Merger and Acquisition Analysis

How to approach due diligence in a Merger & Acquisition
By Sharon Cullars, Freelance Writer You've decided that it's time to grow your business and the best way to do that is through a merger and acquisition. Before taking any definitive steps, though, you'll need to do an acquisitions analysis. Only through an M&A analysis can you determine whether a business merger and acquisition is the way to go.

A key component to any merger acquisition analysis is due diligence. Due diligence allows you to assess the entity you want to acquire and quantify the risks. Depending on the company to be acquired, you may need to conduct diligence in several areas, including financial, human resource and environmental. Due diligence may also extend to other company assets, such as intellectual property. Determining the risks through a merger and acquisition analysis will avert any future liabilities to you. To make sure you are properly prepared, you need to do the following:

1. Compare acquisition analysis services to determine which one best suits the needs of your company.
2. Invest in a good merger and acquisition due diligence software.
3. Educate yourself about the merger and acquisition analysis process, including due diligence, through books and other resources.

Find a premiere acquisitions analysis service

A good service will provide a thorough merger acquisition analysis that includes due diligence investigations. It should break down all of the areas that need to be explored and determine any probable liability, whether legal or financial. You can find acquisition analysis services dedicated to financial diligence, environmental diligence and technical diligence.
Try:  Warren, McVeigh & Griffin provides analyses in three areas: organizational, financial, and technical. They conduct reviews of current and historical data to determine loss exposures. EBI Consulting offers expert environmental due diligence in various areas, including air quality and safety compliance.

Buy M&A analysis software to aid you through an M&A due diligence of third-party software

If you need to acquire a third-party intellectual property, you may not have access to source codes to determine compliance. You want a fast and accurate solution that clarifies software pedigrees and determines license obligations. You want to know the true value of the technical assets you are acquiring.
Try:  BlackDuck Software provides solutions that assess third-party software, automate code evaluations and conduct a pre-acquisition software evaluation. Also, take advantage of Brainloop's free trial virtual data room that streamlines the various steps of a merger and acquisition, including due diligence.

Read up on M&A due diligence as part of your research on merger acquisition analysis

Although you don't need to be an expert, you should at least have a basic understanding of the merger acquisition process, including the due diligence involved. Consult books and sites that explain everything in easy-to-understand language.
Try:  The Business Buyer Resource Center provides a download of a due diligence kit that includes checklists and a comprehensive study guide. Also read the primer The Art of M&A Due Diligence by Alexandra Reed Lajoux, which provides insight from 100 experts to help small businesses, manufacturers and service companies conduct M&A due diligence. Check out the sample due diligence checklist at Constable.net. It will help you get an idea of what to include in your own checklist.

• Get personal insights on due diligence and other aspects of mergers and acquisitions from financial blog archives, such as AskTheVC.com and Feld.com.