Sales Leaders Should Follow these 3 Steps to Manage Risk with an Acquisition

Acquisition brings new challenges and new environment for all department leaders and business heads. Gartner‘s experts have identifies three immediate actions for sales leaders to manage risk and create healthy environment.

“The sales organization is in an interesting position as its perspective is both internal and external — how the acquisition impacts sellers’ performance, but also how it impacts sellers’ interactions with customers and prospects,” said Dave Egloff, senior director and analyst at Gartner. “With so much at stake, heads of sales must be deliberate about how they manage the transformation following an acquisition. This can be made even more difficult as many sales leaders lack prior experience with acquisitions and/or the support needed to execute the transition successfully.”

Here are 3 immediate actions for sales leaders with an acquisition:

1. Prioritize communicating to employees before customers

Acquisitions cause uncertainly among sales employees, key customers and prospects. If unmanaged, these uncertainties can lead to employee attrition, lower revenue and missed opportunities. Clear communication is the best way to manage the risks associated with each stakeholder community — employees, customers and prospects — starting with employees.

“While many suggest a customer-first mindset, when it comes to acquisitions, employees must come first,” added Mr. Egloff. “Sales employees will not only be receivers of the corporate message, they will also deliver the message to customers. Sales leaders must prioritize how the sales force is informed. Sellers should be reassured of both the current status of, and future plans for, the company to ensure that consistent messaging is cascaded to customers.”

2. Promote tactical execution over strategic understanding

There are specific value creators for sales that need to be explored leading up to and following an acquisition, including cross-selling and upselling, targeting new verticals, expanding into new geographies and go-to-market strategy. Sales leaders need to evaluate these value creators to look for quick wins, develop sales readiness and create a long-term plan.

“Quick wins will come from deliberate action,” said Mr. Egloff. “In many cases, the best early steps are in defining the proper routes to market and account ownership. The sales force must be prepared to actively collaborate and reduce conflict. A ready sales force is required to bridge the gap from quick wins to future plans.”

3. Ensure an integration culture, not an acquisition culture

According to Mr. Egloff, “Sales leaders must not underestimate the challenges and risks associated with a sales force integration after an acquisition, including retaining key employees, managing cultural conflicts and determining go-to-market strategies.”

To mitigate these risks, sales leaders need an integration strategy that includes people and perspectives from both organizations in order to avoid alienating key talent. Gartner research shows that engaging employees in change management planning increases the probability of success.