarcella/
-------
This interview is part of a series run by Fifth Chrome (https://www.fifthchrome.com), a firm that enables experienced professionals to build "Future Capabilities for Business to thrive".
-------
Training mentioned: - Anirvan Sen's On-demand M&A Integration Training: https://fifthchrome.com/ma-integration-masterclass-6wk/
-------
Books mentioned:
- Hutton Henry's book : People First: Unite your tech teams to deliver successful M&A integration projects: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1781333041
45 min