As a Human Resources professional, contributing to the corporate ecosystem and managing the benefits culture is a complex responsibility. What happens when you are faced with merger or acquisition (M&A) of a company that substantially expands the corporate population? The economics of corporate growth point to record numbers of M&A activity. Managing benefits through a merger or acquisition is an inevitable event for many companies.
What happens when you are faced with the prospect of managing employees from new business lines located in diverse geographies? Now consider the challenges of taking on new liabilities and integrating an unfamiliar plan. Often, these changes and events can occur without adequate planning or advanced notice to a benefit professional.
Recently, a research report and survey by Mercer explored the complexities presented to HR professionals in the course of a large merger or acquisition. Overwhelmingly, most participants pointed to human resource talent as the top priority in a successful merger or acquisition.
With regard to the perspective of the acquiring party (buyer), the Mercer survey identified key areas of focus for HR professionals to keep in mind:
- Develop effective retention strategies
- Evaluate HR service, delivery and design needs
- Adopt an enterprise or global view to effectively manage benefits
- Assess leadership team and key employee capabilities
- Have a clear culture, communication, and change management plan
- Enlist experienced resources to speed the transaction process and make it more efficient
- Understand the market competitiveness of rewards and leverage your total reward programs to attract and retain the right talent
