Discover the essential strategies for IT leaders on Day 1 of a merger or acquisition. This comprehensive guide covers critical technology decisions, security and compliance activities, and integration planning to ensure a smooth transition and successful technology platform implementation. Learn how to navigate due diligence, manage transitional support agreements, and balance short-term changes with long-term goals. Perfect for CIOs and IT professionals involved in M&A.

Essential Data Priorities for IT Leaders in Mergers and Acquisitions

Discover the critical data and information priorities for CIOs on Day 1 of a merger or acquisition. This comprehensive guide covers data security, master data management, and information access, ensuring seamless integration and effective decision-making. Learn how to prepare, implement immediate changes, and plan for long-term data requirements to achieve successful outcomes. Ideal for IT leaders navigating the complexities of mergers and acquisitions.

Navigating the Future: Resilience and Opportunity: As new US tariffs and global retaliatory measures create unprecedented challenges, IT leaders must prioritize organizational resilience. This article delves into the top 10 business risks and opportunities for 2025, including cybersecurity threats, supply chain vulnerabilities, and regulatory complexity. It offers strategies for leveraging AI and automation, embracing sustainability and ESG initiatives, and fostering innovation to ensure business continuity and growth. By understanding and addressing these risks, IT leaders can turn potential pitfalls into opportunities for success.

Introduction 

Day 1 is when you take full responsibility for the acquired organisation.  

In my previous article, I summarised the CIO’s Day 1 priorities in terms of People, Process, Technology and Data. 

In this article, I expand on the second of these focus areas – Process. 

Context 

When two organisations come together via an acquisition, decisions need to be made about how things will be done. Does each organisation retain their own ways of working or do you standardise? And which processes do you use for cross-organisation activities? 

Much will depend on the Business strategy and the strategy underpinning the decision to acquire this organisation. 

Day 1 is when you take full responsibility for the acquired organisation.  

In my previous article, I summarised the CIO’s Day 1 priorities in terms of People, Process, Technology and Data. 

In this article, I expand on the first of these focus areas – People. 

Context 

There are two main sets of people affected by an acquisition: those being acquired as part of the deal and those already part of your existing organisation. In each case this includes temporary / permanent employees and resources working for critical partners. 

All are likely to feel uncertainty about the future. 

Your job is to provide structure for all those affected and as much clarity as you can. You need to share what you can about what happens next – and be open about what is undecided.  

 Most importantly, you need to live and breathe the culture and behaviours you espouse. People will listen to what you have to say – but believe what they see in operation. 

 Your work starts from the first point of engagement and runs throughout the deal process, during Day 1 activities and onward through integration and into business as usual. 

To effectively coach organisations, it is essential to apply the analogy of the Leaking Bucket Syndrome which provides a powerful visual for understanding how various challenges can impact profitability. By addressing the most critical issues first, companies can gradually raise their profitability and achieve long-term success. 
The issues will be numerous, including financial challenges, capacity building, sales growth, enterprise digitisation and transformation, ESG in supply chains, and business risk and 
continuity. As the coach, we bring vast knowledge of best practices and solutions to these areas, helping businesses navigate complex problems and optimise their operations. 

Much of what we do as Technology Leaders comes down to – People, Processes, Technology and Data.

And this holds true for M&A.  During Due Diligence, through the negotiation and signature process and leading up to deal completion, you will have been assessing the target organisation, planning as much as you can and preparing for the future state.

Day 1 is when you take full responsibility for the Technology of the acquired organisation.

There will be set piece activities, you need to complete on (or soon after) that first day.

And the pressure will be on validate and then complete the plans you have been developing so you realise the intended value of the acquisition as soon as possible.

In response to Andrew Marks' insights on this topic, we explore the implications for CIOs and Technology Leadership Teams. Key areas of discussion include M&A Due Diligence, deal negotiation strategies, warranty definitions and risk.

AI is fueling unprecedented growth and innovation, offering key benefits like increased efficiency, enhanced decision-making, and personalized customer experiences.

But what exactly can AI do?

As technology is seen for its real value during the M&A process, the role of the Technology leader will be seen too. The impact of the CIO’s voice is growing through this, for better and worse. The potential for the CIO’s view to lead to M&A transactions being halted before close, is growing. That has an impact on company growth rates that would have previously ridden roughshod over the CIO. Equally, the added precision the CIO can bring to cost estimation for acquiring technology will narrow M&A teams’ targets before setting expectations with shareholders and investors.

A CIO who builds a reputation for getting this right is going to flourish in the changing world described by Bain. A CIO who continues to show an inability to estimate or to deliver on Post Merger Integrations well, is going to be called to account sooner, with little room to cover shortfalls. Together, we are seeing the skills needed by the CIO/Technology Leader changing in this area. Some CIOs will be motivated by this, however not every CIO needs to be the M&A superhero and so it may be wise to use this emerging trend to adjust future career ambitions. As the role of CFO has developed from operational finance lead to someone focused on the relationship with the shareholder, perhaps the future of the CIO role will become the bridge between strategic use of technology and delivery of real cash value through technology, too? In parallel, the performance-driven Technology leader, recognised for delivering great quality services for the right cost will be just as important, just different.

At CXO Connect, we believe that returning to basics is as important now as ever. Keeping a sharp focus on people, process and technology may seem traditional in a world overtaken by agile processes, AI-driven coding, and agents, however using these basic elements to understand your readiness today; and from that to determine what needs to be done to move forward successfully is just as useful as it always has been.

Due Diligence is a key step in any potential acquisition.

You need to find out as much as you need to, to be able to make an informed decision about whether (or not) to purchase a business, and as much as you can to validate assumptions you have made about the costs, benefits and timescales of doing so.

Good due diligence will increase the likelihood of achieving your target outcome.

Once Due Diligence starts, you are on the clock and subject to the process and information determined by the seller.

To be a successful CIO, you need the right team around you, operating at their best.  

When a group is working as a team, when it’s in “flow”, when it is aligned to what it is striving to achieve – and it is clear about the WHY – then it can and will achieve great things.  

In today's fast-paced and ever-evolving business landscape, maintaining profitability is akin to filling a leaky bucket. The bucket represents the business, while the water symbolizes profit. Critical business drivers and issues are the holes in the bucket, causing profit to leak away. The objective for any business is to identify and plug these holes, thereby ensuring that the bucket retains more water and, consequently, more profit.

Taking control of your learning journey is crucial for shaping your career roadmap. My blog emphasises this key aspect, highlighting the significance of self-directed learning in professional growth. Encouraging individuals to steer their learning path and to stretch their capabilities.

When you are in a support function of an organisation – CFO, CPO, CIO, CTO or any other CXO, it's often difficult to build relationships across the organisation that are more than transactional. Therefore, both we and the organisation miss the opportunity of a quality strategic or advisory engagement. A focused effort on your part can change that. As an advisor to C suite members, this is my recommendation as a three-step process: 

• Identify those people across your organisation and even outside the organisation that are important to your success.  

• Determine how your role in the organisation is important to their success.  

• Make and execute a plan to change the relationship.  

It all begins with an idea.