Mergers & Acquisitions

Surveys are a go-to tool to collect information quickly and if constructed well, easily compile the results.  My company's standard is to issue an anonymous survey three and six months post Close.  I frankly fought this for a number of years because M&As have a natural rhythm.  That is, as employees go through change (and all at different rates), they naturally experience emotions that color their responses.  Point is, if they are in the midst of the anger phase, the survey results will show that this individual is unhappy.  However, these results won't mean that that Integration Management Office (IMO) needs to take action to address this feedback across the whole population (as we naturally believe we must do with any negative feedback).  This individual just needs time to work their way through the change curve and adapt to their new parent company.  Without knowing the survey taker's names, it's not possible to follow up and pinpoint the true source of pessimism.  To address this, I ask survey takers to optionally provide their name if they'd like follow up on their responses.  Unfortunately, those with negative input prefer to hide behind anonymity.  I'd greatly appreciate your input on any of these questions:

• What is your experience with sending surveys to newly acquired employees?
• If the results show that a percentage (let's say 10-20%) of the anonymous employees give low marks in nearly all areas about the integration process, what do you do with these results?
• Should any meaning be put into the percentage of those who choose not to respond (e.g. what if 25% don't respond, what if 50% don't respond)?
• How do you ensure that the questions asked are going to provide the unbiased results you intend?

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Jennifer Lipschultz
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How long after the merger or acquisition should you do the survey?  I usually did 3.  I did the first one within the first month, giving the employees some time to adjust.  I then did one at 6 months and 1 at a year.  I included the employees who were originally with the acquiring company in the same silo for the first two surveys because I believe these employees may also have experienced anxiety and other discomforts.  As all surveys, the purpose is to aid in process improvement for the Change Officer and employees.  Results for the two groups varied widely for the first two surveys depending on whether this was their first merger or, if they acquiring company was in the business of acquiring.

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Frank Gorman, Former ACMP Board Member, Transformation Consultant
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Original Message:
Sent: 2026-03-24 06:31
From: Jennifer Lipschultz
Subject: Post acquisition surveys

Surveys are a go-to tool to collect information quickly and if constructed well, easily compile the results.  My company's standard is to issue an anonymous survey three and six months post Close.  I frankly fought this for a number of years because M&As have a natural rhythm.  That is, as employees go through change (and all at different rates), they naturally experience emotions that color their responses.  Point is, if they are in the midst of the anger phase, the survey results will show that this individual is unhappy.  However, these results won't mean that that Integration Management Office (IMO) needs to take action to address this feedback across the whole population (as we naturally believe we must do with any negative feedback).  This individual just needs time to work their way through the change curve and adapt to their new parent company.  Without knowing the survey taker's names, it's not possible to follow up and pinpoint the true source of pessimism.  To address this, I ask survey takers to optionally provide their name if they'd like follow up on their responses.  Unfortunately, those with negative input prefer to hide behind anonymity.  I'd greatly appreciate your input on any of these questions:

• What is your experience with sending surveys to newly acquired employees?
• If the results show that a percentage (let's say 10-20%) of the anonymous employees give low marks in nearly all areas about the integration process, what do you do with these results?
• Should any meaning be put into the percentage of those who choose not to respond (e.g. what if 25% don't respond, what if 50% don't respond)?
• How do you ensure that the questions asked are going to provide the unbiased results you intend?

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Jennifer Lipschultz
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