Case Study:
Post-Merger-Integration at a World Market Leader in Special Mechanical and Plant Engineering
Company:
Special machine construction, batch sizes approx. 1 to 100, approx. 540 employees, approx. € 180 million annual turnover
Initial Situation:
Two former competitors in the field of plant and special machinery have joined together to form a new group. A new corporate structure had to be created.
Implementation:
After the founding of the holding company, cooperation rules have been established for all participating subsidiaries, which continue to be managed on a decentralized basis. My function here was to be member of the board as well as CEO of the largest single subsidiary of the group. A very flat structure of the holding organization needs in a lot of cases a direct involvement of the boardmembers.
The group consists of several international manufacturing companies as well as numerous globally located distribution companies that have been included in the merger. The following topics were u.a. to clarify:
- Reorganization network of sales offices;
- Mergers, closures, start-ups, structuring the product portfolio in the group; which production location produces which components
- Organization of sales; decentralized control with area responsibilities
- Establishment of a common structure of the project handling of large projects
To this end, several individual projects have been launched in which concepts were developed and implemented in groups. As a particular challenge in the implementation of group-driven decisions, the respective “local patriotism” has emerged. In individual cases this also led to new appointments of key functions.
Results:
Within a few months these tasks could be solved successfully. In the process, structures have been created that could be easily adapted over time to current needs or organizational changes. The group has been successful on the market under a common flag, retaining the former brands.