A few of PRITCHETT's Merger Engagements:

ABC Radio Networks

Price Pritchett, bestselling author and CEO of PRITCHETT, delivered the keynote address for Disney’s ABC Radio Division at the 2007 Management Conference. Dr. Pritchett’s presentation, Managing Uncertainty, focused on the leadership challenges unique to change and explained the counter-intuitive moves that are key to successful merger integration.

ABN AMRO/(Royal Bank of Scotland, Fortis, Santander)

ABN AMRO, with more than 105,000 employees in 53 countries, contracted with PRITCHETT to develop Merger Toolkits for Executives, Managers, and Human Resource Professionals to guide the integration of this largest bank deal in history. PRITCHETT customized the Toolkits and conducted related training for this worldwide merger. PRITCHETT also consulted to Business Unit managers worldwide on how to keep their organizations focused and productive during the prolonged period while waiting for the closure of this complex international deal.

A. G. Edwards

The merger of A. G. Edwards with Wachovia Securities created the second largest retail brokerage in the U.S. Prior to the close date, PRITCHETT worked closely with A. G. Edwards preparing the organization for the merger. The entire workforce at the corporate office attended PRITCHETT merger integration sessions for both managers and individual contributors. Senior leaders attended Executive Briefings, and PRITCHETT partnered with executives to conduct panel discussions for all branch managers. As a result of the PRITCHETT sessions, A. G. Edwards’ employees were able to execute a smoother transition.

Amdahl

PRITCHETT established a transition team and process to support this high profile merger integration effort between two large players in the microelectronics industry. By identifying the value drivers of the deal, chartering and launching task force teams, training 100% of the workforce, and leading the integration process, PRITCHETT ensured the assets and value chain of the combined entities were leveraged.

“PRITCHETT is worth it many times over! Their experience and approach helped us complete a complex acquisition within 90 days, avoid costly mistakes, and discover an additional $5 million in savings.”

Bank One/First Chicago NBD

PRITCHETT assisted the Bank One IT department, already stretched to the limit by normal demands for their services, with their integration with First Chicago NBD. At the request of Bank One, PRITCHETT focused primarily on increasing the two-way communications within the IT department during the merger integration planning period. Additionally, PRITCHETT’s communication work paved the way for a more methodological and disciplined approach to employee communication.

Chicago Mercantile Exchange/Chicago Board of Trade

PRITCHETT played a key role in guiding the integration efforts for this merger which created the world’s largest financial exchange. Price Pritchett, CEO, delivered the keynote address at the executive kickoff dinner to launch the integration planning process. PRITCHETT provided ongoing counsel to the Integration Steering Committee with particular focus on transition management, staffing and retention, communication, and culture.

ExxonMobil

PRITCHETT designed a custom program titled Driving Productivity During Change that was used to keep the workforce focused and engaged during the long transition period required to combine these global giants. PRITCHETT certified 80 internal trainers to deliver the workshop and helped them consult to specific business units throughout the transition period. This custom program assisted in the retention of key talent and enabled Mobil to maintain their stock price during the waiting period. Each employee received a copy of the PRITCHETT best-selling handbook, The Employee Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions.

GAF/Elk

PRITCHETT assisted the GAF/Elk Executive Team and Integration Steering Committee identify, acknowledge and address significant differences in operating style (culture) that threatened to derail the success of their deal. Through a series of Executive Offsite Meetings facilitated by PRITCHETT senior advisors, GAF/Elk worked through these differences and found common ground. PRITCHETT helped frame difficult issues, diffuse cultural conflict, and reinforce collaborative decision-making techniques, allowing the new joint Executive Team to accelerate performance.

Guidant

PRITCHETT helped Guidant acquire a family-owned enterprise located in a separate geographic location by focusing on the value drivers of the deal. The key to success was strengthening Guidant’s leadership position in certain markets by leveraging the manufacturing capability of the target. PRITCHETT helped the client set up the project structure and develop integration plans that would allow them to meet the goals established for the integration. PRITCHETT assisted from integration announcement, through integration planning, to a formal debrief at the end of the project designed to capture lessons learned and best practices.

