Communications in mergers: The glue that holds everything together PART
II
2. Identify the main milestones and trigger events
The communications workstream springs into
action very early in the merger process, and the pace rarely lets up much. An
effective communications plan identifies milestones, such as Day 1, and trigger
events, including the announcement of leadership appointments. The goal is to
spend the majority of time and energy on the material events, while making sure
that regular updates continue to flow.
All key decision makers should be aligned
on what the communications focus is—and isn’t. This helps to ensure that
leaders buy into the vision of the merger and commit themselves to execute it
well. Alignment also sets up and clarifies the conversation about who will be
doing what, and when.
In a recent merger, the communications
team and the integration-management office (IMO) reviewed a checklist of all
possible merger milestones and quickly identified the most relevant ones. A
substantial focus was placed on organizational announcements, for instance the
top-level structure and leadership appointments—the areas that most concerned
employees. Syndicating and getting alignment on these issues gave the team
much-needed focus and direction and helped it execute the plan successfully.
3. Set up governance and resourcing for the communications team
In addition to resourcing, the
communications team and integration leadership should establish a clear
governance process and clarify roles and responsibilities. We typically see
four roles:
·
The integration steering committee reviews
and approves the overall approach to merger communications, as well as messaging
to core stakeholders, and serves as the final decision maker on issues that
can’t be settled elsewhere.
·
The integration leader reviews the
overall communications-activity plan and approves the dissemination of
materials.
·
The communications leader manages the
communications workstream, working closely with the integration leader to
develop, syndicate, and execute the plan. The communications leader also finds
the right resources—internal and external—to guide content development.
·
The communications team develops and
disseminates content suggested by the communications-activity plan, working
closely with functional leaders and external partners.
Effective and timely execution requires
well-defined governance—a process for approving and disseminating
communications. In a recent transcontinental merger, the two communications
teams worked closely to define the process. The communications teams prepared
draft content for dissemination at least a week in advance. They committed
themselves to share content for review and approval with the communications
leaders, the integration leader, the appropriate functional leaders, and, finally,
the legal team. The process was set up for speed of execution, defining clear
deadlines and ensuring that only the right people—and only a small number of
people—were involved in the approval process.
4. Develop core messages and a ‘deal narrative’ to anchor all
communications
All communications during the integration
period should be anchored in a set of core messages arising from the deal’s
rationale, the employee value proposition (EVP), and the associated change
story. The rationale is an articulation of the core reasoning for a deal and
its drivers of value. The
EVP describes why the future is bright and
what the deal means for employees. The change story—a clear and compelling
picture of what must be done to unlock the deal’s value, and why—signals that
the merger departs from “business as usual.” The core messages are personalized
further for each group of stakeholders. All communications should reinforce and
build from these core messages.
Developing a compelling set of core
messages grounded in a deal’s rationale is one of the most important moves for
a CEO and the C-suite. The communications team can start the process of
creating the core messages by conducting a deep structured interview with the
CEO (to articulate the vision and value) or by organizing a workshop with the
executive team to create a single aligned story for the organization. No matter
how companies generate the first draft, the core messages must be tested and
refined across the organization to ensure that they appeal to various
stakeholders.
5. Develop the step-by-step plan for each milestone
During a recent merger in which the
communications team was highly regarded by C-level executives in both
organizations, the team worked closely with the IMO to build a detailed
communications plan (the merger’s “who, what, when, why, where, and how”). The
team used the same approach and project-management tools that the merger’s
other workstreams (such as IT) did. The plan brought together all merger
communications, across all stakeholders, and included the key milestones and
target events, as well as regular updates to different groups. It also detailed
all deliverables, listing the audiences, the owners, the deadlines, the
required preparation times, the content-approval processes, and the
interdependencies.
Communications teams should use a wide
variety of channels to reach their intended audiences and to ensure that
messages sink in and get reinforced. Deciding which channels to use for each
deliverable is a critical component of building the communications-activity
plan. Social media plays an increasingly key role here, especially for engaging
employees, customers, and the general public.
6. Establish two-way communications—monitor, gather feedback,
and adjust
Creating two-way feedback channels is
critical to ensure that messages are received as intended and that gaps are
flagged and addressed appropriately. Often, communications efforts fall flat in
this area. Either there is no effort to gather feedback, and employees in
particular feel that they are being talked at, or nothing is done with the
feedback—which may be even worse. A good feedback-collection process uses a
number of tools, such as pulse surveys, integration barometers, town halls,
focus groups, and website or email feedback. Once all this has been gathered,
the communications team and the IMO analyze the feedback and take corrective
action.
People we call “fire
spotters”—well-respected employees who play the influencer role within
organizations—can aid the feedback process. Recruiting these employees up front
and using their support to gather feedback is quite helpful. They also serve as
a credible way to address the feedback. In a recent merger, a couple of fire
spotters quickly identified an impending wave of attrition. Given the heads up,
the integration leader and senior leadership could take emergency action: a
combination of nonfinancial and financial levers. While the wave wasn’t
stopped, the company significantly mitigated the barrier to integration.
Putting
a structured merger communications plan in place
In our work with companies, we have found
that several best practices are critical to develop a structured
merger-communications strategy.
·
Start early and tailor. Messages should address the stakeholders’ evolving
needs. If you cannot communicate decisions yet, explain the process.
·
Govern tightly. Executives should be directly engaged through
clearly defined roles and processes.
·
Be conscious of culture. If, for example, bottom-up thinking is part of the
core culture, top-down messaging may not land as well.
·
Be consistent and
compelling. All communication should be of high
quality and repeatedly reinforced in multiple channels. Communicate five times
more than you think you need to.
·
Humanize the message. Address what people really care about, in a tone
that is responsive to the mood and situation, not overly formal and legalistic.
·
Animate your leaders. Actively align leaders, middle managers, and
customer-facing staff so that they communicate effectively and consistently. Do
not outsource this work to the communications function.
·
Stay up to date. Keep the IMO and the deal team and major workstreams
connected, so that information is up to date and that communications are as
proactive and effective as possible.
·
Be responsive. Collect and respond to feedback regularly and
quickly.
Companies often make the merger-communications
plan a low priority because of other pressing needs. Some outsource the work
entirely to the HR and communications functions—a missed opportunity for the
integration team and executive leadership. A structured focus on and
investments in communications, with the support of senior leadership, have been
shown to yield great benefits: a motivated employee base and engaged vendors,
partners, and other stakeholders, all supporting the newly formed company’s
success.
Oliver Engert, Becky Kaetzler, Kameron Kordestani, and Anish Koshy
https://www.mckinsey.com/Business-Functions/Organization/Our-Insights/Communications-in-mergers-The-glue-that-holds-everything-together?cid=other-eml-alt-mip-mck&hlkid=741abe46e82045b2ae977df1f54f6d0a&hctky=1627601&hdpid=62591e27-c1a4-4e5d-b635-3b4216844fce
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