Continuing our merger mini-series today’s post offers a road map for merger. The framework for the map is the Design Council’s Double Diamond: a process of alternating creative and critical thinking to design and create a new merged organisation.
Whilst these are shown as linear development, there will be, as in any design process, a lot of iteration and trying stuff out.
(Click on diagram to enlarge – you can download a more detailed diagram here)
Each phase concludes with a key milestone that acts as a gateway to the next phase.
- Discover: this phase is all about exploration – investigating your context, possible partners and your own preferences and motivations.
- Define: having researched and imagined, this phase is about focusing down on a business case for merger with your chosen partner(s)
- Develop: you have agreed in principle to merge but now need to engage with wider staff team to explore together how you might make the business case a reality
- Deliver: this phase is broken into two sub-phases. 4A: developing and testing detailed plans based on the frameworks you have already developed and agreed. 4B: preparing for the implementation of your merger
- Evolve: the legal merger has been completed, now the job is integrate the two predecessors teams and ways of working whilst also delivering the new organisation’s agreed plans. Unlike the other phases, this one is open ended as hopefully the new organisation will continue to learn, grow and change.
No two mergers are ever the same and we are not suggesting that all mergers will follow this route exactly but we have tried to set out the key stages and the order in which they usually happen. People often ask how long a merger should take. Based on our experience we would suggest that for small/mid-scale organisations it would be optimistic to assume that each phase/sub-phase could be completed in less than three months.
You could use this map in a number of ways and at a number of stages
- To inform early thinking about whether merger is an option you might want to consider
- To help staff and trustees in your organisation understand what a merger might involve and require
- To aid discussions with a potential merger partner to identify key issues
- To use as a starting point for discussions with stakeholders
- To use as framework for detailed planning
This map is a prototype so it would be great to know what you think.
Susan and Dawn
Related posts and resources
- Merger resources
- Tools and ideas for developing a business case
- Business planning guidance for arts and cultural organisations: We wrote this guidance in 2015. Whilst the context has changed the key buildings blocks of a good business plan remain the same
- Managing financial difficulties guidance and toolkit: We developed these resources before the lockdown but they include tools and tips for those considering a merger