Hunt Refining

Several months after a previous merger had been managed internally by the client, PRITCHETT was asked to conduct a Post-Merger Audit to identify what went well and what could have been done differently. PRITCHETT interviewed all executives and selected additional individuals who had significant responsibilities during the integration process. The Post-Merger Audit Report developed by PRITCHETT helped identify areas where additional benefits could be extracted from the deal. In addition, PRITCHETT documented which processes had added real value and which were a waste of time and resources, allowing Hunt to proceed to the next deal with confidence in the approach and methodology they would deploy.

John Deere

PRITCHETT developed an Integration Toolkit specifically designed for small business owners to help John Deere’s independent dealerships consolidate. The Toolkit guides small business owners through each step of the integration process and provides practical tools for analyzing risks and opportunities.

London Life

PRITCHETT helped London Life develop an integration project plan for initial announcement, integration planning, and post-deal implementation. In addition, PRITCHETT advised London Life in developing a comprehensive Communication Plan and Talent Retention Plan. As a result, employees of both companies experienced less ambiguity and confusion and reacted more favorably to the deal. PRITCHETT’s advisory services also resulted in retention of more than 98% of the sales force.

“PRITCHETT is worth the investment! Their experience and methodology helped us quickly and effectively complete an extremely complex acquisition and avoid costly mistakes.”

Maritime Life/Manulife

Maritime Life was the Canadian division of John Hancock. When Hancock was acquired by Manulife, a Canadian firm, there were significant redundancies in Canada. Maritime Life engaged PRITCHETT to help their Executive Team plan for the inevitable changes that integration would demand. PRITCHETT worked with Maritime Life to identify talent needed during the transitional period as well as permanent talent needed to integrate the business into Manulife. In addition, PRITCHETT senior advisors coached each member of the Maritime Life Executive Team through the difficult transition period ensuring that the parts of the business they were responsible for continued to hit their goals and objectives despite the distractions and distress of integration.

Peco Energy/ComEd

Both Peco Energy and ComEd had completed several acquisitions and admitted that they could improve their integration approach. They engaged PRITCHETT to conduct Merger Best Practices training for their integration team leads and managers. Managers then conducted meetings with their direct reports based on this information. PRITCHETT’s The Employee Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions was distributed to more than 5,000 associates ensuring that both managers and employees knew what to expect and how to manage during the waiting period.

Pfizer/Warner Lambert

PRITCHETT advised Warner Lambert on how to maintain productivity and protect performance while awaiting approval on their hostile takeover by Pfizer. Within a two month period, PRITCHETT educated the entire Warner Lambert workforce on the human dynamics of mergers. PRITCHETT developed a Leader’s Toolkit, distributed The Employee Guide to Mergers and Acquisitions worldwide and certified 40 internal Warner Lambert trainers to deliver PRITCHETT merger training workshops. Pfizer used the same program in many of their own divisions following the merger.

Weyerhaeuser/MacMillan Bloedel

PRITCHETT served as advisor to the Integration Steering Committee and Integration Teams on this culturally complex acquisition. The project began with a Senior Management Briefing by CEO, Price Pritchett, and followed with senior PRITCHETT advisors assisting with the overall integration process and planning. PRITCHETT conducted assessments and developmental recommendations for 153 key players in the acquired organization and was instrumental in retaining 51 of the 55 extremely critical managers needed for integration success. PRITCHETT conducted a Post-Merger Audit to ensure that the full value potential of the deal had been extracted. Upon exit, PRITCHETT left behind a fully-documented process that Weyerhaeuser could use for future acquisitions.

WhitmanHart

WhitmanHart wanted to position itself domestically and internationally as a well-known information technology firm serving the middle market. One way to do that was by growth through acquisitions. Whitman Hart asked PRITCHETT to develop an acquisition and integration methodology to address such issues as soft due diligence, communications, re-recruitment, and integration planning. The project produced highly desirable results in terms of the retention of key talent and the avoidance of major problems that they had experienced in previous deals.