Entrepreneur Plus - Short White
For Subscribers

Lessons Learned from Failed Mergers Buying or selling a company? Learn how to avoid the most common mistakes in these business transactions.

By Christopher Hann •

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Eyes wide open: Fentress Seagroves' M&A strategy.
Photo© Natalie Brasington

Q: Roughly two in three mergers and acquisitions don't succeed. What lessons can businesses learn from what went wrong?

A: Many botched transactions can be traced to something your mother used to tell you: Study harder. Companies that don't thoroughly assess all sides of an acquisition--pre- and post-close--increase their chances of becoming one of those failures.

Continue reading this article — and all of our other premium content with Entrepreneur+

Join the internet’s leading entrepreneur community! With your subscription you’ll get:

  • Access to all of our premium content and an ad-free experience
  • A complimentary subscription to Entrepreneur Magazine
  • Four free e-books a year and 20% off everything from our bookstore
  • Exclusive events with business celebrities and successful entrepreneurs
Subscribe Now Log In

Editor's Pick

She's Been Coding Since Age 7 and Presented Her Life-Saving App to Tim Cook Last Year. Now 17, She's on Track to Solve Even Bigger Problems.
Lock
I Helped Grow 4 Unicorns Over 10 Years That Generated $18 Billion in Online Revenues. Here's What I've Learned.
Lock
Want to Break Bad Habits and Supercharge Your Business? Use This Technique.
Franchise Ownership Made Easy: Best Practices for Managing and Growing Your Business
Lock
Don't Have Any Clients But Need Customer Testimonials? Follow These 3 Tricks To Boost Your Rep.
Why Are Some Wines More Expensive Than Others? A Top Winemaker Gives a Full-Bodied Explanation.

Related Topics

Mergers and Acquisitions

Most Popular

See all
Chevron Right
Business News

Daymond John Slams 'Shark Tank' Contestants With Restraining Order: 'It Is Unfortunate That It Has Come to This'

Bubba's Q boneless ribs first appeared on Season 5 of the hit ABC show.

By Emily Rella
Business News

California Woman Arrested For $60 Million Postal Service Scam

Lijuan "Angela" Chen faces two charges that each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

By Emily Rella
Business News

Apple Just Unveiled Its VR Headset. What You Need to Know.

The Vision Pro is Apple's first major product launch since AirPods.

By Jonathan Small
Marketing

5 Things You Can Do Now to Improve Email Marketing

Abide by these simple tricks to help your campaigns gain more visibility and generate revenue in the process.

By Liviu Tanase
Leadership

The Return to Office Movement is Causing a Mental Health Crisis. Employers Are Part of The Problem — But They Can Be Part of The Solution.

Employee mental health substantially worsened with the return to office demands, and it's causing disengagement and low morale. The solution demanded by employees is the answer.

By Gleb Tsipursky
Science & Technology

'We Were Sucked In': How to Protect Yourself from Deepfake Phone Scams.

Phone fraudsters are using AI to clone the voices of loved or trusted people to rip them off. Here's how to detect if the phone is real or robot.

By Entrepreneur Staff