[Rami Semaan]

I would be interested to hear how you or your organisation’s IMO manages, monitors and tracks M&A and PMI activities, as well as how progress is ultimately reported to the leadership team.

Do you rely primarily on internally developed tools and a central repository or database to store documents and capture workstream updates, risks, dependencies, synergies and key milestones? Or has your organisation invested in a dedicated M&A or project management platform to manage the deal and integration lifecycle more comprehensively?

For example, there are specialist platforms such as DealRoom that aim to support end-to-end M&A execution and PMI through centralised workplans, reporting and workflow automation. Equally, I suspect many organisations continue to rely on a combination of Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint and traditional project management tools.

I would be particularly interested in hearing what has worked well in practice:
– What tools does your IMO use to manage and track an integration?
– Is there one central source of truth across all deals and workstreams?
– How are high-level status updates, risks, dependencies and synergies reported to the Integration SteerCo or senior leadership?
– Have dedicated M&A platforms materially improved integration execution, or can a well-designed internal solution be just as effective?

Thanks!

[CHENG-CHIA CHIANG]

In my view, effective PMI depends more on strong governance, clear accountability, and timely decision-making than on sophisticated software.

I prefer combining Excel, SharePoint, and Power BI to manage integration schedules, milestones, risks, and synergies. Red-Amber-Green (RAG) Status Management is particularly useful for tracking progress and reporting critical issues to the Steering Committee.

From a Legal and Compliance perspective, regulatory approvals, contractual risks, and data protection should be closely monitored.

Whether to adopt a dedicated M&A platform like DealRoom should depend on the number, frequency, and complexity of M&A transactions. For organizations with fewer or less complex transactions, a well-designed internal system may be equally effective and more cost-efficient.

[Author]

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