How do we stop our leadership team from getting distracted and letting performance slip during the high-stress period between signing the LOI and closing?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

The period between signing the Letter of Intent and closing the deal is when many transactions die. Leadership teams often catch deal fever, shifting their focus from running the business to watching the transaction. This operational drift causes performance to slip, which gives the buyer the perfect excuse to renegotiate the purchase price. To prevent this, you must compartmentalize the transaction. Keep the deal discussions limited to a small deal committee, typically the Visionary and Integrator. The rest of the leadership team must keep their eyes on the operating system. They must remain completely focused on executing their quarterly Rocks and hitting the numbers on their weekly Scorecard. Use your weekly Level 10 Meeting to keep the team grounded. If deal talk begins to bleed into the meeting, use the IDS process to identify the distraction and solve it quickly. Reassure the team that the best way they can support the transaction is by delivering stellar quarterly results. A business that continues to hit its targets during due diligence signals to the buyer that the leadership team is highly disciplined and that the company is a well-oiled machine worth every penny of the purchase price.