HOW TO DANCE THE M&A TANGO IN PERFECT RHYTHM

BUILDING BUSINESSES

- R GOPALAKRISHNAN

The title is inspired by an interesting book by Frank Trompenaars, an expert on intercultural management, The Global M&A Tango. The tango is a South American dance with a strong rhythm where two people hold each other closely—a tough synchronising act like in a merger or acquisition.

I am not a great one for astrology, but I am for astronomy. A few days earlier, six planets—Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune—aligned harmoniously in a "planetary parade," a cosmic event visible from India. Such a near-precise alignment is required for success in mergers and acquisitions.

Recently, The New York Times carried an interesting piece on what matters more for human longevity: genes or lifestyle. The short answer: up to age 85 or so, lifestyle matters; beyond that, genes matter more.

What about corporate longevity? Lifestyle matters initially; after a certain age, purpose (genes) matters. For companies, lifestyle comprises four factors: business aggression, continuous excellence, innovative adaptations, and mergers/acquisitions.

M&As do stress out a company.

Emeritus professor of the Anglia Ruskin University in the UK, Peter Woolliams, avers in a book's foreword, "It is well known that most mergers and acquisitions fail to realise the expected benefits... Mergers and acquisitions need to be in the business of marriage and not simply weddings."