Preparing For Life After A Deal: Integration Life after the deal is very dependent on the way a buyer treats the seller during due diligence and immediately after a transaction. It is during this time that areas near and dear to the agency employees are transitioned.
Communicating the acquisition to employees is the first step. The message must be consistent to all employees from the management teams of both the buyer and the seller.
Likewise, the communication by buyer and seller will be critical in the area of employee benefits and compensation.
The first transition is often payroll and employee benefits. Communicating these transitions to the employee group is critical. Timing of the conversion, pay-roll, and benefit enrollments are very sensitive and de-tailed. Communication and double-checking all enrollment forms, as well as a thorough review of the first paycheck before distribution to the new employees, will pay dividends in the area of morale.
The other areas of integration that should involve the management team of both organizations include the following:
Notification of customers and the public.
Notification of insurance companies.
General ledger integration of financial results.
Integration of computer systems.
Operating payables conversion.
Combination of offices and books of business.
The automation transition can be accomplished at some point in the future. This may involve the selection of a new or common platform. This step must be thoroughly planned and should not be rushed. Automation conversion is a topic for an entire article.
Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, July 7, 2003. Copyright 2003 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved. Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.
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