Agenda Day 1, Tuesday, October 7th, 2025:   (see Agenda Day 2)     (back to Merger Integration Event Summary)

(time zone used is Central European Time)

09.00 – Opening Remarks from the Chair

Jana Mercereau, M&A Consulting Lead for Europe, WTW

09.20 – Compliance Due Diligence in M&A Transactions and Non-Controlled Shareholdings Oversight

·        How deep to go in your due diligence

·        How to implement CSDDD standards in global transactions

·        How to get your non-controlled shareholdings on board with your efforts

Sven Steinbach, Head of M&A Compliance, Volkswagen

Fabian Imach, Head of Group Compliance Strategic Initiatives & NCS, Volkswagen

 

10.00 – Using a Pre-Mortem to De-Risk your Integration Project (While Introducing PMI Excellence at ZEISS)

·        What is a pre-mortem and how can it help in PMI?

·        Who should be part of a pre-mortem and what drives the participant group?

·        Case example and outcomes across the deal lifecycle: pre-deal, integration, 1yr post-close

Staci van Schagen-Toback, Head of PMI Excellence, ZEISS

 

10.40 – M&A in a Volatile World: Harnessing Change Management to Drive Business Value

Gaby Joyner, European Head of Employee Experience, WTW

11.20 – Morning Coffee and Networking

 

12.00 – Bridging the Gap Between Acquisitions and Integrations with an AI-Native End-to-End Platform

·        Unify deal execution and integration with kicker.cloud as a single source of truth - seamlessly connecting teams, data, and workflows across the M&A lifecycle.

·        Leverage AI to learn from past integrations, feeding insights back into acquisition strategy to surface integration risks early and calibrate bids with greater precision.

·        Manage integration using a fully flexible project management platform with customisable templates and real-time feedback for structured, adaptive integration

Heini Salonen, CEO, co-founder, kicker.cloud

 

12.40 - Beyond the Deal: Structuring M&A Integration for Long-Term Success at Novo Nordisk

·        Purpose and Scope of the New M&A Integration Organization

·        Developing Integration Capabilities and Processes with a Digital and AI-Based Platform

·        Building a Strong Integration Culture and Talent Pipeline through a Community-Based Approach

·        Measuring Success and Continuous Improvement Supported by Digital Measurement and AI

Bjoern Leschny, Global VP of M&A Integration, Novo Nordisk

 

13.20 – Lunch Break

14.20 - How CVC (Corporate Venture Capital) Builds M&A Readiness

This presentation will explore how Corporate Venture Capital provides a unique advantage that improves integration outcomes and overall M&A success

George Kellerman, VP, Head of Investments & Acquisitions, Woven by Toyota

 

15.00 – The Use of Digitization / GenAI in M&A

·        Key use cases that were successful in streamlining the M&A integration process

·        What were the pitfalls that we found

·        What use and limitations to apply for GenAI

Delphine Mathieu, Managing Director Post Merger Integration – EMEA Lead, Accenture

 

15.40 – Adaptive Integration: AI-Powered Operating Models that Close the Strategy-Execution Gap Post-Merger

Kristian Luoma, Co-Founder, In Parallel

 

16.20 – Afternoon Coffee Break

17.00 - The Future of M&A: AI-Powered PMI Optimization

Driving Post-Closure Tech M&A Success: How Zscaler’s AI Platform Accelerates Integration, Enhances Efficiency, and Strengthens Cyber Resilience

Paul Vohra, Managing Director, Zscaler M&A

Stephen Singh, Global VP, M&A/Divestiture, Zscaler M&A

 

17.40 - Intelligent Learning Loops in the Post Closing Landscape

How intelligent insights are looped back to decision makers, providing an understanding of decision outcomes and their impacts to value delivery in the first 2 years following acquisition.

Kristen Bergeron, Global Mergers & Acquisitions Integration Program Manager, Shell

Thomas Marx, Implementation Manager Divestments & Acquisitions, Shell

 

18.20 - Culture Management and Integration

·        Cultural due diligence:  quantitative requirements

·        KPIs and key tactics for managing culture during the first 100 days

·         Success factors and methods of utilizing learns for long-term integration results and new integrations

James Flitton, VP Digital Infrastructure, Network Acquisition & Investments, Colt Technology Services

 

19.00 - Closing Remarks and End of Day 1 and Reception

20.00 – 3-Course Dinner (included for all attendees) 

 (see agenda Day 2)     (back to Merger Event Summary)