Keno Vigil - Acquired: Now What?: Embrace the flux and uncertainty of M&A and become a savvy and bulletproof business professional. YOUR JOURNEY AWAITS!

ACQUIRED

Now What?

Embrace the flux and uncertainty of M&A and become a savvy and bulletproof business professional

YOUR JOURNEY AWAITS!

Copyright 2018 Keno Vigil

All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Vigilant Press, LLC

P.O. Box 5365

Cary, NC 27512

Ordering Information

Currently available on Amazon and Kindle

Quantity Sales: Special discounts are available on quantity purchase by corporations, associations, and others.

Printed in the United States of America

Cover Design: Vigilant Press, LLC

Book Layout & Design: Vigilant Press, LLC

Series Editor: Jon Obermeyer, Venture Communications

Nights & Weekends Enabler: Coffee & Electronic Music

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

ISBN-13: 978-0692143384

First Edition

DEDICATION

To my beautiful wife, Courtney, and amazing daughter, Juliette, for their continued love and support to make me better each day.

To my late Grandfather, William Hull, for his many years of shared wisdom and laughter.

To my mother and sister for being fantastic co-pilots on our many adventures through life.

And thanks to each of you reading this right now and taking yourself forward.

Godspeed!

TAKE A DEEP BREATH

table of Contents

Introduction: My 16 Reasons for Writing this Book

CHAPTERS
1. The M&A Superstorm: How Common is it?

2. More Murders & Executions on the Way ;-)

3. Talent Grab: The Rise of the Acqui-hire

4. Pinball Wizard: Playingand Winningthe M&A Game

5. The Chameleon Gene: Versatility Business Traits
6. Uno, Dos, Tres Acquisitions

7. Venturing Out: Airwalk Networks and PPD

8. Simulated Success: The WebMD Acquisition

9. No Unicorns Here: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
10. The Great Big Ol Bear Hug

11. Adapt Like Coach K

12. Uncertainty: The Cage Match

13. Kenos Netflix Comedy Special

14. The Acid Test: Will You Survive or Not?

15. Pillow Talk: The M&A Conversation for Spouses & Partners

16. The New Culture: What They Say and What They Really Mean

17. Air Cover: Does Your Boss Have Your Back?

18. Call of Duty: Taking Care of Your Group

19. Know Your Lines: Alignment with the Acquirer

20. I Kept My Head Down, But Then They Forgot About Me

21. Daylight Heist: Intelligence, Integration, Innovation

22. Gang-Related: Tips for Talent Management

23. The Real Boss: Managing Customer and Partner Expectations

24. Dont be that Guy: Dealing with Your Acquirers Systems

25. Dont Let the Synergy Get in Your Way

26. Hello, Milwaukee! - Relocation Could Be the Dealt Hand

27. Silver Severance, Copper Cushion

28. Mic Drop: The Bail-Out Option

29. Incoming! Preparing for the Next Acquisition

30. Whats Your M&A War Story? (Call to Action)

Appendix A: The Survival Fitness Analysis Worksheet and Scorecard
Appendix B: Key M&A Terms
Further Reading

About the Author

INTRODUCTION: MY 16 REASONS FOR WRITING THIS BOOK

No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.

Robin Williams

Wait... the author of this book is a technologist, entrepreneur, and artist? No Ivy League MBA? No finance or Wall Street pedigree? What can he possibly teach me?

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is a generic business term that refers to the consolidation of companies or assets, where generally two companies are involved. M&A can include a number of different transactions, such as horizontal and vertical mergers, consolidations, tender offers, purchase of assets, and the recently popular talent-grab acquisitions called acqui-hires.

In many respects, M&A is like the institution of marriage, in which the consolidation of trust and love occurs between two unique and principled individuals. Mergers and acquisitions in business similarly lead to the consolidation of teams, processes, and philosophies. There are also transactions in marriage just as there are in M&A, such as transactions of love, support, undying faith, and the formation of a bond between two families.

If youve picked up this book, youre probably working for a company (or perhaps even own one) thats going through or will be going through M&A. Maybe you simply want to learn more about what this process entails, and what you can do to navigate it and come out on top. Maybe youve heard about the uncertainty M&A brings to a company and are concerned about what the future might hold for your career. Or maybe youre just trying to figure out how youre going to survive this upcoming storm.

Heres the good news... Im here to help.

Whats a person like me doing writing about M&A? Well, Ive been through six acquisitions. Three of them have been small, whereas the rest have been of a much larger scope... and Im only halfway through my career!

Like many of you reading this book right now, I am a lifelong learner and always looking to get better both personally and professionally. So, as I looked around for sources on coping with or navigating the M&A process, I quickly realized that no one was writing about these concepts. At least, no one has written about them in a while, in a way that reflects the current state of M&A.

Thats why Ive written this book, to help you consciously cope with and navigate the M&A process and build the bulletproof professional career you want.

And if you arent convinced that you need help with your journey through M&A yet, here are 16 reasons that illuminate the why behind my creation...