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Develop an M&A IT Playbook

Structured for certainty, adaptable to nuance: the playbook proactively drives M&A success, from due diligence to integration.

Is this blueprint right for you?

This blueprint is designed for:

• CIOs and IT leaders who:
  • Are looking to acquire another organization.
  • Are accountable for conducting due diligence and/or post-merger integration (PMI) in their organization.
• M&A strategy or integration teams OR business executives with an M&A mandate.

This research will help them to:

• Understand how ready the technology function is for M&A due diligence and integration.
• Understand what it takes to conduct due diligence on and post-merger integration of the technology of two organizations.
• Develop an M&A IT playbook.

This research does not:

• Help in performing the valuation of any technical or nontechnical assets.
• Go deeper into specific industry nuances or their systems, applications, or processes, which may still be critical to complete the playbook.
• Go into detail in any specific topic (e.g. app rationalization) within any IT function such as Apps & Services.
• Cover the development of an organization-wide M&A playbook.

Important things to understand when going through this storyboard

It’s always better to understand the rules of the game before you start the game.

What is included in this blueprint package?

• The Develop an M&A IT Playbook storyboard
  • This guide contains context and activities to help you develop your M&A IT playbook.
• M&A IT Workbook
• Due Diligence Checklist and Rubric
• M&A IT Playbook (final deliverable)
• M&A Glossary
• M&A Seller Package

See Slide 21 to learn more about what each artifact covers.

Point of Reference: AcquirerCo, TargetCo

This blueprint refers to the acquiring company (your organization) as AcquirerCo and the target company as TargetCo.

You are free to find and replace these terms with your company’s name and the target company’s name, respectively.

However, if your scenario is about a merger of equals, both organizations may call themselves AcquirerCo and the other as TargetCo. This is because both companies will be planning for due diligence on each other and then for joint integration.

For more terms and definitions, please refer the M&A Glossary.

Explore Info-Tech’s M&A research

This blueprint focuses on outlining overarching strategies and high-level tactics for M&A without delving into the detailed execution within specific IT functions (e.g. Applications, Infrastructure).

Visit the Merger, Acquisition, and Divestiture 91ÖÆƬ³§ Center to discover in-depth insights on specific topics.

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Mergers & Acquisitions: The Buy Blueprint

This capstone is for IT executives who want to be a leader in the transaction process when their business is pursuing a potential merger or acquisition.

Develop Your Target Evaluation Framework
This note helps IT executives and ask the right questions of non-tech executives, who can leverage it to develop an evaluation framework to identify the right targets and boost M&A success.

Make IT a Partner in Successful M&A Due Diligence
This blueprint helps IT executives get IT involved in the M&A process pre-close to help ensure post-close success.

The State of Tech M&As and the Subsequent Branding
This note focuses on post-M&A rebranding and what to consider as the organization adapts its brand image to reflect its new value proposition.

Make IT a Successful Partner in M&A Integration
This blueprint focuses on how to anticipate pressure in M&A integrations by simultaneously conducting discovery and delivering quick wins!

M&A Runbook for Infrastructure and Operations
Learn how to partner with the business to conquer the challenges in your next merger or acquisition.

Develop a Comprehensive IAM Improvement Strategy
If neither the Acquirer nor the Target has right IAM in place, use this research to build an IAM program with solid foundational processes.

Don’t Allow Software Licensing to Derail Your M&A
This blueprint recommends you become an advocate for exploring the legal entity structure of your new organization and how it relates to license agreements.

Application Rationalization During M&A
This note outlines how application rationalization should be applied specifically for a merger or acquisition.

Rationalize Your Application Portfolio
This tool is part of the blueprint Rationalize Your Application Portfolio. Use it to store application information, execute rationalization, and build a roadmap for your applications.

Application Portfolio Snapshot
This Concierge Service can help map all IT applications with the organization’s business capabilities, which is critical for prioritization.

Mergers & Acquisitions: The Sell Blueprint
This capstone is for IT leaders who want to have a role in the transaction process when their business is engaging in an M&A sale or divestiture.

91ÖÆƬ³§ a Security Compliance Program
Cost-effective compliance is possible.

Develop and Implement a Security Incident Management Program
Create a scalable incident response program without breaking the bank.

Software Reviews Emotional Footprint: ERP
If acquirer and target have two different ERPs, leverage SoftwareReviews’ Emotional Footprint for ERPs to get a comparative view.

Select an ERP Implementation Partner
If the target doesn’t have an ERP and integration requires it to be implemented, leverage this research to choose the right ERP implementation partner.

Establish Data Governance
Deliver measurable business value.

Secure Your High-Risk Data
Develop a comprehensive data security plan.

