Performance Ridge specializes in supportingmany of the activities related to business renewal including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and business transformation -- either for the entire company or for specific business units or processes.

There are four phases within each of those evolutionary activities.

Whether it's a Merger & Acquisition, Divestiture, Restructure, Major Company Transformation or a Business Process Transformation, we start by breaking down the transaction into four logical execution phases:

Phase 1 - Due Diligence
Phase 2 - Strategy Definition
Phase 3 - Assessment
Phase 4 - Implementation

Let's take a look at what each means to your specific business activity.

Due Diligence

Due diligence is the background work related to determining whether or not to pursue an activity.  For example, for an acquisition, a great deal of diligence goes into reviewing the financial position of the company under consideration.  This is often done in a confidential manner and by a very small set of personnel.

The actions around due diligence are often linked to the strategies of the company or business unit.  Ideally, a strategy exists which provides the basis upon which tactical activities, including renewal programs, are identified and acted upon.  In other cases, the pursuit of due diligence activities triggers the need to create or revise existing strategies. 

Strategy

The strategy definition, or redefinition phase, is where strategies are created or refreshed. Once a decision is made to pursue a transformational activity, the assessment phase creates the targets for action.  This phase involves creation of the plan to achieve the objectives of the renewal work.  These transformation activities are often complicated, are keys to corporate success, and represent a major change event for the employees.    The ultimate goal here is to optimize the value to be gained from the transformational undertaking.

Assessment

The assessment phase involves extracting and ensuring achievement of maximum value.  Depending on the activity being undertaken, the objectives of this phase would include organization review and rationalization, review of target markets and review of real estate, cost reengineering, and performance optimization.  In parallel, industry benchmarking information is gathered and compared to baseline corporate metrics.  The differences are used to create a concrete list of target activities and recommendations which are the output and deliverables to the client from this phase.  The assessment phase starts with documentation of the scope of the activity and concludes with establishment of a list of targeted recommendations, including quantified benefits, such that the synergies and tactical goals of the transformational activities can be achieved and exceeded. 

The first model is referred to as the Core Competency model.  An opportunity is reviewed first in terms of its strategic value to the business.  Is, say real estate physical security,  a core competency for a chemical company?  It may very well be a very important function, but it may not be of high strategic value to your business. The second step is to review the opportunity against the capacity or ability of the company to execute well on that process.  Is it a mature process within the firm? Using the two steps above, each process is plotted as a single point on the Core Competency grid.
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The second model is used for each identified opportunity is the Opportunity Impact model. Simply put, each process is assessed in the model for ease of implementations and potential impact, usually in terms of dollars saved to the firm. By plotting each identified opportunity into this model, a prioritization can be created around which opportunities to pursue and in what order.  Generally, the ones that yield the highest benefit and are the easiest to implement are targeted first.

Implementation

The final phase is implementation which is where the specific recommendations from the assessment phase are translated into executable projects.  Without a keen focus on execution, the stated value of the transformational activities will not be achieved.  Execution is accomplished via a rigorous and sharp program and project management approach using proven tools and processes for tracking and measurement.

Some of the phases are necessarily, or logically, led by the client team.  Other phases are more appropriately led by external, supplemental resources which are experienced in bringing in the tools, processes, and focus to make your business successful in its transformational activities.

While many consulting firms want to help with diligence, strategy, and even assessment, they often do not have the expertise, interest, or risk tolerance to see their recommendations through to implementation. 
Performance Ridge Consulting has the people, expertise and passion to lead your firm through its renewal activities, including implementation of the identified recommendations to achieve the quantified benefits,  while ensuring minimal disruption to day-to-day activity.

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