NHRD Journal - National HRD Network

is high, implying that there would need to
be changes done; but at the same time, the
need for autonomy, from an organizational
point, is also high. The approach is to
balance the need for driving the extent of
changes, while preserving the need for
autonomy. This is a challenging scenario
and the process takes time.
• Preservation: In this scenario, the need for
strategic interdependence is low, implying
that the changes are not really required for
value creation. In fact, conferring a high
degree of autonomy to nurture and keep the
source of value creation intact, leads to value
creation. A high degree of autonomy is
granted for enabling the same.
• Absorption: In this scenario, the need for
strategic interdependence is high, implying
that there need to be changes made for value
creation. At the same time, the need to
preserve the boundary or identity of the
organization is low. The suggested
approach is to fully consolidate the
organizations with the ultimate aim of
dissolving all boundaries.
• Holding: Here, the need for strategic
interdependence being low and need for
preserving the autonomy is also low. But, as
the changes need not be made and value
creation is possible without that, the suggested
approach is to have a holding structure.
The integration approach would influence the
extent of change in Organizational identity, the
Business model adopted, the Structure (which
will include roles and reporting relationships),
the Work Processes and the Human Resources
Policies. As discussed in the first section, each
of them, depending on the extent of change
would have an impact on the people. Based on
the Integration approach adopted, the
magnitude of impact would vary. The
Integration approach would also determine
whether people in both organizations would
get affected or whether the negative emotions
are limited to one organization.
In order to manage the employee reaction and
enable a smooth transition, towards meeting
the strategic objectives, it is necessary to have a
focused Integration Plan. While the details of
the plan would depend on the approach
adopted and the context of the merger, there
are certain necessary actions that need to be
incorporated in the plan, which will be
discussed in the next section.
Key Actions in the Integration Plan
Given that, there will be negative reactions in
the context of merger and it is necessary to
manage them in order to meet the strategic
objectives, it is critical to have a focused plan
for Integration. As mentioned above, while the
details of the plan would depend on the
approach adopted and the context of the
merger, there are certain key actions, as
identified by research and observed from
practice, evolved into a 4C model, that are
recommended as part of the Integration plan
for creating an environment to facilitate value
accrual. The 4C's are:
• Contingency Analysis and Planning
• Communication
• Co-Opt
• Collaborate
• Contingency Analysis and Planning: In
many a case, the integration proceeds with
focus on issues that come up and on a dayto-day
time line. It is quite clearly a recipe
for failure. An important step towards
successful integration is to have a plan in
line with the Integration approach. The
larger plan would then need to drill down
with a focus on micro issues. In a context,
where a lot of variables are fluid, there might
be unexpected situations and hence there is
a need for contingency planning for a worst
case scenario from both a business and
organizational viewpoints.
• Communication: Mergers and acquisitions
place new demands and pressures on the
November 2007 NHRD Journal 89