Discover and Classify Your Data
Provide your data with the protection it deserves.

Leverage this McLean & Company blueprint to Assess cultural compatibility between merging entities, define future integrated state, and implement culture change.

Analyst perspective

Without a playbook, M&A is a gamble – you risk acquiring things that fail to create value, introduce more integration challenges than synergies, and, in the worst case, lead to value destruction.

According to Harvard Business Review, 70%-90% of M&As fail to achieve their intended goals. In today’s world, technology can put your organization on the wrong side of that statistic, as happened in this case.

A global manufacturing firm, AcquirerCo, acquired TargetCo-A and TargetCo-B in consecutive years to expand into a new product space. The technology function within AcquirerCo was looped in a little late – in fact very late – after due diligence was completed and integration was imminent.

The first merger was chaotic: unclear integration goals, clashing cultures, and delayed customer migrations led to 20% talent attrition and a 15% revenue dip in the first year.

In contrast, the second merger, despite being more complex, was a success.

The key difference? A well-prepared M&A playbook. Just after the first merger, the CIO took the initiative to create an M&A IT playbook: they outlined M&A objectives, defined decision points, created an M&A tech governance council, prepared a due diligence checklist, and identified key integration initiatives across predefined technical streams.

This preparation positioned the CIO as a visionary leader and compelled AcquirerCo’s M&A Strategy and Integration team to include IT earlier in the process. As a result, the organization reduced integration time by 40%, retained 95% of key personnels, and realized synergies 20% faster. Taking inspiration from the CIO and IT team, the organization also created an M&A playbook for the business.

While this is a fictional account, if you are a CIO who has suffered in scenario 1 OR wants to avoid it, this research can help you develop your own M&A IT playbook, driving certainty in M&A efforts.

Manish Jain
Principal 91ÖÆƬ³§ Director, CIO Strategy
91ÖÆƬ³§

Executive summary

Info-Tech Insight

Every M&A transaction is different, but they all have one common thing – they all come with inherent uncertainties across all fronts with potential to disrupt not only the deal but the whole business. An M&A IT playbook, created ahead of the transaction, helps alleviate those uncertainties related to the tech domain while keeping it adaptable to deal with the nuances of each transaction.

Different organizations can have different strategic motivations for M&As, just like any corporate transaction

Every transaction has at least one primary motive, and a few secondary motives, and these should drive how the transaction is managed.

Strategic motivations for M&A

Organizational Growth

Expansion and Scaling Opportunities

• Revenue Growth – Cross-Sell/Upsell
  • New market expansion
  • Market share growth
  • Access to customer list
  • New customer segment
  • Earn right to sell
• Access to New Capabilities
  • Product or service diversification
  • Vertical integration
  • Technology/IP
  • Talent acquisition
• Time-Sensitive Opportunities
  • Undervalued targets
  • Distressed acquisitions

Operational Efficiency

Streamlining and Cost Optimization

• Cost Synergies – Economies of Scale
  • Economies of scale
  • Efficiency improvements
  • Horizontal expansion
  • Redundancy elimination
    • Vendor consolidation
    • Resource consolidation
    • Asset rationalization
    • Supply chain consolidation
• Access to more efficient processes, tools and / or technologies

Organizational Sustainability

Long-Term Adaptability, Compliance, and Risk Management

• Access to new capital
• Regulatory Compliance
• Risk Management
  • Mitigate hostile takeover risk
  • Hedge against risks
  • Critical function dependencies
  • Market consolidation – neutralize competition
  • Access to new capital
• Environmental or Sustainability Goals
• Response to Industry Trends
• Regulatory Mandate
  • Financial stability regulations
  • National security or strategic interests

Adapted from Info-Tech’s Develop a Flexible IT Funding Model

Unfortunately, your M&A transaction is likely to fail

The Probability of M&A Failure
(Based on a sample of 40,000 transactions over 40 years)¹

70%-75%

Not an encouraging statistic.

Main factors associated with M&A failure include:

• Poor strategy
• Inadequate due diligence
• Lack of alignment between IT and the business
• Ineffective integration planning and execution

¹ Wiley, 2024.

Due diligence has proved to be the first point of failure for many executives in their M&A efforts

96% of CIOs report they have seen technology due diligence uncover issues or opportunities that had material impact on certain deals.¹

35% of diligence efforts uncover a minimum of US$8 million in remediation costs.¹

88% In one case, mismanaged and overlooked due diligence contributed to the ultimate write-down of $8.8 billion of an $11 billion deal.²

¹ Accenture, 2022

² Willis Tower Watson, 2024

When it comes to due diligence, the size of your organization can present unique challenges for IT

While the steps you take to perform due diligence may not change drastically, the scope of your initiative, the tactics you employ, and your key players will vary a lot based on the size of your organization.

