Case Study: Strategic Planning

Is a large regional linen service provider ready for grow through acquisitions? Pursant helped create a strategic plan to answer that question and illuminate the right path.

Challenge

The owner of one of the largest providers of linen services to the food and beverage and hospitality industries decided it was time his organization augmented its organic growth strategy with acquisitions as well. When the owner called Pursant to discuss a potential role as its acquisition strategy management partner, Pursant dug deeper. Why the desire to acquire and is the company ready? How do acquisitions fit into the company’s overall business strategy? The owner paused. The company didn’t exactly have a documented business strategy.

Insights

Pursant likens making an acquisition to the decision to have children. Just as having a baby will not necessarily strengthen a shaky marriage, acquiring a business before establishing a solid strategic foundation and sound, repeatable business practices can upset the health of an organization and erode the value of an acquisition. Pursant advises every client to establish a thoughtful business strategy (or revisit one that may be outdated) before considering any strategic transaction.

Solution

Pursant facilitated a strategic planning process with the linen service provider’s management team. After a Deep Dive and SWOT analysis to thoroughly understand the business, industry and competition, the group documented the company’s vision, mission, value proposition and goals and mapped out the tactics needed to get there. Pursant also boiled down the strategy into a two-page strategic brief that could be used to socialize the plans throughout the organization. Through the strategic planning process, the management team identified some key deficiencies in the business that needed to be addressed in advance of making acquisitions. After addressing these deficiencies, the business owner was now prepared to work with Pursant to develop and execute the acquisition strategy.