The key to Post-Merger Integration (PMI) actually lies in an earlier phase, says Carlos Pita Cao. He heads the Corporate M&A practice group at law firm AKD and assists in many deals in the upper mid-market segment. The key questions are: what is the deal rationale, what are the underlying reasons, and therefore which type of deal do you want. Is it a scale deal to strengthen your own existing business model, to achieve economies of scale and generate turnover growth? Then you will have to integrate quickly and successfully. You have to get it right the first time round, explains Pita Cao.

Pita Cao compares a merger or takeover to a marriage. In the engagement phase, everyone is on their best behaviour, everything is hunky-dory, and the management is appeased. The wedding party is also fun, but then you have to start working on the marriage. And that means: working on integration in a focused manner, because as soon as that focus is lost, integration becomes diluted, and this has a negative impact on the forecast results.

Click here to read the entire interview (in Dutch only) in M&A Magazine.