Mergers and Acquisitions Checklist

• Check out the company’s ¬pedigree. When considering an acquisition, the buying team must study the company and its management team. This means getting to know its ¬potential partners, investors, board members, advisors and competitors. Do they have good customer relationships? Are they respected in their industry? Are they part of the team or just commanding it?
• Identify the glue that holds things together. This is usually the founding management team, but not always. PMC-Sierra worldwide HR chief Steve Cadigan once had to decide who, in an acquired company, would be laid off. He believed a “receptionist” would be a likely candidate, but the CEO pointed out that the employee did far more than answer telephones. In reality, he was the team’s cheerleader and coach, the person who organized everything and kept morale at a high level – the glue that made the team work together. Cadigan quickly found a job for this valuable person in the new organization.