Service
Mergers & Acquisitions
Better deals and faster integrations, from target screening to the last saving booked.
- Average delivery against announced cost savings
- 112%
- Transactions supported since 2009
- 140+
- Typical commercial due diligence
- 4 weeks
Overview
Deal strategy, commercial and operational due diligence, merger integration and carve-outs for corporate acquirers and the boards that approve their deals.
Most acquisitions are justified on the savings and growth the combination will create, and many fail to deliver them. The reasons are rarely mysterious. Diligence accepted the seller’s numbers. Savings were estimated top-down with no plan behind them. Integration started after closing, when the best people had already begun to leave.
Our M&A practice works across the deal so that the assumptions in the valuation are the same ones the integration team is held to. We test the target’s market and plan with primary research, build cost and revenue estimates bottom-up, and start integration planning before signing.
After closing, we run the integration office alongside your team: day-one readiness, leadership appointments, the first hundred days and savings tracking until the savings are visible in the budget. On carve-outs, we design the standalone business and the separation so both sides keep operating without interruption.
Questions we answer
What clients bring to this practice
- 01Is this target worth the price, and what does the seller's plan leave out?
- 02How much of the announced savings can we actually deliver, and how fast?
- 03What should happen on day one, and what can safely wait?
- 04How do we keep the best people from both companies through the integration?
- 05We want to sell a division. How do we separate it without damaging what remains?
What we do
How the practice can help
- 01
M&A strategy and screening
A clear acquisition thesis and a ranked list of targets, so the deal team spends time on companies that fit the strategy.
- 02
Commercial due diligence
An independent view of the target's market, customers and plan, based on primary interviews and delivered within a deal timetable.
- 03
Operational due diligence
Bottom-up estimates of cost savings and one-off costs, so the price you pay reflects the value you can capture.
- 04
Integration planning and management
Day-one readiness, the integration office and the first hundred days, run to a plan that protects the business while it changes.
- 05
Savings capture
Savings and revenue opportunities tracked to named owners and budget lines until they show up in the accounts.
- 06
Carve-outs and divestitures
Separation planning, transitional service agreements and standalone cost design for businesses being sold or spun off.
Industries
Where this practice works most often
Insights
Further reading
Do you work for private equity as well as corporates?
Our M&A work is mainly for corporate acquirers and sellers. We support private equity owners on operational improvement in portfolio companies.
Can you work within a tight deal timetable?
Yes. Commercial due diligence typically takes three to four weeks, and we can deliver a red-flag view in ten days.
When should integration planning start?
As soon as the deal is likely. The best integrations have a day-one plan and an integration leader in place before signing.
Do you handle the people side of integration?
Yes, together with our People & Organization practice, covering leadership selection, organization design, retention and culture.
Have a decision on the table?
Tell us what you are weighing. A partner will reply within two working days, and the first conversation is on us.