We generally recommend taking between 30 and 60 days to complete due diligence. We find this is enough time to complete a thorough evaluation of the business without letting the process drag on. Due diligence will include onsite visits with your internal team and your external team of lawyers, accountants, and your third party M&A …
Category: Due Diligence and Integration
Growth through Acquisition – Exit Readiness Podcast Interview
Acquisitions can transform your company’s growth trajectory and set you up for long-term success. You may choose to use acquisition because your organic growth has stalled and hiring additional sales people or investing in R&D will not not help you achieve your business goals. Acquisition is fast and opens the door to many new growth options by bringing …
Will Your Acquisition Fall Apart?
While it’s an important milestone, a signed letter of intent does not guarantee a successful acquisition. Just ask Pfizer who withdrew its $150 billion bid to acquire Allergan after signing a LOI. Pfizer ended up paying a breakup fee of $150 million. After the LOI is signed, you still have a few major steps to take before the acquisition …
Can You Conduct Thorough Due Diligence When Data Is Missing?
One of the challenges of due diligence is that you often do not have access to all the data. Of course you want to know every last detail about the acquisition prospect so you can make the best decision. Unfortunately, the real world is never perfect. The prospect may have an incomplete or no record of the …
Marriott Begins Integrating Loyalty Programs
Just this Sunday, I received an email about the Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Marriott Rewards combining with Starwood Preferred Guest. According to the email and Marriott’s website, the three loyalty programs will be linked, but operate as independent programs. Marriott does not expect to merge the programs any time before 2018. Marriott International first announced it …
Yahoo Cyberattack Highlights Need for Functional Due Diligence in M&A
Yahoo says the private information of at least 500 million has been compromised due to a cyber-attack in 2014. In the biggest security breach to date, hackers gained access to sensitive information including names, emails addresses, telephone numbers, birth dates, passwords, and security questions. The security breach has ramifications not just for Yahoo and its …
What Is a Company Really Like? Uncovering the Truth in Due Diligence
During due diligence most companies will present you with their formal documents including HR manuals, procedures, financials and organizational charts. It’s not enough to rely on these documents alone; if you want to know what a company is really like, you’ll have to dig a bit deeper. One way to go beyond the surface is …
How to Be Successful in M&A: Think Integration
You’ve developed your strategy, identified the right markets, negotiated with the owner and papered the deal. If you think once you sign on the dotted line your job is done, you are mistaken. The M&A process doesn’t end when the deal closes. M&A is really a journey “from beginning to beginning” where the consummation of …
Deal Changer or Deal Breaker? Assessing Risk in Due Diligence
During formal due diligence, which typically begins after signing the letter of intent, you gain access to in-depth information and begin taking a closer look at the acquisition target. Traditionally the primary purpose of this stage of the M&A is to identify significant risks that could impact the terms of the deal or put it …
How to Measure Company Culture
Culture is an important part of an organization, but it can be difficult to define. Unlike other areas, such as finance and operations, which have concrete metrics like revenue, EBITDA, and number of employees, quantitatively measuring culture can be challenging. Leaders often rely on their “gut” to understand another company’s culture, but this leaves an …
