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Hello and welcome back to Business English Pod for today's lesson.
The first in our series on integrating the operations of two companies.
These lessons will focus on the conversations we have when talking about how to merge or integrate companies and operations.
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There's an old saying that strategy is 95% implementation.
There's no better proof of this than in the merging of companies.
Coming to terms on a buyout is difficult in and of itself, but once the agreement has been made, there's the incredibly difficult work of making it happen.
Integrating companies requires us to think and talk about every aspect of business, from the nuts and bolts of accounting to the fuzzy aspects of culture.
There's a lot at stake, not just for the owners, but for every single person who works for the two companies.
In discussing an integration, it's important to lay out a clear timeline and to build in feedback mechanisms to ensure things go as smoothly as possible.
You will have to bring up concerns effectively and suggest ways to smooth the transition, and you may find yourself referring back to previous agreements as you work out all the details.
In today's dialogue, we'll listen to a conversation between Alex and Michelle, two chief operating officers.
Alex's company has just bought out Michelle's company and they're meeting to discuss how the integration will roll out.
As you listen to the dialogue, try to answer the following questions.
1.
What concern does Michelle raise after Alex lays out a possible timeline?
Two, what previous agreement does Michelle refer to?
Three, what does Alex suggest to ensure a smoother leadership transition?
Yeah, so looking at where we are, I'm hoping we can finalize the integration timeline and discuss how we align leadership and systems moving forward.
Sound good?
Absolutely.
I think our teams have made progress, but we definitely need clarity on leadership and the cultural piece.
As fuzzy as that is moving forward.
Okay, so on the timeline, I'm thinking a 12-month roadmap with staggered milestones.
For the first 90 days.
I really think we should focus on ensuring systems and leadership structures are aligned.
Well, I get the leadership aspect is critical for any of the other culture stuff.
Uh, I sense some hesitation.
Yeah, just that I'm a bit more concerned about customer continuity.
I think that's what the system stuff is all about.
In part, yes.
Maybe we can make sure we've got a systems testing phase around the 60-day mark or so.
We need feedback from employees early in the process to address any potential roadblocks.
Yeah, I think we can build that into the second month.
And that'll tie in nicely with our leadership alignment efforts.
My big concern there is that in some roles, especially in engineering and product...
There's a bunch of overlap.
No doubt there's some.
But we talked before about retaining top talent on our side.
Important for sure.
But I think that we're going to need to figure out a unified structure.
Ultimately, yeah.
It's just the transition that's tricky.
Well, how would you feel about co-leading some departments during the first six months?
I mean, you and me.
That makes sense.
Would help ease people's concerns, especially for the R&D team.
All right.
We can fill in the details later, but I think it'll help us push forward on some of the systems.
Now let's go through the dialogue again and look at the language and techniques Alex and Michelle use as they talk about integrating their companies.
Alex begins by introducing a few key topics he'd like to discuss.
Yeah, so looking at where we are, I'm hoping we can finalize the integration timeline and discuss how we align leadership and systems moving forward.
Sound good?
Absolutely.
I think our teams have made progress, but we definitely need clarity on leadership and the cultural piece.
As fuzzy as that is moving forward.
Okay, so on the timeline, I'm thinking a 12-month roadmap with staggered milestones.
For the first 90 days.
I really think we should focus on ensuring systems and leadership structures are aligned.
Integrating companies involves so many different moving parts.
For this reason, it's necessary to plan and prioritize the steps involved.
Good timelines and milestones, or goals along the way, can help ensure an effective process.
Alex lays out a basic 12-month roadmap.
A roadmap is simply a high-level plan.
And within that roadmap, he identifies a couple of big priorities for the first 90 days.
What are some other ways we can talk about timelines?
Let's practice a few more examples.
Let's set a timeline to align training with workflows by the end of quarter two.
How about we have check-ins every 30 days to track our integration goals?
We propose a gradual integration, starting with client services, then moving on to marketing.
The integration roadmap will span over a year, with each department phased in over three-month intervals.
One thing Alex wants to focus on is making sure leadership is aligned.
This means that the leaders are in agreement.
How does Michelle respond to this issue?
Well, I get the leadership aspect is critical for any of the other culture stuff.
Uh, I sense some hesitation.
Yeah, just that I'm a bit more concerned about customer continuity.
Michelle isn't content just to go along with all the priorities that Alex outlines.
She has some concerns of her own.
In particular, she's concerned about customer continuity, or ensuring customers don't experience any interruptions or disruptions in service.
She brings this concern up directly, though she softens it with the words a bit.
Of course she's more than just a bit concerned, but we use words like this to soften criticism or difficult ideas.
Let's try some more ways of bringing up a concern.
You'll notice a mix of very direct expressions and those that are softened either with words like may or through the use of a question.
I'm worried about losing key talent if the merger causes too much disruption.
My concern is around client relations as we transition to the new structure.
Could our supply chain be affected by this integration?
That's a potential issue.
I think there may be a risk of lower productivity during the initial transition.
Now let's get back to the dialogue, as Alex and Michelle get into some ways of addressing the concern about service continuity.
I think that's what the system stuff is all about.
In part, yes.
Maybe we can make sure we've got a systems testing phase around the 60-day mark or so.
We need feedback from employees early in the process to address any potential roadblocks.
Alex sees service continuity as an issue of systems, which he identified as a priority right at the beginning.
