Financial Crime World

Unlocking Collaboration: Overcoming Obstacles in Mergers and Acquisitions

The Importance of Compliance-Business Team Collaboration

In the world of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), achieving impact requires more than just financial expertise. Collaboration between compliance and business teams is crucial for successful integration, but several obstacles hinder this systematic collaboration.

Three Main Obstacles to Systematic Collaboration

Lack of Understanding

  • The compliance function is often seen as lacking full understanding of the business.
  • This lack of understanding makes it difficult for compliance and business teams to collaborate effectively.

Structural Barriers

  • The operating model, organizational structure, and talent are not set up to support meaningful engagement between compliance and business teams.
  • This structural disconnect can lead to siloed decision-making and hinder collaboration.

Processes and Technology

  • These have not been designed to unlock and sustain collaboration.
  • Inadequate processes and technology can create obstacles for compliance and business teams to work together seamlessly.

Overcoming Obstacles: Steps Banks Can Take

To overcome these obstacles, banks can take several steps:

Culture of Collaboration

  • Introduce microhabits that start with understanding each other’s vantage point.
  • Foster a culture of collaboration by setting the right tone from the top and encouraging C-level collaboration.

Talent and Operating Model

  • Meet the need for compliance talent skilled in collaboration and strategy.
  • Recruit and upskill professionals who can bridge the gap between compliance and business.

Underlying Technology

  • Invest in modular and integrated tech and data infrastructure.
  • Enable connectivity between strategy and compliance systems with workflow capabilities that allow real-time collaboration.

Unlocking Full Potential

By addressing these structural dimensions, banks can sustain and amplify the impact of their initial actions. This will unlock the full potential of collaboration between compliance and business teams, leading to more successful M&A outcomes.