Merger Mindset

<p><em>The Merger Mindset</em> offers a unique perspective for leaders—those executives whose companies reputations and futures will thrive or fail because of a deal or a series of deals. This book for leaders helps decision-makers deal with the powerful undercurrents and interpersonal dynamics at play in every deal and no one is more qualified to write it than Constance Dierickx and Linda Henman.</p><p>Other books on mergers acquisitions and divestitures overwhelmingly have one characteristic in common: they’re technical. Attorneys write books about the legal and contractual aspects of deals; project management experts write from the point of view of managing tasks and schedules; and investment bankers write about valuation and negotiation. <em>The Merger Mindset</em> presents an amalgamation of what Drs. Dierickx and Henman have observed—and in many cases helped to create—in more than 65 cumulative years of consulting with Fortune 500 companies privately-held firms family-owned businesses and military organizations. Their in-the-trenches experiences spurred them to arrive at this premise: To position their organizations for more success leaders can’t shy away from the high stakes tough decisions about their futures.</p><p>This book maps the key steps in the M & A journey. It takes the reader through how to make the decision to grow acquisitively identify roadblocks and typical wrong turns and ultimately shows how to unlock their decision-making potential while navigating an increasingly uncertain world. Through compelling stories and surprising research findings readers will discover that there’s much more to the decision-making that drives M & A deals than they ever imagined and they will come away with tools to help them deepen their understanding of what it takes to succeed. A fascinating read the text weaves lessons that surface from the stories with highly pragmatic advice about suggested mindset checklists processes and diagnostic tools. Readers will understand that while M & A deals aren’t simple leaders don’t have to overly complicate them either. Instead they can simplify the process if they remember hope shouldn’t serve as a strategy and they can’t abdicate or delegate their leadership responsibilities.</p><p>The lessons from mergers and acquisitions are critical to those considering a deal but applied elsewhere they have equal value even though noticing them takes more effort. This is the essence of leadership: doing the hard work of ensuring that the gulf between strategy and tactics does not lead to either over simplification or needless complexity.</p>