Schulich Global Network Elective – Day 4

This is part 4 in a series about the executive MBA global network course at Schulich School of Business in Toronto, Canada. Read all the stories here

On Friday, classes opened with an interactive session that emphasized the interplay between mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and IT.

Students were split into three main groups, categorized as a top management team (TMT), sales & marketing team and IT team for two separate companies with different versions of a case study. The case study was based on a real case between a Canadian-based and American-based company. Students participated in presentations, negotiations, alignment strategies and recommendations. After hours of heated debate, guest speaker Jon Bowes, head of M&A Integration for PWC, spoke to students about the real companies that the case study was based on, explaining many of the cultural nuances, dynamics and tensions that went on during the deal.

“There are plenty of examples of major corporate mergers and acquisitions that failed because of an inability to understand and overcome the technology challenges during integration,” Jeff Forrest KS 13, Manager at L.E.K Consulting, said. “We’re all likely to go through at least one big merger through our careers, so it was useful to be able to explore these issues when my job and company aren’t on the line!”

After a productive day on campus, the students boarded the bus to explore Niagara Falls and connect with each over an enjoyable dinner at the Skylon Tower.