Michelle partially agrees, before suggesting a way to ensure the systems integration works well.
She proposes getting feedback or input from employees during a phase or stage of the systems testing.
With any major change, smart leaders find ways to get feedback from the people affected by the change.
This can be done informally, but in many cases a more structured approach, like the one Michelle suggests, is more effective.
Let's run through some more ways to build feedback mechanisms into an integration process.
We can use a weekly survey for employees to raise any issues.
How about setting up a focus group to gather feedback on system changes?
A regular check-in with department leads could help address concerns as they arise.
Let's hold a monthly town hall to get team input on the merger progress.
Now let's get back to the dialogue and hear how Alex connects Michelle's idea with the leadership issue.
Yeah, I think we can build that into the second month.
And that'll tie in nicely with our leadership alignment efforts.
My big concern there is that in some roles, especially in engineering and product, there's a bunch of overlap.
No doubt there's some.
But we talked before about retaining top talent on our side.
Leadership alignment can be a huge obstacle to effective integration.
With two companies coming together, not everyone from both companies can continue in the same positions.
As Alex identifies, there's a lot of overlap or people in the same or similar positions.
This isn't the first time Alex and Michelle have discussed this issue, and Michelle makes sure to reference their previous agreements when she advocates for her team.
In particular, she reminds Alex that they discussed retaining top talent or keeping key leaders from her company through the merger.
Planning and integration is partly a negotiation, and to get what you want or need you may have to refer back to previous agreements.
Let's try some more ways of doing this.
As discussed, all core products will remain a part of our combined offerings.
Will maintain the employee benefits package as outlined in our earlier talks.
Like we decided, our branding will reflect both companies equally in all communications.
Now let's hear how Alex and Michelle work through the issue of leadership.
Important for sure. but I think that we're going to need to figure out a unified structure.
Ultimately, yeah.
It's just the transition that's tricky.
Well, how would you feel about co-leading some departments during the first six months?
I mean, you and me.
In discussing integration, it's good to have a sense of the ultimate goal.
In this case, that means a unified structure, as Alex says.
Unified means brought together as one.
That's a great goal.
But, as Michelle points out, the hard part is the transition or the period it takes to get to that goal.
Much of planning and integration is about ensuring the transition is as smooth as possible.
This is why Alex suggests he and Michelle co-lead or act together as leaders during the transition.
You'll notice that Alex says how would you feel to introduce his suggestion?
You'll hear more of the language of suggestions as we practice a few other ways of talking about making a smooth transition.
How about merging customer support teams to ensure continuity?
Maybe we could offer retention bonuses to employees in key roles.
It might help if we conduct joint training sessions to ease teams into the new processes.
We could start with a blended leadership model to make things smoother.
Now let's hear how Michelle responds to Alec's suggestion about co-leading the transition.
That makes sense. would help ease people's concerns, especially for the R&D team.
All right.
We can fill in the details later, but I think it'll help us push forward on some of the systems.
As we've heard, discussing an integration is very complex.
There are many different interconnected aspects of business to work out.
As Alex and Michelle have demonstrated, it's helpful if you lay out a timeline with feedback mechanisms.
And as you negotiate how it all works, you'll be bringing up concerns and suggesting ways of addressing those concerns.
Now let's practice some of the language we learned in today's lesson.
Imagine you are an executive with a company going through a merger.
You're talking with an executive at the other company.
You'll hear a cue by this executive.
Then I'll give you a suggestion for what you can say in response.
We'll guide you through each step in the practice and provide an example answer for each response.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
All right.
So I guess we need to figure out a timeline on all this.
Start by saying that you see it happening over a year with quarterly goals.
Answer.
Yes.
I see this happening over 12 months with quarterly goals.
Okay, I think that works.
And maybe we can start with marketing?
Now say that you are much more concerned about HR and the people involved.
Answer.
I'm actually much more concerned about HR and the people involved.
I understand your concerns.
Are there things we can do to make it easier?
Answer.
Yes, I'd like to have monthly all-team meetings to get staff input.
Sure, that sounds like a good idea.
And who would lead those meetings?
Now reference a previous conversation by saying you had agreed that you would lead the HR transition.
Answer.
Well, as we talked about earlier, I will be leading the HR transition.
I'm good with that, but I do think our team is going to have some challenges with the whole integration.
Finally say that perhaps you can meet with department heads before the transition to make things smoother.
I could meet with department heads before the transition to make things smoother.
Now let's practice some of the vocabulary we've covered in this lesson.
In a moment, you'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat each sentence, including the missing word.
For example, if you hear We need to integration plan before the end of this quarter, you can say we need to finalize the integration plan before the end of this quarter.
After each response we'll provide the correct answer.
Let's begin.
We've set key to track the progress of our integration efforts.
We've set key milestones to track the progress of our integration efforts.
To improve the process, we gathered from both teams Answer.
To improve the process, we gathered feedback from both teams.
Answer.
Balancing both company cultures in the merger is going to be tricky.
We'll need a good benefits package to employees during the merger.
Answer.
We'll need a good benefits package to retain employees during the merger.
We've reached the end of this lesson on discussing an integration.
We've looked at laying out a timeline and bringing up concerns.
We've also covered how to build in feedback mechanisms, refer back to previous agreements and suggest ways of making the transition smoother.
For more practice.
Premium members can access the online quizzes and PDF transcripts for this and other lessons on the BEP website.
Thanks for listening, and see you again soon.
