How to survive a hostile takeover

13 Mar

Written By Ed Pike

There has been a worrying pattern over the last few years of ‘hostile’ takeovers; where new owners have a very different vision and purpose from the organisation that they are taking control of.

It can seem chaotic, disrespectful, and full of confusion, yet the impact is often dramatic, action focused and may be seen as attractive to those who are frustrated by their own organisation's inability or inflexibility for change.

Speed and impact are prized over caution and risk aversion; often an act now, fix later approach.

There is a risk that these tactics become normalised in a playbook and used more widely.

We tasked our changeXchange participants to answer three questions:

What tactics are typical?
What are the consequences?
What advice would you recommend to Change Agents.

This paper shares the actionable insights and summarises our findings.

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Examples of the tactics used

We identified four groups of tactics that are actively used:

Create fear and uncertainty: Sharing one side of a story to create and spread fear and uncertainty. Making bold moves to shock the system and destabilize the organization.
Fear leads to decreased morale, increased stress, and a higher likelihood of compliance with the new leadership.
Create Chaos: Create a chaotic and confusing environment, to disorient teams and make it difficult for them to resist the changes being imposed.
This can lead to a breakdown in communication and collaboration, further consolidating the new leadership's control.
Displace Leaders: Removing influential leaders and replacing them with individuals aligned with the new agenda quickly shifts the power dynamics.
This silences dissent and ensures the new leadership's vision is implemented without resistance.
Centralize Power: Consolidate decision-making authority within a small group of new leaders, leading to significant changes in organizational structure and culture.
It can create a sense of instability and uncertainty, making it easier for the new leaders to implement their agenda.
Need for Control: An obsession with data, micro-management, and centralization of power creating a highly controlled environment where every action is monitored and scrutinized. This stifles creativity and innovation; you feel constrained and fearful of making mistakes.

Each of these serves to destablise and confuse the operations, creating enough disruption that it is hard to regroup and respond.

Wise Advice

These five actions have the best balance of impact vs difficulty.

Clear Communication and Vision: Easy to achieve, create clarity and consistency to mitigate the chaos and confusion
Build Trust and Relationships: Invest the time and energy to overcome the fear and intimidation and the damage they have caused. Trust is your biggest enabler.
Be Curious: In times of confusion and change, sensemaking, and curiosity can reduce surprises and create adaptability
Authentic and Aligned Leadership: Quickly align leaders with the new direction and priorities, use authenticity to create confidence in the new.
Invest in you: Prioritize your (and your teams) wellbeing to create resilience. Recognize the cognitive load that confusion and chaos have. Celebrate success and maintain a positive mindset.