In some cases following an acquisition, the target is acquired without a sense of why things are going well or not so well. This approach:
- Fails to systematically identify potential warranty/indemnity claims from the seller
- Does not use real data to evaluate the original deal hypotheses and assumptions, in order to improve future corporate decision making
- Fails to build a corporate learning culture around transactions into the business
- Potentially allows errors in either assumption or execution to be hidden without consequence
- Clouds accountability and mires performance review measures
An independent post acquisition review is a feedback loop that is designed to improve ongoing decision making and counter the types of potential issues above.