If you are a senior-level executive or manager with corporate development, planning, and finance responsibilities, this program is designed for you. Many companies send groups with managers from both valuation and integration functions to take advantage of the common learning experience.

In this course, you will:

1. Examine the industry attractiveness of a target company
2. Identify and determine sources of competitive advantage
3. Develop acquisition and restructuring strategies
4. Determine the shareholder value of an acquisition company
5. Manage negotiations
6. Test post-merger assumptions
7. Apply what you have learned in a simulated acquisition

Drivers of Acquisition Success

1. Winners and losers—the evidence
2. Elements of successful acquisition processes 
3. Analytical techniques that support acquisition success
4. Steps to manage culture gaps and other behavioral pitfalls

Developing Winning Acquisition Strategies

1. Strategic segmentation and segment attractiveness
2. Defining strategic fit
3. Pressure testing skill, scope and scale benefits
4. Proactive acquisition target search and screening

Financial Analysis and Valuation

1. Alternative valuation approaches
2. Measuring and quantifying risk
3. Isolating key drivers of value
4. Testing assumptions—getting beneath the cash-flow forecasts
5. Determining the optimal bidding range
6. Evaluating international acquisitions

Due Diligence and Negotiation

1. Managing the due diligence process
2. Evaluating target commercial stability and growth prospects
3. Managing internal and external experts
4. Recognizing potential deal killers
5. Building a negotiation strategy
6. Preparing for and managing the negotiation process

Structuring Winning Deals

1. Strategic alliances vs. mergers and acquisitions
2. Costs and benefits of joint ventures, licensing agreements, and other strategic alliances
3. Critical legal issues
4. Tax implications of alternative structures
5. Financial reporting considerations of alternative deal structures

Post-Merger Integration Best Practices

1. Developing a tailored integration approach
2. Action planning and prioritization to deliver maximum synergies
3. Managing cultural differences and other deal killers
4. Minimizing risk in the integration process

 

Christopher C. Kenney - Academic Director; Vice President of L.E.K. Consulting, LLC

Artur Raviv - Academic Director; Alan E. Peterson Professor of Finance

Jeanne Brett - DeWitt W. Buchanan, Jr., Professor of Dispute Resolution and Organizations; Director of Dispute Resolution Research Center

Thomas Lys - Eric L. Kohler Chair in Accounting; Professor of Accounting Information & Management

J. Keith Murnighan - Harold H. Hines Jr. Professor of Risk Management

Edward Zajac - James F. Bere Professor of Management & Organizations; Chair of the Management & Organizations Department; Director of Kellogg’s Center for Strategic Alliance Research

Continuing Education Credit
This program is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy and is recommended for 44.5 CPE credits.


Continuing Professional Education Information
The Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be addressed to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors, 150 Fourth Avenue North Suite 700, Nashville, TN 37219-2417.
Web site: www.nasba.org

All Kellogg programs that qualify for CPE credits do not have pre-requisites. Advanced readings and case preparation is required. A packet of course materials is mailed to all participants before the program begins.

All Kellogg programs are group-live. Program level: Advanced.

For more information regarding administrative policies such as complaints and refunds, please contact our office at 847-467-7000.