[Laura Impelluso]

In a covid era, in which it is still not possible to meet face-to-face, nor arrange workshops or plenary sessions as needed in the integration process, communications on strategy, organization or HR changes (change of role, department, etc.) is a challenging task.
And sometimes it can really make a difference in the success of the integration, where both a good timing and the right cooperation among the teams is crucial.

What is the right balance between taking action in a timely manner and give priority to the most effective communication form?

[Eric Kunitake]

There is definitely a place for face to face communications (preferred)but this doesn’t have to stop M&A activities. The best technology solutions incorporated:
– Common online storage (Sharepoint, Confluence, etc)
– Audio Video capability (Teams, Zoom)
– Project management style (Hybrid Agile, etc)
– Project management solution (Project for Web, Jira, Monday, Smartsheet, excel)

Regarding frequency of meetings, some may prefer weekly calls but the having daily scrum-like calls where immediate activities and blockers can be discussed with the group are most helpful. There are too many unknowns to rely upon waterfall-type planning for anything more than high level planning. Let the next step drive when follow ups should take place. Be sure to ask the assigned how much time they think they’ll need. If they cannot give a time, ask what the dependencies are. At each call, the PMI lead can refine and update status and list of upcoming tasks which helps the team stay focused as well as lend a sense of urgency.

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