Fewer than a third of companies undertook a full-scale study of the IT issues involved. When checks did take place, one in five deals were delayed or abandoned. Most mergers are usually justified by cost savings. About two-thirds said mergers had achieved increased revenues, but less than 20 per cent said costs were cut. Half said there was no saving, while one-third also claimed no rise in customer satisfaction.
Banking is one area where IT integration is vital to mergers.
Lloyds and TSB only completed integration of their IT systems at the end of 2000 - five years after merging. As a result, customers received different levels of service, depending on which bank they originally used. Cutting duplication accounts for 180m, while efficiency gains will save another 170m as NatWest customers move to RBS systems. Although the RBS is staying tight-lipped about IT integration, a spokeswoman insisted that it is still on track. This is despite NatWest's pre-merger claim that it would take five years and 1000 staff to replace its core systems.