Because organizations that complete an acquisition or a merger realize that the speed with which they integrate their systems and processes is a Critical Success Factor, the goal becomes: limit the time and cost to integrate and focus on achieving the process and data consolidation necessary to improve the organization’s performance.
The challenge is that typically, after a merger or acquisition, organizations need to gather, analyze and report on information that may be coming from several disparate and complex systems.
The need to maintain the integrity of transactional data in financial, customer and other operational systems is essential. Strong application integration helps organizations connect systems, reduce duplicate data entry, improve workflow efficiency, and maintain reliable information across the business. There is also a necessity to improve reporting systems to provide information at a broader, more consolidated level. More efficient communication between application systems is critical.
When undertaking a system integration project, it is important to ensure that all the areas of IT are planned and managed to improve the odds of success. A sample checklist is provided below:
Before Starting:
Is there an IT roadmap and strategy?
Has a consolidation plan for the IT systems been established?
Does a consolidation plan have adequate time and resources for integration?
Have test plans been developed?
Is there a contingency plan on hand?
Are all the systems elements included in the consolidation plan?
Has the plan for IT procurement, physical location and resources been determined?
Has all the documentation been obtained from the merging parties?
Has a strong IT integration team been formed with efficient leadership and team members?
Is there a risk management plan in in place?
During Integration:
Are the following particulars of the IT environment addressed?
Network Connectivity
IT Leadership team
IT Integration of work culture
Technology/sever/cloud infrastructure
Business application and architecture
Data or call center facilities
IT Processes
IT products and services
Licensing of products
Office applications
Desktop/laptop systems
System configurations
Post Integration:
After the consolidation, is ample testing performed on integrated systems to ensure the success of integration and seamless functioning of integrated applications?
Are the timelines and milestones being considered?
Is the whole integration process documented, updated in a timely manner and properly maintained?
Is the integration report and plan made available organization-wide?
Proper systems integration can help an organization achieve anticipated synergies by consolidating the key data and transactions that enable effective decision making. The challenge is integrating the merged organization’s different technologies systems, and processes while protecting the organizations’ investments in each of these areas.
The Litcom Approach
Litcom’s PMI ( Post Merger Integration) methodology provides a structured approach for rapid integration of IT Services & Technologies to deliver optimum value to the new organization. Within our PMI process, we focus on our client’s key needs and issues including retention of people, reduction of costs and maintaining market confidence.
When a company decides to merge with or to acquire another company, it is critical to understand the extent to which integration of the information technologies and the organization is needed.
If your organization needs to integrate multiple applications, Litcom can help assess your current systems, identify integration risks, define data flows, and develop a practical approach for connecting platforms securely and effectively.
