ROLE OF A HR MANAGER IN MERGERS AND ACQUISITION

the wave of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) has reached record levels in
both the number of deals completed and the combined value of the merged
companies.
Leveraging HR Human Resources can add value to the M&A life cycle in the
following ways:

# Pre-deal
- help to identify issues/planning due diligence
- plan due diligence for people/organization cultural fit
- help to educate the “deal” team
- help to develop acquisition guidelines
- Due diligence
- estimate people
-related transaction costs
- estimate people-related ongoing costs
- identify/assess cultural differences
- estimate people-related savings
- recommend HR policies and programs
- validate intangible assets
- assess costs of integrating HR systems

# Integration planning
- develop strategies for employee communications
- design programs to retain key talent
- plan and lead the integration effort
- develop total rewards strategy for new entity
- help new organization cope with change
- define organization blueprint and staffing plan
- monitor employee attitudes and engagement
- manage selection and placement process
- manage de-selection/outplacement process
- outline people goals and guiding principles
- form people
-integration teams
- help to manage labor relations
- advise on productivity/workforce synergies - recommend
assessment/selection method
# Implementation
- align HR policies, programs, and practices with business practices
- monitor progress of people
-related synergies and ensuring workforce momentum is sustained
- ensure incentive programs are designed to reward executives and key
employees for achieving the goals of the merger
# HR should also encourage the new company’s leaders to do
the following: - recognize and reward behaviors that support
the new culture
- consider cultural behaviors that support the new culture
- align culture with the vision and business strategy of the combined
organization
- identify the desired culture and gain agreement from senior management
and opinion leaders of both organizations
# “Hope is not a strategy” Identifying the role HR should play and the tasks
in which HR should engage is a good start.
However, successfully executing the role is something altogether different.
It is misguided to hand off these critical issues to your HR department and
hope that it can execute successfully.
“Hope is not a strategy.” People must have specific skills, knowledge,
abilities, and experience in order to succeed, among them:
- ability to evaluate another company
- ability to advise regarding employee sensitivities/attitudes
- M&A literacy and integration know-how
- ability to plan and lead complex integration projects
- knowledge of best people practices/systems
- knowledge of how to retain and motivate critical talent
- expertise with people/organization/culture integration