How can mergers and acquisitions (M&A) impact tech recruitment?

The explosion in the ‘Internet of Things’ has seen businesses recognise that they can drive more value out of their digital presence and assets. It’s created endless opportunities to drive new innovations, enhance user experiences, and streamline internal processes.

And with organisations hoping to harness these new digital revolutions, it’s hardly surprising that merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in the tech sector is on the up.

Some acquisitions are driven by a need to overcome skills shortages. Others are motivated by a desire to move into new markets or deliver new services, particularly when non-tech companies acquire innovative start-ups. Whatever the reason, M&A activity shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, for many tech organisations, it’s no longer a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’.

Nonetheless, when one company merges with another, resourcing strategies can be significantly impacted. As a result, during and after the process, it’s important for employers to reconsider their approach to acquiring and retaining talent.

Reconsidering the employer brand after M&A

First and foremost, when bringing in new workers after an acquisition, you’ll need to reconsider your employer brand strategy. You’ll need to review your proposition and offering as an employer. You’ll then need to reflect on how this aligns with the needs and preferences of your new total workforce.

After all, we all have very different work expectations. Failing to recognise and align to this can be detrimental to organisational productivity. You may struggle to retain vital skills too.

From a talent acquisition perspective, research shows that jobseekers rank organisations’ current employees as being the most credible source of information about the employer brand. In fact, they outrank company websites, employer review websites, social networks and news articles as go-to sources of information.

As a result, after any merger or acquisition, it’s important that you transform your newly acquired workforce into brand ambassadors. Make sure your entire workforce understands the essence of your employer value proposition and is able to articulate this with their peer groups. Current employees can be an invaluable source for new hires; therefore harnessing their networks in this way can enhance your overarching resourcing strategy.

As the business landscape continues to evolve, we should be ready for the future – whatever it may hold. In essence, it’s time to think longer-term. M&A activity will continue throughout the tech sector and organisations all need to be ready to adapt resourcing and employer brand strategies accordingly.

Whether you need an end-to-end recruitment strategy, or support with just one step in the resourcing continuum – Experis can help. We build and implement strategic resourcing strategies for permanent and interim positions that deliver the right solution for your organisation.

Contact us today to find out more about our extensive resourcing capabilities.