Making the Most of Your Merger—Or Any Other Business Move

CaptureLast fall, my team helped Patterson Companies announce the acquisition of Animal Health International, a leading animal health distribution company. The $1.5B deal firmly established Patterson in the production animal market and built on their strong presence in the companion animal (pets) market. This was the last major consolidating move in the industry—a consolidation of this size hasn’t occurred for 15 years. PadillaCRT assisted Patterson with investor relations and communications expertise to navigate this transformational business move, and everything went off as planned.

After the merger, we recommended that Patterson enter the 2016 BOLD Awards, an Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Minnesota honor that recognizes organizations that have recently completed a courageous acquisition, divestiture or other business transformation. After all the hard work we put in to convey the rationale for the acquisition, the nomination for the award was straightforward.
And the extra bit of work paid off: Patterson not only won the large company category, but received an additional “BOLD-est of the Bold” recognition live at the event celebrating the winners. The company will get even more coverage and brand elevation than they did after the successful acquisition.

The BOLD Awards got me thinking—where else could I easily leverage and extend the value of the work I am already doing for my clients? I came up with three steps to ensure we make the most of each client project.Patterson

  1. Stay in the loop

The recommendation for this particular award nomination came from a colleague who is heavily involved in the Minnesota business community and thought Patterson’s acquisition would be a good fit. Think about your work from a personal, local, national or even international perspective. Stay up-to-date on industry associations, competitor media coverage and news trends.

  1. Take a step back

Once your business transformation is complete, sit back and let it all soak in. What were the major accomplishments? What could we have improved? Think it through from start to finish, and pick out the details that were unusual or brilliant—this is the fodder for greater recognition, more coverage or even future projects that can elevate a client’s brand.

  1. Brainstorm with colleagues

Teamwork is never bad, but it is especially useful when you feel like you’re out of ideas. Ask your team members if they have any thoughts on leveraging useful content and collaborate to make it happen. As a bonus, try to come up with ideas as the project moves along to capitalize on opportunities that have tight deadlines. There is nothing more disappointing than finding out that you missed a nomination deadline by a week.

How else do you leverage your client’s news and accomplishments? Would your client be a fit for the BOLD Awards next year? Check out the process at ACG® Minnesota.

Photo credits: River Consulting

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