Deals are done on numbers and delivered by people
The financial case for an acquisition is usually sound. What derails it is the part that gets least attention until after completion: two workforces on different terms, under different instruments, with different expectations and different ideas about how things are done.
Six months on, the synergies are behind schedule, key people from the acquired business have left, and both groups are still describing themselves as "us" and "them."
We handle the people side of integrations. The technical work and the cultural work, which are equally capable of sinking a deal.
You might be dealing with
- An acquisition approaching completion, with integration planning not started
- Two workforces on materially different terms and conditions
- Different awards or enterprise agreements across the combined business
- A transfer of business, with questions about which entitlements carry over
- A contract transition where employees move between providers
- Duplicated roles across the combined structure
- Key people from the acquired business at flight risk
- An integration that stalled, with two businesses still operating separately
- Due diligence where you need the people risks assessed properly
What's included
- People due diligence Workforce composition, terms and conditions, industrial instruments and their expiry, agreements and disputes on foot, entitlement liabilities, key person risk, and cultural read.
- Transfer of business assessment Whether a transfer of business has occurred, which instruments transfer, and what that means for entitlements, service recognition and coverage. This is technical, consequential and frequently underestimated.
- Harmonisation planning How and when terms and conditions are brought together, what it costs, and what's realistically achievable: including whether harmonisation requires a bargaining round.
- Structure and selection Where roles duplicate: designing the combined structure, and running selection fairly and defensibly.
- Retention Identifying who genuinely matters and doing something about it before they resign, rather than after.
- Communication Sequenced across both workforces, acknowledging that the acquired business hears everything differently.
- Cultural integration The practical version. Decision rights, ways of working, meeting rhythms and leadership behaviour, rather than a values workshop.
Our experience
HR change lead for the integration following a global acquisition, spanning multiple regions. Change and HR lead on two acquisitions integrating employees into a WA business. Also the mobilisation, start-up and integration of a major LNG facility into a wider operating organisation, and organisational capability work for a newly listed company post-demerger.
Common questions
When should people integration planning start?
During due diligence, not after completion. The people risks that damage deals are almost all visible beforehand if someone looks.
Do employees keep their entitlements?
It depends on whether there's a transfer of business, and the answer has significant financial and legal consequences. It's one of the first things to establish.
Can we harmonise terms straight away?
Rarely, and attempting it too fast is a common error. Where an enterprise agreement applies, harmonisation may require bargaining. A realistic multi-year plan usually beats an ambitious one that fails.
How do we stop the good people leaving?
Identify them early, talk to them personally and quickly, and be specific about their role in the new structure. Uncertainty is what drives resignations, and the people with options leave first.
Ready to talk?
Tell us what you need and we'll take it from there.
Related services
All services →Restructures & Redundancy
Consultation obligations, selection criteria, redeployment, notice and entitlements, and the individual conversations: fair, documented and defensible.