In my mind, it all starts with the goal of the acquisition. Each acquisition is different. Even though Financial considerations are usually the main reason for wanting to merge/acquire, there could be other reasons also. It is best to make a list of all such SMART goals – hard or soft – further divided into specific synergies expected, the timeframe within which they need to be accomplished, and the measures based on which they will be declared a success. Once you have it, it will not only help with the integration planning but also tracking the progress against those. For reporting purposes, depending upon the goal, you could use either different financial statements or other presentations containing data showing progress.
