What are you top priorities post-acquisition?
November 16, 2024
by a searcher from Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT Sloan School of Management in Dallas, TX, USA
Hi Searchfunder team,
I just completed my first acquisition. I am very excited and drinking from the "proverbial firehose." I will write a full post about the biggest challenges in my experience and lessons learned. But for now, I wanted to know:
1) What is your personal take (or list) of top-five priorities post-acquisition
2) Do you have any documents/links/references that you have used in the past?
3) Do you have any book recommendations? I am currently enjoying "The First 90 Days, from Michael Watkins"
Thanks,
from University of Georgia in St. Louis, MO, USA
2. Stabilize staff - Don't make the mistake that the team is irreplaceable, but in the near-term, you want to understand where people's heads are. Are they going to bolt with a new owner? Does it impact your revenue (and thus profitability) if they do?
3. Be prepared for the J-curve - There is a HUGE difference between searching and running a company. Expect to feel like you made a tremendous mistake when things don't go perfectly. Many of us (myself included) felt like we got bodyslammed those first few months. Buck up and know that's normal. The sooner you get your balance, the better off you are.
4 Stabilize vendor relationships - Again, the idea is to prevent surprises to revenue / profit.
I've heard it said that you should sit tight for 6 months before implementing things. Others say that you should strike while the iron is hot. I can't say which is right for you, but I can say that it's much easier to drive improvement from a stable base.
from University of Toronto in Toronto, ON, Canada