The internet is filled with content on M&A integration, leading to information overload for many M&A executives. To make sense of all this information, Jonathan Shiery, Director and M&A Lead at Guidehouse provides M&A leaders the #1 accelerator for M&A integration: simplification. To simplify M&A integration, Jonathan provides M&A leaders with a proven accelerator for M&A integration, which he has defined as the "M&A Duplex" approach.

Jonathan Shiery explains the different functions and best practices of the "M&A Duplex":

The Roof: Maximizing Synergy Potential

• Validate as a model and challenge inputs, outputs, and assumptions
• Manage synergies as a portfolio of projects with expected outcomes and accountable owners
• Implement risk management practices to minimize dis-synergies (e.g. customer attrition, employee retention, etc.)
• Communicate publicly  the synergy targets and progress to create awareness, common goals, and accountability
• Leverage “best from both” analysis to find cost, revenue, financial, and transformational synergies

Unit #1: Operating Model

• Make people decisions by Day 100  
• Challenge existing corporate models to do more with less
• Execute small, communicate broadly, often and across modern channels (e.g. blogs, videos, podcasts). Limit traditional corporate communication emails
• Prioritize operation and technology that impacts your customers, reduces operational costs, and protect value
• Take an outcome based, agile / waterfall hybrid approach
• Always have the customer voice and employee experience represented  

Unit #2: Measuring Culture

• Define culture into measurable and actionable areas (19 different drivers (e.g. compensation, rules/ policies, client service, credit appetite)
• Utilize SMART specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound action plans 
• Reward the “first finders” of operating model issues (e.g. shared resource accounting) collaboration that were not previously considered. 

The Foundation: Integration Management

• Mobilize and organize around the key sources of deal value
• Enhance the change management through increased transparency, not more bureaucracy
• Be data driven, challenge the assumptions, and limit decision criteria to key metrics that prevent paralysis by analysis 
• Kill the fringe case and conceptual arguments
• Manage scope creep by requiring all projects map to the deal rationale 
• Maintain communication between corporate development and operations to prevent divergence from deal rationale