International mergers and aquisitions: an Australian study on post agreement integration

This study of six Australian organisations explores four post M&A agreement integration issues previously highlighted as important in the literature: strategic planning, corporate culture, employee retention and the role of leadership. It was found that successful integration requires five key factors: (i) acceptance of the new corporate vision and mission, (ii) a complementary structure, (iii) a clear integration timetable, (iv) initiation and completion of cultural due diligence, and (v) the implementation of a process to manage cultural differences. A number of organisations interviewed had instigated strategies to retain key personnel in order to prevent knowledge drain post M & A. Toachieve M&A business objectives, integration leaders were identified as needing to focus on: innovative problem solving; developing effective communication with personnel; and relationship building.