The announcement of a merger or an acquisition of a company can affect everyone from Wall Street to the person walking home on the street that day. It sends waves of excitement, thoughts of one’s career security and confusion all at the same time. Every time a call arrives from a tax professional working in a corporate tax organization that is being acquired, fortunately my years of experience with these situations enables me to help them knowing what to expect. There are a few questions I always ask and for those who have never been through this type of situation before please listen up. Some of you will know where you stand right up front and some of you will not know anything until 2 weeks before your job ends. Having said this, know there are many moving parts during these deals and anything could happen.

When someone calls from a corporate tax department about an acquisition the first question I ask them is “Has your company discussed any severance package with you yet?” If they say “No but they have mentioned they will be talking to us.” It is time to remind them that the company will extend packages first to the people they need most as they want to secure these key people  as quickly as possible after the announcement. Key people are first told what they can expect and how long the company would like to retain them in that role. If the company is keeping you in the dark regarding their intentions  then you need to be proactive in protecting yourself (I will teach you how during this post).

I have observed big companies who acquired a company and let go the majority of the tax department. All the knowledge walked out the door and if investors even knew the costs to the company financially they would be stunned . The tax department could have saved the company millions in taxes on the deal. On the other hand, there are super smart executive teams running companies listening to their tax executives; these are companies making money by minimizing the taxes; these are the companies keeping the tax team informed and engaged on tax minimization savings strategies right to the very end. These companies are run by executives who are doing an outstanding job.

What always happens is the uncertainty in the minds of the tax professionals working for these organizations. Depending on how each person is treated, the acquisition will often impact their productivity in the company. If every company would simply communicate clearly with their executive teams, and every executive team member would communicate clearly with their tax team what they know, tax departments could operate much more smoothly. It is the uncertainty in these transitions that affect the people and the companies greatly.

If you are leading a tax organization,  you should reach out to help your team in times of uncertainty. If you want to help your people during the acquisition and cannot guarantee them a job, you can now help them obtain the attention they deserve for their tax skills and knowledge as a member of https://www.taxconnections.com/membership/tax-professionals .

Here is the big difference with TaxConnections and other sites. When you join TaxConnections everybody can find you and send you a message for free. The other sites make it very difficult for people to find and connect with you because they make their money charging other people to get through to you. If you really wanting a stunning eye-opener go to another site and search for people just like you looking for a job. You will discover other sites make it difficult to find you when you are looking for a tax job…that is why the recruiters are not calling you…they cannot find you for free…Change your professional life and join TaxConnections today.

THIS IS #8 OF A SPECIAL 12 WEEK BLOG SERIES: HOW TO DEVELOP A LEADING AND PRODUCTIVE TAX ORGANIZATION IN 2016. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE A PDF OF ALL POSTS IN THIS 12 POST SERIES, PLEASE REGISTER HERE

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