It Takes a Team: Launching Your Merger Successfully
In 2022, La Piana Consulting guided Coaching Corps and the Positive Coaching Alliance through the implementation of the merger of the two organizations, working closely on the process with executive leaders Janet Carter and Jason Sacks, the two leadership teams, and the boards.
We were excited to read Carter’s and Sacks’s reflections about the merger in their recently published article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy — Can Merger Expand your Impact? 5 Lessons From Leaders Who Did It — sharing how an intentional, well-planned merger integration process has increased their organizational reach and impact and led to their ongoing success.
Kudos to these leaders, their board members, and staff colleagues for doing the necessary hard work!
Based on our experience supporting many nonprofits through merger exploration and implementation, we would like to add two more important lessons that can help other organizations mirror the success of the new Positive Coaching Alliance: (1) seek outside advice to be able to identify and evaluate possible creative solutions, and (2) ensure the new executive leader has ongoing support through the long tail of the integration.
Seek Experienced Advice
Planning and implementing the operational and cultural changes needed to support a merger takes considerable time and resources, as well as an understanding of the various paths forward. The lead driver of this work is most often executive staff — people who are also fully engaged in their own day-to-day work. To ensure that neither their ongoing work nor their merger planning and execution lag, the support of knowledgeable and experienced external partners can be key to the success of both. These partners — advisors, consultants, lawyers, accountants, project managers, peers who have been through the process, et. al. — can bring direct experience with mergers; share potential approaches to integrating operations, programming, and culture; and facilitate conversations that can generate creative ideas and solutions beyond what either organization may feel it needs or wants.
It’s also important to keep in mind that nonprofit mergers differ from those in the for-profit world in several respects. And so, while you may have corporate leaders or attorneys with M&A experience, seeking guidance from those with specific social sector merger experience will support greater success in building a stronger nonprofit.
Ensure Ongoing Executive Support
The role of a nonprofit executive can feel lonely and isolated, but for the leader of a newly merged organization, the challenges are often exacerbated. The leader often has ongoing questions about how to work through specific post-merger steps — from building relationships with a new staff and board, and navigating different interests and perspectives shared by these internal constituencies; to engaging a potential new group of funders and donors in a way that honors the history of both organizations yet remains true to the path charted for the merged organization. Again, an external thought partner — coach, advisor, consultant — can be well-positioned to successfully guide the executive through this process.
Finally, while some funders recognize the time and resources needed for a successful execution of a nonprofit merger (see, for example, the pooled funds created by SeaChange Capital Partners and The Lodestar Foundation — members of The Sustained Collaboration including Network — to support mergers), many funders and nonprofits underestimate the capacity, resources, and expertise needed to ensure a successful integration over the long run.
Agreeing to a merger takes considerable time and resources. Actually bringing that merger to life requires careful thought and attention to detail — all while continuing to pursue the ongoing work of both merger partners. The support of external, experienced partners can make all the difference in building a successful path forward for the newly merged organization.
A big thank you to David LaPiana and Scott Cotenoff for their advice and counsel before, during, and after our merger between PCA and Coaching Corps. It does indeed take a team. Being able to review strategy and culture integration confidentially with them as we were considering the merger and as I became the CEO of the merged entity was invaluable.