Cultural Survey for Post-Merger Integration Form

Author: Warren N. Rothman, Blue Prairie Group LLC

When to Use

The Cultural Survey for Post-Merger Integration Form should be used following the closing of a merger or acquisition in which the employer is the dominant or surviving organization.

The survey will help HR and the merged employer's senior leadership understands employee perceptions of whether the two premerger cultures were successfully integrated. The precise timing of the survey administration is affected by the nature of the transaction and complexity of the post-closing integration.

HR should consider administering the survey only after major organization structure changes have been announced and implemented, a new employee handbook introduced and the new employer's core values and expectations of its employees communicated. While there will no doubt be exceptions, two to four months post-closing would be the optimal administration window to gather this baseline data.

In addition, the survey can be used to help track the merger's progress through periodic - likely annually - administrations. In this way, HR and senior leadership can track trends in employee perception, beginning with a comparison against the baseline, and then take needed action to reinforce those areas perceived positively while constructively addressing those areas in need of improvement.