M&A Integration is Product Management

Craig Mullett, President at Branison Group, shares how M&A can help companies expand their product offering, and the keys to successfully integrating product and culture after an acquisition.

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) can help companies grow, provide more value to existing customers, and bring top talent into their organization. However, integrating an innovative product and culture is often a challenge, particularly for companies outside of the technology industry.

In this episode, Craig walks us through the M&A deal process from strategy to integration and shares best practices for executing each step.

He shares the four things acquiring companies need to evaluate when making acquisitions:

1. Product and technology
2. Markets and customers
3. Operations
4. Leadership and culture

Craig then stresses the importance of having an integration plan before making an acquisition and provides several recommendations for enabling the acquired company to continue to innovate.

Craig foresees increased M&A activity at the intersection of the digital and analog worlds, as companies outside the technology sector seek to provide more value to their existing customers. Listen to this episode to stay ahead of that curve!

Here are the highlights:

• Craig explains the advantages and disadvantages of M&A as a growth strategy (5:10)
• Craig describes how M&A deals work from start to finish (8:20)
• Craig’s recommendations for developing a strategy and selecting acquisition targets (12:15)
• Craig shares his best advice for integrating the product and culture after an acquisition (15:10)
• Craig describes the areas of technology he thinks will have the most M&A in the coming years (22:45)