in the news

Senn Delaney Partner and Managing Director EMEA Dustin Seale discusses importance of cultural integration in Financier Worldwide article

“Understanding cultural differences and having a plan for cultural integration is a make-or-break decision for the buyer — beware of any deal without proper cultural due diligence,” warns Senn Delaney Partner and Managing Director EMEA Dustin Seale. His views are included in Integration: The Difference Between M&A Success and Failure, a new article by Financier Worldwide, a leading publisher of news and analysis on the global corporate finance marketplace.

According to the article, several key elements should be present in all such deals to ensure success. These include conducting operational and financial due diligence, forecasting the future operational model, and having a strong integration roadmap, which should be ready to implement from day one since the first 90 days are crucial to synergy capture.

“In the Sprint-Nextel merger, for example, little attention was given to bringing the two cultures together and the result was a writedown of billions of dollars,” Dustin Seale told Financier Worldwide. “Meanwhile in the UK, the merger of Lloyds and HBOS is heading in the same direction. On the other hand, GSK got it right and has become one of the most respected players in its industry.” 

Read full article