Over my career, I’ve navigated seven mergers and acquisitions from both sides of the table, including as a communications executive on a Fortune 100 deal team. Despite good intentions, even the strongest leaders can be tested. This series focuses on the behaviors and human dynamics that matter most in these moments.
Every deal eventually asks the same questions about its leaders.
Who’s good? Who’s not? Who’s on the fence?
Buyers and acquired leaders both get to the answers, whether based in perception or reality. It’s just a question of when in the process it happens.
PwC’s 2026 M&A Integration Survey, released 4Q 2026, gathered input from 530 C-suite executives and senior dealmakers. Only 16% assess leadership and talent before signing.
In many ways, this makes sense. Before signing, many deals are confidential, especially for public companies, and access to the details is limited. So the talent questions wait until after close. Then they get answered (very) quickly, and usually under pressure.
When I served on a deal team years ago, you could see the minds and hearts at play around the table, aligning and competing, pushing and pulling at the same time. The minds focused on the business, the numbers, the data! The hearts thought about the talent, the culture, and the aftereffects!
Employees make the culture and hold everything together, but deadlines and dollars tend to temporarily supersede the people discussions at the outset. What was curious to me then, and still is today, is how quickly that flips once the deal closes.
The Middle Isn’t Average
When the people reviews happen fast, they tend to focus on what is easy to see. Psychologists call this salience bias, meaning we give more weight to whatever stands out.
Top performers stand out, and so do people who are having a hard time meeting expectations. That’s the easier part.
The leaders worth a closer look are the ones in between.
They do good work, keep the wheels on your culture bus, and show up ready to do what’s expected in that job description. No more, no less. Therein lies your steady-eddies. Perhaps it’s subjective, but the word “average” seems like the wrong word here. They’re not. And they happen to be your majority.
Their value often lives in what doesn’t go wrong, which is hard to see when you’re under pressure to do a quicker review. That leaves your “middle” in a vulnerable position, whether you’re the buyer or the one being acquired.
Is there a way to influence it, or is this just the way it has to be?
Before Anyone Asks
There’s more room to influence this than most leaders think, and it starts before you’re asked.
Not every leader will be the one making these calls, but many can influence the people who do. Either way, the approach is the same. Take an honest look at the team as soon as you can and sort them into three groups:
The people you’d fight to keep.
The people who need more support and/or are not meeting expectations.
And the middle folks, all the solid performers in between.
For each person in the middle, write down what it is they hold together or make happen. Which of the projects ahead would go better with them on it? Think about now, think about the future. Check your view with one trusted peer or HR partner and try to keep all those summary notes handy. Usually, it’s not a matter of “if” you’ll be asked for the list, it’s when.
If you’re acquiring, ask the acquired leaders for their view of their team as soon as access allows, and ask about the middle by name. Then do the same exercise with your own team, since the combined team will be sorted too.
If you’re being acquired, have your summary ready and offer it before you’re asked. It’s one of the places where you still have real influence.
A coaching question I might ask is: What do you know about your steady performers today that only comes from working alongside them?
The 16% may not change anytime soon, and often for good reason. What leaders can do is be ready when the questions come, so the middle – the glue holding most organizations together - doesn’t get overlooked.
About The Author
Chris Chaia is the founder of Onwards Consulting, an executive coaching and strategic marketing consulting firm, serving leaders and organizations navigating growth and change. She is also the architect and publisher of The Business of Coaching 2025, a global research study on the practices, habits and behaviors of coaching entrepreneurs.
