1. “barbarians at the gate: the fall of rjr nabisco”, bryan burrough and john helyar
“recognize that ultimate success comes from bold, opportunistic moves that, by definition, cannot be planned.”
As relevant today as it was a decade ago, Barbarians at the Gate is a cautionary tale of the greed and infighting that underpinned an era that defined lbo in the 1980s. The book goes to great lengths to Describing the complexities of a massive deal, it sometimes provides too much personal detail about the protagonists, but it does give a sense of where the voices of the dominant characters may drown out the voices of their more level-headed colleagues. reads like a thriller. you’ll never look at oreos the same way after reading them.
You are reading: Books about mergers and acquisitions
Key Takeaway: When multiple players are involved in crafting a deal, it is inevitable that dominant personalities will tend to drown out calmer, more level-headed protagonists. Understanding what is worth listening to and what is little more than noise is crucial to ensuring a successful transaction.
amazon link: barbarians at the gate: the fall of rjr nabisco
2. “m&a agile: proven techniques to close deals faster and maximize value”, kison patel
“at its core, agile is a problem-solving mindset, a way of conceptualizing and responding to ever-changing environments, that values spontaneity, creativity, and quick reaction to new situations over established procedure , enumeration and static. workflow.”
kison patel, chief executive of the trading room, spent years working in transactions before a brief project that allowed him to work closely with software developers caused him to rethink the entire mergers and acquisitions process. as the author himself states, “agile” has become a misused buzzword, not unlike “synergy” and “innovation”. that’s not what the book is about. Patel describes, step by step, the agile M&A process and how it can create value for M&A practitioners when put into practice.
Key Takeaway: Despite the realization that m&a is bankrupting thousands of businesses, the methodology for closing deals has remained largely unchanged for the better part of a century. little by little, the most successful deal closings are moving towards something the author calls “more agile”.
See Also: Seven of the Best Bookstores to Buy Used Books Around Boston
amazon link: m&agile: proven techniques to close deals faster and maximize value
3. “valuation: measuring and managing the value of companies”, tim koller, marc goedhart, david wessels
“Extremely large companies struggle to grow. Excluding the first year, Fortune 50 companies grow at an average of just 1 percent (above inflation) over the next 15 years.”
Although not strictly a book on mergers and acquisitions, the valuation by a group of senior mckinsey consultants is essential reading for anyone involved in transactions. The authors go into considerable detail about where value is created and how managers don’t think critically enough about how companies think about growth. Illustrative examples of ROIC and how goodwill affects the value-creating ability of mergers and acquisitions are highlights.
Key takeaway: Truly understanding your company’s ROIC, rather than viewing growth as a stand-alone measure, is the key to generating sustainable value.
amazon link: valuation: measuring and managing the value of companies, 5th edition
4. “The Mastermind of the Deal: Advances in M&A Strategy and Analysis”, Peter Clark and Roger Mills
“Each deal tends to be described by the acquiring company’s CEO as unique. they’re not…approximately two-thirds of all transactions fail, based on prevailing criteria based on financial performance.”
This book could be titled, “There’s a good chance your business isn’t creating value and don’t say we didn’t tell you.” The authors take such a cynical view of M&A transactions, it may make one wonder why they’re writing about it. And yet this is an excellent analysis of m&a, part descriptive and part prescriptive. It covers everything from an analysis of the various waves of mergers, to the psychology involved in various stages of the M&A cycle, and debunks various myths about the impact of deals on business.
See Also: 10 Best French Comics to Level Up Your French
Key Takeaway: The authors present the concepts of Net Achievable Synergies (NRS) and Acquisition Purchase Premium (Application) as ways to think about whether or not deals have been successful. both are useful ways to rethink measuring the impact of a deal.
Amazon Link: The Mastermind of the Deal: Advances in M&A Strategy and Analysis
5. “Creating value from mergers and acquisitions: the challenges”, sudi sudarsanam
“one of the most disconcerting aspects of the merger phenomenon is the widespread perception that mergers and acquisitions do not create value for stakeholders and, in fact, destroy value. If so, given the enormous scale of the investment that mergers represent and the losses to stakeholders, including possible welfare losses to the community as a whole, we need a serious investigation into the reasons for such failure.”
As with the previous text in this list, value creation from mergers and acquisitions is descriptive in parts, but remains mostly prescriptive. The authors cover every part of the M&A process, from the search to the integration process. With over 600 pages of well-divided sections and extensively covered topics, this book provides an excellent reference manual for anyone considering making a transaction.
Key Takeaway: The key takeaway of this book may be its size, which gives an indication of how much there is to learn about m&a for the average practitioner.
amazon link: creating value from mergers and acquisitions: the challenges
summary
In short, there are so many books that can add to the knowledge of anyone practicing mergers and acquisitions during any part of the transaction. this list could have had more names – the dark side of valuations by aswath damodaran deserves an honorable mention. There is certainly something to be learned from each of these books, however, and anyone at m&a could benefit from the insights they provide.
See Also: Amazon Prime Shipping for Author Copies? (Eh, kinda.) – Skinner Book Services