This post is part of a series on common misconceptions about acquisitions I’ve encountered over the years as an advisor. Read parts one and two. Misconception #3: Only the CEO and CFO Should Be Involved Because of the confidential nature of acquisitions, naturally most company owners do not disclose their acquisition plans to the entire …
Tag: functional leaders
How Long Does Due Diligence Take?
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 …
How to Conduct Functional Due Diligence and Maintain Seller Confidentiality
Q: How often are you able to bring together both buyer and seller functional personnel during due diligence? Some sellers might be sensitive to confidentiality and not open to bringing their personnel into the fold. A: When conducting due diligence, we advocate a functional approach, where leaders from the buyer’s organization meet with the seller’s. There …
Aligning Buyer and Seller Functional Leaders in Due Diligence
Q: “What if the buyer and seller functional leaders do not match? How do you coordinate the two sides?” We take a functional approach to due diligence where we encourage your leaders from sales, marketing, finance, operations and other functional areas to meet with their respective leaders on the seller’s side. A functional approach ensures …
What Employees Really Think ─ Conducting HR and Organizational Due Diligence
People are critical to the success of your company, and it’s no different in the business you are acquiring. But how can you go beyond the surface and find out what employees really think? It is doubtful employees will be completely open and honest when asked point blank, “Do you like your job?” One of …
Key Questions to Ask in Due Diligence
I’m often asked for a due diligence checklist by clients or acquirers who are anxious to make sure they’ve covered all their bases. While there are plenty of due diligence checklists, I caution against using a list developed by someone else because it may not cover aspects that are important to your organization. Your questions …
Use Functional Leaders When Identifying Potential Transaction Synergies
Earlier this month, the Association for Corporate Growth hosted a webinar on “Identifying and Achieving Transaction Synergies and Impacts on the Acquisition Price.” One of the takeaways was the gulf between financial and strategic leaders: “We often see a disconnect between the financial modelers of synergies and the strategic & operational planners, particularly in large …
