Business Leaders – Jennifer J. Fondrevay

May 2, 2023May 2, 2023

Can Music Help You Navigate the M&A Grief Stages?

March 23, 2023May 16, 2023

Podcast: Navigating Mergers and Acquisitions: Why Making Your Customer the North Star is Key

On this episode of Destination on the Left, Jennifer talks with Nicole Mahoney about navigating uncertainty and embracing transformation. Jennifer shares best practices for entering into a partnership and explores the similarities between M&A and collaboration and how the principles and processes of both can be applied to achieve success in any transformational journey.

What You Will Learn in this Episode:

What happens when you bring two cultures together after a merger, and how to avoid some of the typical challenges
Why it’s critical to be intentional about your values when planning a partnership
The importance of getting past your ego when making key decisions
Why you have to ensure that customer experience is your North Star to maximize a collaboration’s success
Jennifer shares her wisdom for leaders and teams looking to navigate the complexities of mergers and acquisitions

Helping Partnerships Thrive

Jennifer shares valuable insights for leaders and their teams considering a merger or acquisition, emphasizing the importance of respect for the other company. Drawing on the analogy of a successful marriage, Jennifer highlights that partnerships thrive on both sides bringing out the best in each other and recognizing the value each brings to the partnership.

She stresses the need for humility and respect when entering into a partnership and cautions against letting ego drive decision-making, which can lead to unsuccessful deals. Jennifer’s advice is a must-listen for anyone looking to enter into a successful partnership.

Finding Your North Star

On the podcast, we discuss the importance of being intentional and self-aware of your value when entering into a merger or acquisition. She emphasizes the need to keep the customer at the forefront of any decision-making process, using the example of a successful acquisition where a junior product manager reminded the team to focus on the customer’s needs rather than their own egos.

Jennifer highlights that keeping the customer as the North Star can help diminish the impact of ego in business and keep teams focused on the true reason for their work. She has some great golden nuggets of wisdom that provide valuable guidance for leaders and teams looking to navigate the complexities of mergers and acquisitions.

Unique Opportunities

Jennifer emphasizes the importance of the people piece in M&A; she says that there is no specific playbook for these types of deals, as each one has its unique opportunities and challenges. However, she encourages people to be intentional and contribute to the evolution of their organization.

Jennifer suggests bringing your particular skills to the partnership, embracing uncertainty, and looking for new opportunities. She also talks about the importance of collaboration, letting go of old ways, and contributing to the new vision.

March 22, 2023May 16, 2023

Podcast: Changing the Narrative on Mergers and Acquisitions (with Eloma)

“The payday is a lovely part. But don’t let that drive how you look for your partner, particularly if you want to leave a legacy worthwhile,” explains Jennifer Fondrevay. Mergers and acquisitions have a bad reputation, in part because statistics show that 70-90% of deals fail. However, it is important to still see a merger or acquisition as a viable growth strategy.

Listen to the full conversation with Kiley Peters.

March 20, 2023March 20, 2023

Podcast: The Connected Leadership Podcast

Jennifer Fondrevay known as the ‘MA Whisperer’, is Andy Lopata’s guest on this week’s Connected Leadership Podcast. Jennifer outlines the stages employees may face during a merger including grief, putting a strain on relationships and uncertainty of the future. She emphasizes the importance of connecting with the frontliners, listening to employees and valuing and respecting their comments. Preparation for possible challenges, transparency, understanding the culture of the companies involved can all help to move towards consensus.

The environment post-merger/acquisition is largely a question of morale; involving competition, collaboration and ‘survivors guilt’.

February 26, 2023March 13, 2023

Podcast: How to Survive & Thrive Through M&A with Tim Hughes

Jennifer joins Timothy Hughes on #TimTalk to dive into mergers and acquisitions and how you can survive if you get caught up in one.

In her book “Now What – A survivor’s guide for thriving through mergers and acquisitions” she talks about the fact that M&A happen, you can be going along nicely in your career and then you get hit with the change and upheaval that M&A provides. So, what will you do?

They also discuss the 5 stages of grief that people go through from denial to acceptance and the stages in between, and the post-M&A characters you will come across.

January 20, 2023February 2, 2023

Innovation requires a culture of trust.

Life sciences companies are built on innovation — and research shows that innovation takes trust, collaboration, and the sharing of ideas. Unfortunately, trust is often one of the first casualties of an M&A.

“One of the great ironies of M&A activity is that trust, a key ingredient for business success, often quickly dissolves, as M&A activity is usually cloaked in secrecy,” Jennifer J. Fondrevay, the founder of Day One Ready, an M&A consultancy, explained in a 2018 article in Harvard Business Review.

“A workforce can feel blindsided when a deal is announced, eroding trust and transparency in three mutually reinforcing ways: “our” company versus “their” company; the executive team versus frontline employees; [and] who stays versus who goes.”

Read the full article here.