The Key to a Successful M&A Strategy - Streamlined IT Integration Process (with Infographic)

A company’s IT systems play a critical role in their daily business operations. To prevent business disruptions and delayed revenue growth, organizations must have a plan in place to streamline the IT integration process post-merger. Without one, companies risk the following costly mistakes:

Assuming licensing assets will transfer.

It is common for the value of software licenses to be included in a valuation. However, software licenses don’t always

transfer to the acquiring entity. You may find that you need to acquire additional software licenses to avoid violating your licensing agreements. A pre-assessment licensing review as part of your larger IT integration process will help identify software assets truly have value and which ones do not. Then your organization will have a better understanding of which assets will need to be purchased post acquisition, as well.    

Failure to automate processes.

Investors want to realize the value of an acquisition as quickly as possible. Automating IT processes can go a long way to adding measurable value quickly. An IT integration process helps identify automation needs early on.  One major area is on user provisioning. By automating just that one process, IT department get new employees productive quicker, reduce data entry errors, and remove a burden from IT.  

Failure to complete integrations.

Oftentimes, IT organizations post-merger can barely finish one system integration before another needs attention. All too often that means systems and operations integrations are left unfinished. These partial integrations result in partial functionality, which impacts their value and end user productivity. A successful IT integration process ensures that systems and operations are fully integrated and executed in a timely manner.

Failure to consider the need for IT upgrades.

New users need to be productive on day one. That’s not possible if their hardware is out of date, infected or incompatible with your systems. An integration process includes a technology assessment and proper due diligence to determine the necessary hardware upgrades and security precautions that are needed for a smooth transition. Frequently organization that know they are going to be selling their assets, will limit their investment in IT.  So, be sure to look under the covers. 

Failure to consider moving to the cloud. 

Cloud-based solutions like Office 365 can help reduce IT integration risks, for example, by standardizing on a fully integrated collaboration platform. An IT integration process assesses the value of moving to the cloud and determines the entities’ cloud readiness, what it will take to get them there, and the cost and time savings that can be realized by migrating to the cloud.

Daily business operations—and IT’s ability to enable continued revenue growth—depend on a strategy and a plan to streamline the IT integration process post-merger. These are just a few of the risks that IT organizations face without a solid IT integration process.

Download the infographic - 8 Ways to Ensure Technology Contributes to the Success of Your Merger or Acquisition - to learn more about M&A success strategies.