How we accelerated M&A leadership integration
Challenge
A global beauty organization was undergoing a complex $12 billion carve-out and merger, backed by private equity.
The goal was ambitious: to combine two sizable businesses to create a credible challenger to the category leader without losing momentum, talent, or cultural coherence. The newly formed company would double in size, span more than 50 brands, and employ over 18,000 people across more than 40 countries.
Success depended on making high-stakes talent decisions quickly and objectively rather than relying on subjective performance histories. Without a clear approach, the business risked delayed decisions, internal tension, talent attrition, and lost momentum during the critical transition.
Solution
RHR partnered with senior leaders from the earliest stages of the transaction, beginning even before the deal formally closed, to enable rapid and confident leadership decisions. The work focused on bringing a rigorous, data-based approach to assessing leadership capability and cultural fit at scale.
This included:
Defining a clear The Winning Formula® profile that articulated the leadership behaviors required for success.
Conducting over 225 in-depth leadership assessments of the executive committee and leaders one and two levels below across regions and time zones, combining structured interviews and psychometric tools.
Results
The ability to move quickly and objectively at scale stopped the rumor mill and gave leaders clarity during a period of extreme uncertainty. Stakeholders reported high confidence in the fairness, professionalism, and objectivity of the process.
Assessment outcomes aligned closely with subsequent performance, reinforcing that the right leaders were placed in the roles that mattered most.
RHR’s work helped establish trust across legacy organizations, reduce uncertainty during integration, and create a strong foundation for leadership effectiveness in the new enterprise, enabling the organization to compete with confidence in a highly demanding global market.