Following a corporate merger, many employees become uncertain as to their future. They may question the acquiring organization’s objectives, their own role within the company and even their job stability.
Though incoming managers are on the winning side of the deal, they have a challenging road ahead. Not only must they consider the corporate culture of the acquired company, but they must motivate each individual employee to accept change and do their best for the common good. Building a cohesive team requires strong leadership skills that generate trust.
As the Dutch saying goes,”trust arrives by foot but leaves on horseback.” Confidence and motivation levels can rapidly diminish if employees perceive their new management as incompetent or unauthentic. Trust and open communication are vital components in any team’s success.
The first key step in team-building includes the creation of a trust-centric environment in which all team members feel empowered and heard. This is best done by getting to know them personally and identifying what is most important to each team member.
The second is the creation of informal events outside of the work environment. Such activities enhance communication and foster a sense of unity by allowing people get to know one another on a more personal level.
The third way to build an effective team is to set clearly defined goals. The best teams have clearly defined roles where there is a high level of member accountability. This helps maintain an individual’s productivity and bolsters success of the team as a whole.
Having been involved in over 100 mergers in my career, I’ve seen many go awry nearly from the outset. Often the acquiring company does not pay enough attention to the details of the take-over process; therefore, they are unable to recognize the symptoms of team breakdown –which often precedes a larger breakdown in the merger process itself.
I can say that the best merger results are achieved when the acquisition is treated like a long-term management process; a process that can be broken down into small steps and measured along the way.
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