PODCAST with Dharmendra Singh, Chief Executive Officer -MergerWare

Our Featured Guest for this Podcast was Jennifer J. Fondrevay, the Founder and Chief Humanity Officer of Day1 Ready M&A Consultancy. Dharmendra SINGH, CEO – MergerWare had an insightful discussion with Jennifer on relevant M&A aspects like the impact of the past year on M&A, the recent M&A trends, and how companies are getting prepared for Post-Merger Integration.

As Jennifer says, “One trend I hope continues [since the pandemic] is the greater emphasis on employees & the workforce. The workforce itself is saying “No, this doesn’t work for me”. Many people are re-evaluating what work means for them and the workforce is having a greater influence on what happens in an organization.”

PODCAST: Health Law Hot Spot

Following a health care practice merger or acquisition, it’s important to remember that there will be significant changes that impact the workforce and the workplace culture going forward. Join host Ericka Adler, Roetzel shareholder and Health Law Practice Group Leader, and guest Jennifer Fondrevay, Founder of Day1 Ready™, as they discuss why it’s important that all of the parties involved have conversations early and often to set expectations and ensure a successful transition.

The Human Touch: How mergers and acquisitions affect workplace culture

In this Q&A, LeadingPRINT sat down with Jennifer to get her thoughts on managing culture after a merger. Read the full pdf article here.

“If you are unable to communicate a clear vision for where the company is going so that the workforce can understand the new direction and embrace it, you can spend months of lost productivity.”

Jennifer J Fondrevay

See the full Leading Print spring issue here – Jennifer’s Q&A is on page 20.

5 Best Practices When Crafting your M&A Onboarding Experience

Post mergers & acquisitions (M&A) onboarding is NOT your typical onboarding journey. However, intentional planning and appreciation for your new employees’ mindset can play a critical role in setting your new employees up for success.

In an M&A scenario, employees have not been actively recruited to join your company. The excitement and eagerness to “be part of the team” are not typically there. In fact, if the newly acquired company will be changing its name to the acquiring company, these new employees may even think about revolting. This reality requires a different mindset and approach as you onboard your employees.

Read all 5 best practices in my guest article for Silk Road Technologies.

PODCAST: An Expert Conversation on Mergers & Acquisitions

Theresa Caragol, Founder and CEO of AchieveUnite, recently sat down with Mergers & Acquisitions expert and AchieveUnite Expert Community Member Jennifer Fondrevay to discuss the top considerations for technology companies to keep in mind as they undergo M&As.

In this episode, you’ll also learn why M&As fail, and you’ll walk away with relevant insights and best practices to help you successfully lead your employees, customers, and partner ecosystem through an M&A.

PODCAST: Why Employee Integration Is A Critical Aspect Of M&A

Integration of employees is such a critical aspect of any M&A transaction, yet most entrepreneurs spend too little time planning for and executing this element. The planning for this phase should start the moment you decide you’re going to pursue an acquisition, not when you’re already in due diligence. My guest, Jennifer Fondrevay, is an expert in the human capital aspect of M&A transactions. She’s personally been part of several large M&A transactions and has seen firsthand how the human capital piece can sour an entire deal.

Jennifer shares key insights on the most overlooked aspects of integrating people, best practices for handling human capital and how COVID has changed the landscape and the challenges it presents in truly analyzing this part of any deal. Jennifer is engaging forthrightly in her advice which comes from firsthand experience.

Read the full transcript here.

PDOCAST: Don’t Rest on Your Past Success

Jennifer joins Tammy Gooler Loeb on Work From the Inside Out.

Jennifer Fondrevay told me something that I have never before heard from a guest. As a young child, she wanted to become the Ambassador to France and even more remarkably she continued to have that goal throughout her college years into graduate school. Jennifer’s father is French and her grandmother lived with them until she was three years old, so she learned French first, English second. She majored in French and political science undergrad and then continued with her graduate studies at the Thunderbird School Of Global Management where she studied international business, specializing in marketing and advertising. Jennifer figured if the ambassadorship didn’t materialize, her fallback plan was in marketing or advertising. It appears to have worked out extremely well, although Jennifer’s Dad still hopes that she’ll pursue the diplomacy route one day.

In this week’s Work From The Inside Out podcast, learn more about Jennifer’s journey: 

  • When her Harvard Business Review (HBR) article, “After a Merger, Don’t Let “Us vs. Them” Thinking Ruin the Company” went viral, Jennifer recognized the power and interest in a human-centric approach to business transformation, where employees are at the heart of the change. 
  • In addition to HBR, Jennifer also shares her expertise as a contributor to Fast Company, Inc, Thrive Global, and Forbes.

PODCAST: Using Your Survival Experiences

I was interviewed on the podcast, GOING SOLO: Building Your Own Successful Business After a Late Career Job Loss. Listen to host David Shriner-Cahn and me discuss strategies for listening for important clues about gaps in the marketplace LISTEN HERE

We discuss:

  • The people challenges of Mergers & Acquisitions [03:29]
  • A premortem: getting all senior leaders on the same page [07:50]
  • Taking into account the future that employees envision for themselves [09:48]
  • The stages that employees go through during a merger [12:05]
  • How to let go of past achievements and pivot how you can contribute to the future [15:30]
  • The part about Mergers & Acquisitions no one’s talking about [18:04]
  • If you’re passion about it, that can make you a force for good [20:58]
  • Drilling down on a niche [22:51]
  • Why you need to be a good consultant [24:27]