Douglas Barnard, former Executive Vice President, Corporate Development and Legal Advisor at CF Industries (NYSE: CF)
Problems don't usually surface at the early stages because it's the honeymoon phase. Both the buyer and the seller would like to see the deal happen, so they work together to build momentum. And often that means postponing dealing with some of the more difficult and contentious issues. However, these M&A challenges are inevitable and will arise as the deal progresses.
In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Douglas Barnard, former Executive Vice President, Corporate Development and Legal Advisor at CF Industries, discusses effective strategies to overcome M&A challenges.
Things you will learn:
• Mindset to prepare for M&A
• Overcoming M&A Challenges Between Signing and Closing
• Mitigating Post-Merger Integration Risks
• Biggest Challenges in M&A
• Advice for First-time Acquirers
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Episode Timestamps
00:00 Intro
05:26 Mindset to prepare for M&A
10:26 Strategic Negotiation Tactics
13:03 Having a Foundation of Trust and Honesty
17:31 Assessing Buyer Transparency in Deal Negotiations
20:17 Mastering Valuation and Identifying Synergies
22:43 Identifying and Overcoming Obstacles in the M&A Process
24:40 Uncovering Surprises in Due Diligence
28:53 Utilizing a Private Investigator (PI) in a Deal
29:57 Navigating Complex Negotiation Stages
33:54 Zero-Sum Scenarios in M&A Auctions
35:51 Valuation and Auction Bidding Strategies
37:57 Overcoming M&A Challenges Between Signing and Closing
41:29 Mitigating Post-Merger Integration Risks
46:16 Biggest Challenges in M&A
50:24 Advice for First-time Acquirers
52:51 Craziest thing in M&A
