At 6 a.m., Bloomberg Media called me in Hong Kong to ask about layoffs I didn’t know were happening.
I was brand new to my role leading communications for JPMorganChase across the Asia-Pacific region. The CEO and chief people officer were new. Both came from firms without a culture of early-looping the communications team into decisions. In the midst of a four-way merger, we were still learning how to work together, and now a reporter was on the phone asking about layoffs no one had told me were coming.
The layoffs were real—we had overlapping talent, but were also making a strong hiring effort to fill gaps with top talent. I’d been kept out of the loop on timing. I declined to comment to the Bloomberg reporter and immediately pulled together the CPO and CEO.
I explained why we couldn’t afford to have communications caught off guard again. A comms department must be a resource reporters can trust and approach directly every time. Otherwise, reporters tend to call around looking for others to talk, off the record. We wanted to broadcast the message that we were doubling down on Asia and our investment. A story suggesting we were just cutting staff wouldn’t benefit anyone.
Once aligned, I called Bloomberg back and reframed the story to reflect our growth strategy and target hires. We turned a defensive moment into a forward-looking narrative.
That crisis became the foundation for a new way of working together. Within two years, JPMorganChase rose from fifth to first place as the U.S. investment bank of choice for Asia-Pacific deals. The system we built under pressure made that climb possible.
Twenty years later, I’m watching the smartest acquirers learn the same lesson—only now they’re learning it before the 6 a.m. call.
Why the Smartest Acquirers Are Looping in Communications Earlier
Something has changed in the past 18 months. PE firms, heads of acquisition strategy, and CMOs are reaching out earlier than ever—when they’re planning their acquisition roadmaps.
One company recently mapped out five acquisitions planned over the next two years. Before pursuing a single LOI, they asked us to simultaneously revamp their brand narrative to support their growth strategy. Bolting on companies without a communications playbook would create confusion—for employees, customers, and the market.
Acquisition is the easy part. But making five different employee bases, customer relationships, and market positions work together as one company requires an advance communications plan.
Why Silence Costs More Than You Think in M&A
Most companies communicate too late in the mergers and acquisitions process. By the time they’re ready to talk, rumors fill the void and are almost always worse than reality.
I understand why this happens. Legal counsel advises caution. Deal teams focus on closing. Executives worry that saying anything will create liability. So, they all default to silence.
But your employees knew something was happening when the all-hands got cancelled, and customers wonder why they’re fielding calls from competitors. Your best talent is updating their LinkedIn profiles. The silence you think protects you creates a narrative you don’t control.
The hidden cost shows up when key talent leaves during the window between signing and closing, because no one told them they mattered to the combined entity. Customer churn spikes because competitors move faster with a story than the acquiring company does with the truth.
The 4 Stakeholder Clocks Ticking in Every M&A Deal
Every M&A involves four stakeholder groups, each on a different clock, each with a different breaking point. All four are ticking at once.
1. The Employee Clock
This starts the moment anything feels different—a closed-door meeting that runs long, an executive who seems distracted. Your people are pattern matchers and noticers and know before you tell them.
2. The Customer Clock
This clock starts when competitors start calling. And competitors always call. Customers must understand what the deal means for their contracts and relationships, or the competition uses silence as permission to write that story.
3. The Investor Clock
This clock operates under its own constraints. Investors need enough information to fulfill fiduciary duties without creating liability, which means working with legal, not hiding behind them.
4. The Media Clock
Executives underestimate this one the most. Reporters often work the story before you think anyone knows. You can be the source who shapes the narrative or a subject who reacts to it.
What the Best Serial Acquirers Do Differently
The best serial acquirers treat communications as deal infrastructure. Before any LOI is signed, stakeholder maps identify who needs to know what, and when. Leaders have talking points for different deal scenarios, ready statements in case news leaks, and FAQ documents for managers fielding team questions.
More importantly, they’ve tested their own brand narrative. Can it stretch to accommodate the acquisition? Does the combined story make sense to customers? If the answer is no, it’s fixed before the deal closes—not after, when employees and customers are already confused.
CMOs earn their seat at the deal table by mapping how the acquired company’s website, messaging, and market position fold into the parent brand. Without that plan, you spend months in revamp mode—and your competitors are pointing at what looks like brand soup instead of a unified company.
The client mapping five acquisitions understood this instinctively. Their current positioning couldn’t absorb that much growth without fracturing. So they’re rebuilding the story now with room to get it right, not in the reactive 72 hours after an announcement.
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FAQs About M&A Communications Strategy
How does M&A communications strategy impact company valuation?
Poorly managed communications during M&A directly erode deal value. When key talent leaves during the window between signing and closing, the acquirer loses institutional knowledge that justified the purchase price. Customer churn spikes when competitors move faster with a story than the acquiring company does with the truth. The best serial acquirers treat communications as deal infrastructure, protecting the value they’re paying for.
What communications plan do I need before acquiring a company?
Before any LOI is signed, you need stakeholder maps identifying who needs to know what and when, talking points for different deal scenarios, ready statements in case news leaks, and FAQ documents for managers fielding team questions. More importantly, you need to test whether your brand narrative can stretch to accommodate the acquisition. If the combined story doesn’t make sense to customers, it needs to be fixed before the deal closes—not after.
How do I retain key talent during a merger or acquisition?
The employee clock starts ticking the moment anything feels different—a closed-door meeting that runs long, an executive who seems distracted. Your people are pattern matchers and know before you tell them. The hidden cost of silence shows up when key talent leaves because no one told them they mattered to the combined entity. An advance communications plan that addresses employees early is the single most effective retention tool during M&A.
Why does brand narrative matter during M&A?
Bolting on companies without a communications playbook creates confusion for employees, customers, and the market. CMOs earn their seat at the deal table by mapping how the acquired company’s website, messaging, and market position fold into the parent brand. Without that plan, you spend months in revamp mode while competitors point at what looks like brand soup instead of a unified company. The companies planning multiple acquisitions are rebuilding their story now rather than reacting in the 72 hours after an announcement.
When should PE firms or acquisition teams involve a communications partner?
Before pursuing a deal. In the past 18 months, PE firms, heads of acquisition strategy, and CMOs have started reaching out when they’re planning their acquisition roadmaps—not after the deal is signed. One company mapping five acquisitions over two years asked us to revamp their brand narrative before pursuing a single LOI, because their current positioning couldn’t absorb that much growth without fracturing.
A version of this article first appeared in Fast Company, February 2026.
