What Do They Really Want From a Merger?
Completing a merger with a competitor seemed ideal…
But after some initial progress, negotiations hit a snag.
That’s when we stepped in to advise this ecommerce company.
The founder of the business wants to step away from day-to-day operations and fully exit within the next 12 months.
Meanwhile, the founder of the other company is eager to lead the merged entity.
So far, so good.
There are plenty of obvious benefits — one company has a strong HR team, while the other excels in sales and marketing.
However, the challenge is that not all aspects of the businesses align smoothly, which could lead to some job losses.
This isn’t uncommon, yet many business owners rush into mergers, only to find themselves in a difficult situation months later.
The issue? They fail to understand what’s most important to the shareholders of the other company. In this case, the key objective was to avoid any job losses.
Negotiations are now back on track, with a plan to redeploy staff to new roles — but this serves as a crucial reminder: always clarify your assumptions about what the other side truly wants and what matters most to them.
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