Can the organisation deliver what the deal requires?

We assess execution risk before you acquire, then work hands-on with you through integration to turn the investment thesis into results.

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Where value leaks

Key people leave, decisions stall, customers hesitate.

Due diligence tells you what the company is worth. We assess whether you will capture that value: can the organisation deliver what you are planning, and what will it take?

83%

of practitioners who have experienced a failed deal cite integration as a primary cause.

BAIN & COMPANY, 2024
75%

of acquirers face organisational issues requiring significant intervention, even after focusing on them early.

BAIN & COMPANY, 2023
2.6×

more likely to succeed when synergy targets are met within two years rather than four.

MCKINSEY, 2019

What we do

From investment thesis to execution.

The investment thesis defines what the deal must deliver. You get a sound basis for the decision before signing, a plan before closing and hands-on support through integration, with progress tracked against the thesis throughout. With better visibility, you gain more control and predictability over time and cost, and a better chance of the acquisition succeeding in both the short and the long term.

What we assess

  • Whether middle managers and key functions can carry the change while day-to-day operations keep running.
  • Whether key customers stay on through the change of ownership.
  • How the two companies work together: mandates, pace, autonomy and trust.
  • Whether the plan holds beyond the first hundred days, and whether you are exposed to competitor moves while the organisation is absorbed in integration.
  1. 01 · BEFORE THE ACQUISITION

    Execution decides the deal

    We assess whether the organisation can deliver the thesis, which parts of it are at risk, and what it will take to secure them.

    What you get

    • A report on the organisation’s capacity to deliver the investment thesis, including an execution readiness score from 0 to 100.
    • A prioritised action plan tied to the investment thesis.
    • Delivered in four to five weeks, alongside the rest of due diligence.
  2. 02 · BEFORE CLOSING

    Day 1 starts before closing

    We pinpoint which risks the contract must address, clarify the roles of key people and prepare Day 1 in detail.

    What you get

    • Clear guidance for your deal team and lawyers on which risks identified in the analysis should be addressed in the contract, and how.
    • A ready-to-run Day 1 plan covering key people, organisation, customers and union consultation.
  3. 03 · AFTER CLOSING

    Putting the plan to work

    We work hands-on with management and key people throughout the integration.

    What you get

    • Hands-on support for management and key people in the day-to-day change work required to deliver the thesis.
    • Ongoing tracking against the thesis, with early warning when something starts to go off course.
    • A final outcome measured against the investment thesis.
For serial acquirers

Each acquisition should run more smoothly than the last.

As the pace of acquisitions increases, the organisation that absorbs them has to keep up. Together with you, we build a method for assessing targets, deciding the degree of integration and assigning who does what. Each deal then takes less of management’s time and brings fewer surprises.

What you get

  • A framework for integrating add-on acquisitions.
  • A clear basis for deciding how far to integrate each company.
  • Clear division of responsibility between platform and portfolio companies.
  • Hands-on support through the first two or three deals.
2.3%

median annual excess shareholder return for programmatic acquirers, outperforming every other M&A strategy as well as organic growth.

MCKINSEY, GLOBAL 2000, 2013–2022

Why Damast

Fewer surprises after closing, lower costs, smoother execution.

Early signals. It can take several quarters for the financials to show that an integration has stalled. Employees, middle managers and key people notice long before that. We pick up those signals, so you can change course while there is still time.

Retaining key people and customers through the change of ownership. We help you identify the key people and customer relationships the deal depends on, early enough to retain them.

Taking the load off your organisation. Integration and transformation are our craft. We carry much of the workload, so management, middle managers and key people can keep running the business.

Senior operators, from start to finish. The same people lead the engagement from assessment to handover. Our track record includes integrations and transformations at Camfil, Gränges, Strabag, Peab, Accenture, AstraZeneca and Vattenfall. Our deepest experience is in industrials, construction and real estate, energy, telecoms and life sciences.

What you avoid

  • Key people or customers leaving without warning.
  • A gap between promised synergies and what the organisation can actually deliver.
  • Operational and organisational issues with no assigned owner at closing.
  • Decisions pushed back week after week while value leaks away.

Who we are

We have led integrations, IPOs, carve-outs and change programmes in international groups, and built new businesses, partnerships and sales functions in growth companies. Every engagement is led and delivered by us personally.

Magnus Carlström

Magnus Carlström

FOUNDER & PARTNER

Organisational development and integration leadership

Magnus has more than 25 years of experience in leadership and organisational development across international groups. As HR director and head of communications at companies including Camfil, Gränges, Strabag and Peab, he has led organisations through IPOs, carve-outs and integrations in more than 30 countries. He focuses on leadership capacity during integration, and on making sure organisational and reward structures pull in the same direction as the deal.

Lena Flykt-Rosén

Lena Flykt-Rosén

FOUNDER & PARTNER

Execution risk and operating model

Lena has more than 25 years of international experience in business development, transformation and post-merger integration. She has led change programmes at Accenture, AstraZeneca and Vattenfall, built B2B and partner businesses in fintech and proptech, and led the go-to-market for new ventures in telecoms. She focuses on an organisation’s ability to execute, how acquirer and target work together, and keeping customer relationships intact through integration.

Johan Strömberg

Johan Strömberg

SENIOR ADVISOR

Business development, sales and partnerships

Johan has 30 years’ experience in business development, leadership and commercial transformation. He has held senior roles at Microsoft, Navigio and Aino Health and served as CEO of several technology companies, including Bitsquid, which he built up and sold to an international buyer. A former auditor at Arthur Andersen, he combines financial acumen with hands-on experience of building companies. He focuses on keeping customer relationships and revenue intact through an acquisition.

A concrete first step

We start wherever you are in the deal.

BEFORE AN ACQUISITION

Do you know what the deal will demand?

In parallel with the rest of due diligence, you get a prioritised action plan, input to the deal terms and a Day 1 plan.

MID-INTEGRATION

Is the deal delivering what you expected?

Whether you have just closed or the work has stalled, we show where value is leaking and what it will take to see it through.

Contact

Let’s secure the execution of your next deal.

Start with a one-hour conversation. By the end, you’ll know whether we can help, and if we can’t, we’ll tell you straight away.