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O P I N I O N
Timing, acceptance, corporate culture No two M&As are alike, and the more you know about them, the better prepared you are for the unknowns.
T he long-term plan for Westwood Professional Services (Hot Firm #9 and Best Firm-Multidiscipline #32 for 2015), includes organic growth and the strategic procurement of companies and people that align with our values and vision. Over the years, we have entered several new geographic markets and have learned that no two opportunities are alike. When considering a new geographic location, there are always a variety of entry options to choose from. For example, we might open an office and then staff it with existing employees, relocate a senior leader to drive the local strategy, acquire local experts, or procure a local and established firm and kick-start national expansion. Or, we might do a combination of those things. Westwood has experienced all of these scenarios, but I am certain we haven’t experienced everything that goes with them. There is always more to learn.
Paul Greenhagen FIRM FOUNDATION
As with any opportunity that presents itself, I believe that success requires the backing of a larger strategy and alignment with our business objectives. Westwood’s strategic plan calls for increasing our revenue over the next three years through organic growth and acquisition. There are times that we look for acquisition opportunities where we can grow a particular market in a particular geographic location. Other times, we seek to grow certain markets with less of a focus on where those opportunities present themselves. For example, we completed an acquisition a few years ago which focused on both residential
market growth and geographic expansion. The talent and experience of the people we acquired were the reason for pursuing the opportunity and achieving the success that we did. Westwood was able to quickly build name recognition, enhance our local position, and expand regionally. It also set the stage for future acquisitions in the same location. We also recently acquired a great group of eleven people in a place that was not on our radar. Our strategy was to grow our power generation group See PAUL GREENHAGEN, page 12
THE ZWEIG LETTER April 11, 2016, ISSUE 1147
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