Mergers & Acquisitions: Day 1 – Data & Information

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 last of these focus areas – Data – and include Information priorities.

Context

On Day 1, there will be several data and information priorities.

Most importantly, you will need to ensure data security.

In addition, you will need to assess master data implications and requests for information access and reporting.

And, it is also the first time you will have access to all the data and information about the acquired organisation. You will need to use this to validate your assumptions and forward plans.

As CIO, you will need to ensure, not just that your colleagues’ data and information requirements are met, but that you have appropriate access to the data and information about Technology that you need to operate as an effective CIO.

Preparation

Due Diligence

You have access to some information about the target organisation and use this to identify any critical risks and estimate the high-level costs and timescales of integration.

This includes an assessment of data security within the target organisation and any significant related risks.

In line with the business and integration strategy, you identify any critical actions required in relation to master data – e.g. will there be duplicate item codes? how is the chart of accounts affected? do changes need to be made to customer codes or company references for electronic ordering? In this context, you also confirm requirements for communications to customers (and suppliers).

Leading up to Day 1

As discussed in my previous article on Day 1 Technology priorities, you identify the immediate Technology actions that will need to be taken on Day 1. Day 1 data and information activities will go hand in hand with these actions.

As a priority, you plan the implementation of the immediate data security actions (described above) and any Day 1 data changes, i.e. those that need to be completed on or immediately after Day 1. These may be as straightforward as changing company details – e.g. address or VAT number – or could mean replacing key master data – e.g .item or customer codes. These changes need close cooperation between the selling organisation, the target organisation, your existing Technology team and relevant business colleagues, relevant partners on both sides of the deal and affected customers and suppliers. Expect Group functions, such as Group Finance, to be particularly involved.

And you start to develop plans for any short-term information access or reporting changes. As discussed previously, everyone will have a view about what is important enough to be done in the short-term. You need to be able to navigate these demands – and understand the pros and cons – for example the extra cost and time required to automate interim consolidated sales reporting versus the impact of managing on separate reporting systems. Agreeing some underlying principles about what will or won’t be considered, and how decisions will be made, will help.

Alongside this you develop your plans to deliver the agreed end state master data and information requirements. You use your increased access to key resources within the target organisation to validate initial assumptions and improve the robustness of these plans.

Day 1

Immediate changes

You are now officially one organisation, and you need to implement immediate data security activities and essential Day 1 data and information access & reporting changes.

You will also need to start the implementation of the agreed essential short-term changes. There will continue to be a clamour for additional access to data and information and improved reporting. Ensuring there is a clear understanding of what will – and won’t – be done in the short term and why that decision has been made is essential to ensure you are able to focus on the wider delivery plan. You may also need to remind people that colleagues in the “other” organisation may be able to access the data or information they need – or explain how additional access to two sets of data or reporting can be provided.

End state planning

Technology and Data/Information plans will need to be closely aligned.

Alongside the interim changes, you will need to validate and update your plans to deliver the agreed end state master data and information requirements. You will have full access to data and information about the acquired organisation and to key resources and knowledge.

And, together, you will need to start identifying and gathering the team (Business colleagues, Technology colleagues and key partners) to deliver the Data and Information requirements, in line with the Technology changes.

Conclusion

For a CIO, most of the work to deliver consolidated data and information needs, happens after the deal is concluded. And this work is critical to the organisation achieving its target outcomes from the acquisition. It is essential that the CIO builds the right team to deliver the requirements effectively and efficiently alongside a challenging business-as -usual agenda, and that business colleagues understand delivery plans, provide appropriate funding and engage in the delivery process. 

Whilst there will always be some cross-organisational data and reporting requirements, the scale of the overall programme will be dependent on the approach taken – which will be driven from the Business strategy, the expected integration outcomes and your existing Technology strategy.

Complexity, cost and effort increase in line with the required level of standardisation and de-duplication and the scale of changes to the Technology platform. In addition, engagement with internal and partner resources - and customers and suppliers who are likely to be impacted – is essential. Proposed changes need to be planned, communicated and, with their support, managed through to successful implementation.

Want to know more

As practitioners, we understand what is typically most important to you; we will align our plans with what is most important for each deal opportunity.