The whole purpose of a merger with another company or to acquire another organization is to achieve a entity that is larger in terms of value, resources, expertise, and assets than the two individual companies summed up. And during this whole process, the HR team plays the most important role in tackling issues faced by both companies during the transition. It is there job to make everyone adapt to changes. There are certain points both organizations may have to face during the whole period of transition:
- It is important to answer and analyze certain questions before the whole procedure: Why is status of business at this moment? How different is the work culture in my organization different the one we are going to acquire or merge with? How much time and efforts (approximately) will it take to settle down afterwards?
After comparing and contrasting the different aspects of the two companies, the HR team has to decide if the differences can be worked upon before moving on.
- The next step, the first step of the merger or acquisition is to retain the critical human resources. The HR team needs to build a system that identifies and retains the right talent.
- Now the HR team has to work on the compensation policies of both the companies, and come up with a combined compensation scheme that is practical for all the employees.
- The employees are to be continuously evaluated during the transition. A proper performance management system should be worked out in place so that the consistency of their performances can be ensured. Since this whole transition period can be hectic for all, arrangements should be made to loosen out the stress.
- Integrating the work cultures of both the companies is the next crucial step. Examine the differences first, develop a plan for culture integration, and ask everyone to cooperate with the whole arrangement. The work culture should promote positive work energy and have an encouraging effect on the employees.
- The necessary aspect is clear communication. The whole process should be transparent and proactive. All employees should be kept in the loop to avoid any trouble during the later stages.
A human resource manager has to look after employee relations, industrial relations, recruitment, training, career development, compensation and benefits, redundancies etc. Agreed some of them are mundane but the role of human resource manager is vital to an organization.
