CASE STUDIES

Growth through
​Mergers and Acquisitions

growthcurv has led merger integration projects across New Zealand, Australia, SE Asia, United Kingdom, USA and continental Europe. Read the cases below.

​Two-Way Merger Integration 

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Company: Winterthur UK (Credit Suisse) acquired Colonial Pty UK Ltd (Australian) 
Client: CEO and Chairman, John Finan

I was hired to design and lead the merger of two global businesses from two different cultures six months before the Exchange of Control. The project included a strategic review, stakeholder assessment; confirming expected synergies; establishing the Project Management Office; organisation redesign; product and service alignment and roll-out; managing the Exchange of Control; combining best-of-both cultures; over-seeing execution of the 100 Day Plan; and coaching the Chairman, CEO and top team and supporting their leadership of the integration.
     
Feedback from the client:

Neil Cantle, Director of Corporate Development, Winterthur Life, United Kingdom 
"The project required the integration of two similar sized organisations, over a large geographical distance and at a very rapid pace. … Throughout the project, Pamela coached the team very effectively and interfaced well with senior management to bring key facts and issues to the table for discussion or resolution. Unlike 80% of acquisition exercises, this one succeeded in achieving all of its primary objectives. Pamela's pragmatic and insightful approach to the work, combining the tactical and the strategic, and ability to interact well with staff and management at all levels was a key factor in this."

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Three-Way Merger Integration

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Company:  Zurich Financial Services merger of three: Zurich Assurance, Allied Dunbar Assurance and Eagle Star Assurance
Client:  ZFS UK, CEO, Ray Greenshields
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Swiss group Zurich Financial Services hired me design and lead the merger of two recently acquired companies into the existing business, Zurich Assurance. Each business was vastly different in geographic coverage, product and service range, target client groups, organisational evolution and culture. One had a strong-hold in European markets, the other two had deep penetration in Asia-Pacific and American markets. The challenges with this global, three-way integration included: creating one single largely-centralised but locally-enabled entity; aligning Swiss, British and other national cultures to create one set of values that employees globally would adopt to fuel business growth; and integrating technology and serviced delivery processes across many geographic regions for greatest cost effectiveness while maintaining and improving service quality.

Feedback from the client:

Evelyn Bourke, former Partner of Towers Perrin Tillinghast (now Group CEO, Bupa, UK)
"I was impressed by Pamela’s detailed attention to the strategic and commercial aspects of the business…. She demonstrated that she can motivate a team of people to work closely with her in delivering the strategy. I think one of Pamela’s greatest talents is a sustained focus on seeing a project through to its proper conclusions and providing active assistance in the design and implementation phase."

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Post-Merger Clean-Up following 33 Acquisitions

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Company:  Coffey Group, an Australian-based, ASX-listed, global engineering company
Client:  MD and CEO, Roger Olds 

​After Coffey completed 33 acquisitions in five years across nine businesses (operating in 12 nations and delivering projects across 80 countries), I was hired to investigate the stress fractures resulting from incomplete integration and make recommendations for change. I lead the executive team to formulate a three-year strategy and transformation process to realise the financial, commercial and IP synergies that shareholders had been promised from the acquisitions. Insufficient integration work had been completed; most of the acquired businesses had been ‘bolted-on’ creating duplication across the nine businesses. Leadership and organisation structures has not been adjusted for decades. It was time for a rethink.

Feedback from the client:

Mark Nicholas, GM Coffey Geotechnics and Transformation Leader at Coffey Group (a direct report in the Transformation Leader role)
"Pamela provided a level of energy, intellectual rigor and drive that I’ve never seen before or since. She questions and challenges, cajoles and encourages in equal measure. She brings experience across a wide variety of sectors and uses it to inform new conversations, new insights and real-world strategies to generate results. She offers frank and fearless advice where it is needed most – to those who, typically receive it least in a corporate environment. No organisation could be the same after having her as part of its team and few would fail to gain enormously from her input."

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Post-merger Performance Improvement ​

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Company:  GAB Robins New Zealand, then sale to SGS Group, Switzerland
Client:  Managing Director (NZ), Brett Fawcett

I was hired at the end of a period of acquisitions by GAB Robins’ Directors; they purchasing eight privately-owned practices to add to the company’s existing 12 branches giving it a spread of 20 offices in 20 cities around New Zealand. My role was to complete the integration, establish a single culture and assist the top team to lead, manage and grow a national business in preparation for sale to a global entity. After making the necessary adjustments and strengthening the business's annual revenue and profit performance it was sold to Swiss-based SGS Group.

Feedback from the client:

Brett Fawcett, Managing Director (NZ); President, International Markets, GAB Robins Group, Switzerland
"Pamela awakened in us, an appreciation of strategic management skills that we needed for the profitable future development and coached us in many aspects of leadership…. Pamela’s involvement is one of the reasons (our) unit is the best in the GAB Robins Group from the perspective of its quality of management, its relationships and stature within the insurance industry, and the stability of its senior management and top professionals."

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400-year-old bank integrates younger nimble private partnership

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​Company:  Barclays Banking Group acquires Gerrard Wealth Management UK
Client:  Barclays Wealth Management CEO, Ray Greenshields

Gerrard’s Wealth Management was a private partnership comprising a wide network of small operations throughout the United Kingdom. They sold to institutionalised Barclays Bank which employed over 70,000 people and the culture clash became immediately apparent. I was asked to examine the differences in culture, leadership and operations and make recommendations to Bank leaders about how to ensure the successful integration. An early assumption that the Bank’s culture and operational procedures might be superior to that of the smaller business was challenged and altered with sharing and the adoption of best-practices from both sides; I was able to demonstrate that Gerrard had much to offer the Bank.

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​Due Diligence, Pitch Preparation and Negotiation

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​Company:  PKF Australia negotiates with Deloitte Australia
Client:  PKF Australia Managing Partner, David Ratcliffe

Deloitte Australia approached PKF Australia to enter merger negotiations while I was in the middle of a strategic review exercise with the partners of PKF. During the review the partners had been exploring alternative growth strategies and merger possibilities, so the call from one of the top-4 global firms was timely and welcomed.  I assisted the Managing Partner and Chairman to evaluate the proposed merger, prepare credentials and conduct due diligence on Deloitte Australia which included an assessment of the cultures, leadership styles and ambitions of the two firms. I also supported merger talks with Deloitte Australia and the parties agreed the culture gap and differences in financial expectations at that time was too wide to close.

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See more Client Testimonials 

Contact Pamela Young to discuss your merger due diligence, merger integration planning or how to realise post-merger synergies below