However, even if IT is involved in due diligence, PMI throws many M&As off the rails

M&A failure is widespread, and PMI is commonly cited as the most challenging aspect.

• About 76% of organizations going through an M&A found post-M&A to be the most challenging aspect of completing the M&A.
• PMI is consistently cited as a contributor to the failure of mergers and acquisitions.
• During M&As, IT often has the highest volume of integration activity over the longest period.

Source: "Make IT a Partner in a Successful Merger or Acquisition," 91ÖÆƬ³§ webinar.

Case study

The mother of all M&A failures: AOL and Time Warner

Industry
Media

Source
SAP, 2025; Journal of the International Academy for Case Studies, 2010

Interestingly, serial acquirers succeed more often in their M&As than organizations who acquire only occasionally

And it’s not just the experience they gain but also how they use that experience that matters.

Serial dealmakers outperformed less frequent acquirers by:

129% North America

91% Europe

75% Asia Pacific

Source: Accenture, 2022

And the reason is obvious.

Serial acquirers have learned from their experiences.

But what is not obvious…

They also document their experiences in a form of methodology and series of repeatable steps and in something they call:

The M&A Playbook

The M&A IT playbook you get out of this blueprint is an adaptation of many such M&A playbooks – with an IT scope.

It can help mitigate M&A challenges, provided the CIO is involved in the discussions early enough.

Case study

Success driven through an M&A playbook: Intuit’s serial acquisitions

INDUSTRY
Technology

SOURCE
The Verge, 2024

Case study

Organizational growth and operational efficiency powered by an M&A playbook

INDUSTRY
Healthcare

SOURCE
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* Anonymous Info-Tech member

The role of technology in M&A success

Info-Tech Insight

Technology is the foundation for both AcquirerCo and TargetCo. It may not be top of the M&A agenda for the business executives, though. However, if TargetCo’s tech function is not assessed properly and integrated well with AcquirerCo’s IT, it is highly unlikely that the organization will achieve its M&A objectives, and worse, it may be the start of the end of the merged company.

Info-Tech’s approach

A simple, adaptable, and repeatable M&A IT playbook is more likely to be adopted than a comprehensive, single-purpose but complex one.

The Info-Tech difference:

A repeatable and customizable framework to help you:

1. Understand the organization’s M&A strategy and objectives.
2. Define IT’s approach and governance and anticipate the appropriate integration posture.
3. Prepare the IT organization for due diligence with an expandable checklist.
4. Plan for integration with most the common integration initiatives and then add deal-specific nuances.
5. Create a post-integration value assessment framework. Don’t forget to have a placeholder for documenting lessons learned.

Blueprint deliverables

Each step of this blueprint is accompanied by supporting deliverables to help you accomplish your goals:

M&A IT Workbook

This Excel workbook contains a set of tools and templates – Assumptions Register, Risk Register, Risk Matrix, Synergy Cost Estimator, and IT Elements Checklist, among others – that will help you bridge any gaps found during the preparation of your M&A IT playbook and when preparing for M&A due diligence and integration.

Due Diligence Checklist and Rubric

This Excel workbook helps CIOs and their M&A team structure their due diligence questionnaires and checklist. It also has scoring rubrics to help assess overall confidence level on due diligence, the go-ahead to integration planning, and the go-ahead to integration execution.

M&A Glossary

This glossary, which comprises terms and definitions related to mergers and acquisitions, will help the whole IT team elevate their understanding of the nuances of M&A both within and beyond what is covered in this storyboard.

M&A Culture Assessment

The Excel-based M&A Culture Assessment is part of McLean & Company’s blueprint Implement and Sustain Cultural Integration Post-Merger or Acquisition. It is included in this package to ensure all Info-Tech members have access to it. McLean & Company is a division of 91ÖÆƬ³§.

M&A Seller Package

This standalone artifact is a subset of the M&A IT Playbook, created for two M&A use cases: to share proactively with a buyer during a divestiture; and to request key information from a merging entity’s CIO. It includes a due diligence checklist and M&A culture assessment.

Key deliverable:

M&A IT Playbook

Use this playbook to prepare the acquiring organization’s IT department (not corporate/M&A strategy function) for an upcoming M&A transaction.

Your organization’s M&A IT playbook should be prepared well in advance of the target’s identification, ideally as soon as the organization shares its strategy or intention around M&A.

After its initial preparation, the playbook becomes a reference for future M&As. Save a separate copy for each transaction before customizing it with the details.

Blueprint benefits