We are heading into another era of M&A activity. Just look at all the Big Data companies fighting for market share. For me, feels like Déjà vu from the 1990s and I hear the Pac man chomping up those little fruits, ahem, I mean companies now.
So the question I’m asking myself is, “How many of your People organizations are leveraging the insights from their tools? How many are taking the talent analytics, performance data and collaboration metrics?”
According to Talent Management Magazine, “Successful companies begin by recognizing that people-related decisions present the most difficult variables in almost any transaction and pose the greatest risks, such as turnover up to 60 percent, or lingering cultural issues that cripple productivity. They beat the odds by carefully managing human capital to transform two groups of people into one functioning company.”
I’ve seen some progressive organizations taking the data from their enterprise systems to help them identify hi potential talent, which is laudable. Why not take it a step further and allow these same individuals the opportunity to innovate on the merger and acquisition. It becomes more about mentorship and learning than it is transactional. Yes, there are financial and transactional tasks that need to be completed, of course. But with all the human capital work streams and risk, why not invite new thinking to the process versus hiring an external consulting firm for all roles relating to the acquisition? Fresh approaches can feel risky, but they could also reap big rewards.
At a minimum, we can find ways to incorporate employees with strong relationships to help request feedback and spread information throughout an organization.
The Lauren Klein 