Confession time: I have faithfully watched the show Survivor for the past fourteen years. I find the social experiment to be fascinating–especially when the teams have to deal with a merge multiple times throughout the season.
Some contestants excel post-merge, while others completely flounder. Success post-merge has a lot to do with their post-merge game, but pre-merge tactics play an important role too. Company politics throughout a merge process are a lot like the show Survivor, and we can split the employees into three categories.
The first category of employees never see change coming, and it hits them like a ton of bricks. These employees sometimes try to adjust, but life around camp was so good before the merge that the dreary post-merge outlook is too much for them to handle. Eventually, everyone watches their painful demise and exit. Next, are the employees who had been unhappy in their job pre-merge, catch a whiff of the winds of change and jump for joy when the merge is finalized because it has the potential to save their job. This group had a tendency to talk trash about life pre-merge and can act a bit desperate post-merge. They smile a lot because they know the merge literally saved their hides for the time being. Sometimes, their desperation works in their favor, but most don’t really trust them. Last, we have the employees who did well pre-merge and may not be excited at the prospect of a merge, but losing is not an option. So, instead of becoming dispensable, they adjust and flex and create new relationships and prove their usefulness all over again.
Ultimately, your attitude and ability to be agile pre- and post-merge are key to whether you survive and thrive, or move on.
- Don’t be cocky in your current job. You are never completely on top of your game. Foster a teachable attitude. You may be sitting pretty in your current gig, but change is often the name of the game in the cleared contractor world. If you are complacent, it could be hard for you to recover.
- Network, network, network. Your results in your work are crucial – yes. But your social game is equally important to your survival. Check your social circles for information on your new leaders. Learn about potential new clients–you may already be connected to some of them. Knowledge is critical to survival.
- Take time to recharge. You may feel used and abused and under-appreciated; however, your attitude is part of your social game. Disgruntled employees are usually not considered keepers. Whatever happened in the last days before the merge or acquisition, you have to find a way to let it go, recharge, and move forward.
- Focus on helping others make the change. Change is hard for everyone, but you can be the one to ask to be introduced to the new team leaders. You can be the bridge. No matter what happens post merge/acquisition, your reputation should reflect how you cared about others during the process.
- Embrace the change. Change is hard. But business is business and change is inevitable, so you might as well understand what the changes are and embrace them. Your title may change. Your office may change. Your clients may change. Understand the new organization is re-assessing everything, and you need to be ready to adjust. It’s okay to push back when it’s appropriate and necessary, but the employee who resists every change might as well just clean out his office before the new regime takes over.
- Don’t ignore the warning signs for demotion or job cuts. Do everything you can to preserve the current relationship, but if the writing on the wall is clear, make sure your cleared profile is up-to-date and start sending out your resume. Better to leave before your job becomes discouraging.
Survivor may be a sensationalized reality, due to a more extreme situation, but the principles remain the same. You want to be like the Survivor contestant who is useful and well-liked pre-merge, but adjusts and adapts to any dynamic shifts in the game. A merge doesn’t have to be the beginning of your demise. It is simply a new beginning. Some of us don’t do well with change, but learning how to adjust and be useful in a new way is better than sitting at home wondering where it all went wrong.
