Building a unified regional organisation after a merger of equals

A merger of equals leaves neither side with a default answer. Both organisations arrived with their own processes, data definitions, platforms and governance, and both had a legitimate claim to continuity. Across twenty-one EMEA countries, that made every harmonisation decision a negotiation rather than a rollout.

What we did

The programme was structured to move from two legacies to one enterprise-wide operating backbone, sequencing countries rather than attempting a simultaneous regional cutover. Governance and accountability were settled at regional level before the first country went live, so the model was tested against real delivery rather than agreed in principle.

• Established a unified regional organisation with clear governance and accountability
• Standardised processes and data definitions across EMEA
• Delivered a single harmonised enterprise backbone spanning ERP, CRM and HCM
• Deployed digital solutions across remote and industrial sites
• Sequenced the rollout country by country, reaching five go-lives within the year

Where it landed

Five countries were live within twelve months of programme setup, on a backbone the region shared rather than on either legacy estate. Operational coherence and cross-regional visibility improved, and the organisation was left with a scalable foundation for the industrial and commercial digital initiatives that followed.