Growing Your Business Through Acquisition

by

Making the decision to grow your business through acquisition should not be taken lightly. This course explores how to approach mergers and acquisitions, and the key risks and challenges to consider along the way.

£100 +VAT

4 CPD hours

120 days’ access

Use ACPD101 for 10% off any purchase.

Growing Your Business Through Acquisition

£100 +VAT

4 CPD Course 120 days’ access
Use ACPD101 for 10% off any purchase.

Growing Your Business Through Acquisition

This course is not currently available. To find out more, please get in touch.

This course will enable you to

  • Consider whether a takeover or a merger is the right step for your organisation
  • Understand how to value a company and finance an acquisition
  • Identify the most appropriate ways to merge businesses and recognise the potential challenges involved
  • Consider the issues arising from a takeover or merger from the viewpoint of customers, suppliers, and business assets
  • Identify and apply the right accounting and finance processes

About the course

Growing a business through acquisition or merger presents both opportunity and risk. For accountants and finance professionals, these transactions introduce uncertainty around valuation, integration, cash flow, and long-term performance. Without a clear understanding of the financial and operational implications, businesses can underestimate costs, overlook risks, and struggle to realise expected synergies.

This course covers the key stages of mergers and acquisitions, from deciding whether expansion is appropriate, through valuation and financing, to post-deal integration. You’ll explore how to assess takeover versus merger scenarios, understand funding options, and evaluate the impact on operations, customers, suppliers, and assets. The course also examines the role of management information systems, cost structures, and financial processes in ensuring a successful transition.

You’ll come away with a structured understanding of how mergers and acquisitions work in practice. This course will give you the tools to assess opportunities, support decision-making, and manage financial implications with greater clarity. Equip yourself to navigate complex transactions and strengthen your ability to contribute to successful business growth through acquisition.

Contents

The right move?

The difference between takeovers and mergers
The difference between takeovers and mergers
Reasons for expanding your business
Making a big decision
When a takeover goes wrong
Explaining due diligence
Due diligence and the acquisition process

Financing the deal

The cost of a takeover
The additional costs of a takeover
Understanding business valuation
The cost of borrowing and the risk premium
Reducing the risk premium
Mezzanine financing

Merging the businesses

Identifying synergies in operations
Merging employees
Dealing with management
Reducing costs post-takeover
Redundancies and cost savings
Understanding cultural blending
A clash of cultures
Identifying bottlenecks and problems

Customers, suppliers, and assets

Dealing with customers
Retaining customers following a merger/takeover
Understanding the management challenge
Managing your suppliers
Maintain a good working relationship with suppliers

Accounting and finance

What factors should you consider?
Merging MIS
Choosing a new system
The benefits of an effective management information system
Overheads and the effect on pricing
Revising the processes
Thinking about your processes
Cashflow planning
Taking write-offs and provisions

How it works

Author

John Taylor

John Taylor

John is a Chartered Accountant who has spent many years advising small and medium-sized businesses across the North of England. John is the author of two industry standard textbooks: Millichamp – Auditing and Forensic Accounting. He has also written several auditing textbooks for AAT courses.