Anders + Summit Merger Story
Part of doing due diligence means using the strengths of your team—optimists, pessimists, the guy who will turn over every rock and scrutinize every decision. It all contributes to helping
Keep an open mind, open eyes, and open ears to the potential. That’s for starters. Ask yourself why you want to merge, especially if you’re considering merging up. Chasing dollars is probably the wrong reason. But if it gives you more capability and allows you to offer enhanced services to your client base, then you’re on the right track. Do your due diligence. For smaller firms, losing power is probably one of the biggest worries, so you want to be sure the other firm is a really good fit, personality-wise. Their partners should be people you look forward to meeting with every single day of the week, people with whom you can have a strong, long-term relationship, people with whom you can have a beer and talk without awkward pauses. Those are the things that, for me, make a merger worthwhile: having that ability to hang out and feel comfortable with somebody—no differently than if they were working with you in your current firm. Look at the leadership structure of the acquiring firm. For example, private equity firms add another level of accountability, because when you have outside investors that want a return, how do you make it? You take it out of partner compensation.
LESSONS FOR MERGERS
Here’s what I’d tell anyone thinking about a merger.
you know who you’re doing business with.
Once you do your due diligence, it comes back to the bottom line: Make sure what you’ve built is still going to be allowed to flourish. Are you going to be able to continue to grow and provide opportunities for your people? We’re still in the thick of the process, learning more lessons every day. We’ll continue to share those lessons on our social media channels, blogs and podcasts. STAY TUNED…
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