Brandon Batt – Chief People and Transformation Officer at Quadient

Brandon Batt, joins us to discuss how successful M&A integration starts long before you sign an LOI. Brandon shares how Quadient built M&A capability across the organization through strategic hiring, created a transformation office that breaks down traditional silos, and executed portfolio transformation through dozens of acquisitions and divestitures. Learn why the secret to integration success isn't just about playbooks—it's about building M&A muscle into your team from day one.

Things You'll Learn

Why hiring for M&A experience across your organization creates the foundation for deal success, even in roles that seem unrelated to corporate development
The transformation office model that eliminates the handoff problem
Why cultural "add" beats cultural "fit"

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Episode Chapters

[00:02:30] Building a Transformation Office – How Quadient structured M&A, HR, legal, and sustainability under one umbrella to drive seamless execution

[00:05:00] Portfolio Simplification Through M&A – Starting transformation with strategic divestitures before adding new capabilities through acquisitions

[00:10:00] The Pre-LOI Integration Planning Model – Why strategic operations teams get involved in due diligence from the beginning, not after the deal is signed

[00:16:00] Human Connection as M&A Secret Sauce – Building trust with founders and management teams before discussing price and terms

[00:21:00] Hiring for M&A Muscle – Why M&A readiness starts with recruiting people who have transaction experience across key business functions

[00:28:00] Evolving M&A Maturity – Getting more formal about talent assessment and playbooks while giving teams autonomy to move fast

[00:33:00] Founder-Led Business Challenges – Learning to structure deals and set expectations upfront when acquiring companies led by first-time sellers

[00:42:00] Collaboration Without Hierarchy – How "collaborate like crazy" became a cultural principle that breaks down silos in M&A execution

[00:47:00] Deal Story: Meeting in London During COVID – Why some deals still require getting on a plane, even during a pandemic

[00:51:00] AI in M&A and the Human Element – Balancing technology efficiency with the human intuition that uncovers critical deal insights

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Integration Starts with Hiring, Not the Deal with Brandon Batt

M&A Science