They told me we were acquiring a company - and that we needed the integration to feel β€œseamless.”

Fast.

That word stuck.

I’d been on the other side of acquisitions before. Hostile ones. I’d seen people ignored, devalued, dismissed. But this time I had a say - and I refused to let it be business as usual.

So I built a rollout plan.
One that respected both companies, their people, and the emotional weight of change.

I even mailed out team t-shirts that said:

β€œWe Win as One.”

Because that was the point.
If one side faltered, we all did.

That mindset became the foundation of how we moved - through systems, reporting structures, team rituals, even language.

πŸš‘
β€œIf they fall, we fall.”

It was more than strategy.
It was leadership that worked β€” and it stuck.