Keys for the success in a M&A: Ymedia-Dentsu Aegis Network as a successful business case.

Keys for the success in a M&A: Ymedia-Dentsu Aegis Network as a successful business case.  

 Merge and Acquisitions, more known as M&A, are a terrible challenge for the alignment of teams, especially IT Teams.

Where is the key? Where is the secret? Far from what many people think, keys for a successful IT Integration lies not in the technological know-how of the technical teams, but in their ability to understand each other and to be able to look at each other “through the eyes” of the other team, “through the glasses” of the other team.

I have been working in my life as the person in charge in at least five M&A, both national and international companies, and, moreover, in “both sides of the table”: purchaser and seller part. Even in this very same moment, I’m working as CIO in one of the biggest M&A in the sector of Media Agencies: ymedia-wink with Dentsu Aegis Network.

If I have learnt something important in my 20 years of experience linked to M&A is: one of the most important challenge is ego management. Nothing worst in a M&A as a fight among “technology hormones”, where it seems as if the main goal is show to the world who is the best IT Technician, or what company in the M&A has the best IT infrastructure. But my friends…before talking and before discussing about Technology…it’s mandatory to talk about people and high performance teams.

Let me talk about some case studies in my life: positive and not so positive. These situations influenced a lot in my life, and in my position in M&A.

Year 2001 (of course, after Christ J). A large oil company merged with another two oil companies. I was about 25 years old. I was in this time MCSE (Microsoft Certified System Engineer), and Expertise in HP (server, storage and networking). I received an award at the final part of the integration. Why? Was I better than the rest? No. My success didn’t based on my technical skills (although they were very good skills). Far from imposing my criteria, I focused on understanding the business, not only the TIC’s. I tried to understand to all users, trying to look through their eyes: their expectations, their concerns, their skills on business…

I started to draw processes, with different people, not only CTO, but Operations Managers, Personal Assistants, Service Managers…. When I understood the business (under a global point of view), then I could start to talk about infrastructures, e-mail servers, true needs at user level, and of course, taking good decisions, both at HHRR and Technical Resources.

We focused so deep in the Quality of Service, that solutions came based on an inverse engineering: tell me what your customer needs, and I adapt  my policies to their needs without violating my policies(and not on the contrary). Integration process was successful, and in less than two years, three companies merged in one great company, with no breaks.

Year 2007…what memories! I suffered a very difficult M&A. A great e-commerce company acquired a great TIC Company. Without a strategic plan for the merge, and with a CIO only thinking in TIC and not in business, and thinking in how to save his team and not how to save his company, success was very far from the reality.

Sadly I saw how daily customer orders were lost: thousands of euros lost, lack of support to the customer, no information, IT Systems not complementary between them, missing delivery notes, impossibility to trace incidents…a complete disaster that in few years finished in a bankruptcy, a blackout in the company. The solution was very easy: first we have to understand processes and people, then the technology, and after it: let’s create the equilateral triangle, the PPT Triangle: process, person, technology

I don’t want you to get bored. But let me insist for the importance in M&A in thinking on business before than technologies and in the most important active in companies: their workers, their people.

Only when we understand these two main variables, we can start the process of a M&A. And, No, No and No. No excuses as: we have no time to align teams. Do you know for what there is no time? To recover lost customer for a bad strategy.

What is the case of ymedia/wink in the M&A with Dentsu Aegis Network? Total success. We all, as a high performance team, dreamed a dream six month ago: six months to migrate system and transfer the service from ymedia/wink to Dentsu Global Services. International teams, different applications, multicultural teams, great knowledge… Problems? No. Challenges? Yes, kilos of. And six months later? Yes, we have reached it. Many people working as only one system, only one team. The force of the entire system is major than the sum of the individualities. Active Listening, Empathy, Mutual Comprehension, Respect for fears…awesome soft skills, much more important than IT knowledge.

Weekly spoken meeting points, instead of only cold e-mails. Respect for the business, respect for the person, ability to move to another directions, Immovable in the goal, flexible in strategy…incredible. 

Focus on solutions, good approach in solving problems independant the responsible for them…And most important, giving the opportunity each other to explain different  point of views, examining them reaching consensus based on a risk matrix. In a nutshell: a dream come true.

I remember even people in this group, working meanwhile they travelled to India, with a terrible jet-lag, but always with a smile, giving support with total empathy. It was awesome. Perhaps, he could be tired, very tired of this hard work, especially in the final part of the migration, when thousands of mini-tiny-incidents appear, and it seems a never-ending story. But the importance of the team was always over the importance of the person.

I am proud of forming part of this awesome M&A: ymedia and wink in Dentsu Aegis Network. Thanks to all the people involved in this M&A. My biggest thanks to Michael Ruppert, Gabriel Markos, John Hyde, Jean-Pierre Gonzalez, Sergio Serrano, David Gomez, Udo Llorens, Israel Sendra, Andy Armitage, James Orange, Paul Yates, Paul Flaherty, Matt Griffiths, Paul van Lingen, Christ West, Alessio Russo, Aron Ursinus, Louise Court, Andy Robinson, and many others (sure I’m forgetting someone)

With no doubt, I’ll use this business case (ymedia/wink vs Dentsu Aegis Network) in the next classes in the MBA where I serve as Professor in both subjects: HHRR and Soft Skills for General Managers.

Thank you guys. A pleasure and honor to work with all of you.

Ismael Fuentes. CIO ymedia, CIO wink, BDM Imagar Solutions Company, Professor in University Rey Juan Carlos I, and ESERP Business School.