25 February, 2021

How failed M&A can destroy a director’s credibility

Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are some of the most challenging and risky endeavours board members encounter—so make sure you know the pitfalls.

Image: Aminphotoz/Shutterstock

Big mergers and acquisitions (M&As) make their first splash in the headlines based on the huge price tags attached to them. “Abbvie acquires Allergan, $63bn”, “United Technologies acquires Raytheon, $121bn”, “Comcast to buy Sky, $39bn”. The list goes on. But how much value will these deals create after they close? Despite the 70%—or higher—failure rate of M&As, that question can be obscured by the buzz of the merger process. But it can lead to huge turmoil afterwards, including resignations of top managers and board members. It should then come as no surprise that M&A decisions are some of the most important

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board responsibilities, board skills, directors' duties, finance, M&A, Nuno Fernandes, reputation