The Global Challenge Part 2: Practical considerations of Japanese business transformations and the impact on target companies

In cross-border acquisitions/integrations, the project doesn’t stop with the signing of the deal or takeover agreement. The question of what makes a global transformation and integration truly successful remains to be answered.

In the second edition of The Global Challenge series, Baker McKenzie collaborates with Mergermarket to take a close look at the process of cross-border transformation for both Japanese and Western corporations. We surveyed and compared the views of acquiring and acquired companies at each cross-border acquisition/transition stage to uncover the key elements in achieving successful business transformations.

Our report identifies four key areas all corporates should focus on in order to achieve successful business transformations.

	Managing corporate cultures	Addressing cultural differences is often one of the first challenges business leaders face during transformations involving cross-border M&A. However, this issue is seldom addressed directly in the early stages of an acquisition.
	Identifying and retaining talent	Taking creative steps to rethink talent recruitment and retention is increasingly important. Putting the right people in place to drive deals, as well as deploying strategic programs (such as long-term incentive plans) to prevent the unintentional loss of human capital, are key elements in achieving success in integration.
	Addressing integration challenges and managing opportunities	Integrating finance and tax divisions, management functions, IT and systems and R&D is among the most challenging issues in corporate integration.
	Influencing the IT integration process	Prioritizing IT and systems integration has a positive impact on other aspects of an integration, allowing communication and data to flow more easily between departments, teams and management. The timing and strategic planning of these elements may be key to a smoother integration.