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re: Anyone else ever learned the company you work for is actively seeking buyers?
Posted on 2/5/26 at 4:58 pm to Naked Bootleg
Posted on 2/5/26 at 4:58 pm to Naked Bootleg
I’ve been on the opposite end (I work for a company that acquired another a few years ago). The acquired company was large enough that it was really a merger for all practical purposes.
My take:
There are some things that I really miss about the old firm, some things I really like about the new combined one. Everyone tried in earnest to keep what worked from both companies. It wasn’t perfect but overall I say it worked.
There was immediate pressure from Wall Street to reduce expenses. Lots of layoffs, but they took care of people with nice severances. They also offered an early retirement deal that was really good, which sucked for the rest of us because it resulted in a lot of experience walking out there door when we needed that the most.
One thing that irked me was the C-suites insistence that “the merger was behind us” like a year after it was finalized…to the extent that they didn’t want people saying the names of the legacy firms in meetings anymore. Which is retarded when you literally have legacy systems, processes, teams, etc still functioning.
TL:DR, you might get let go, hopefully they take care of you if you do. If you stay, it’s probably going to be a mixed bag of “good” and “bad”.
My take:
There are some things that I really miss about the old firm, some things I really like about the new combined one. Everyone tried in earnest to keep what worked from both companies. It wasn’t perfect but overall I say it worked.
There was immediate pressure from Wall Street to reduce expenses. Lots of layoffs, but they took care of people with nice severances. They also offered an early retirement deal that was really good, which sucked for the rest of us because it resulted in a lot of experience walking out there door when we needed that the most.
One thing that irked me was the C-suites insistence that “the merger was behind us” like a year after it was finalized…to the extent that they didn’t want people saying the names of the legacy firms in meetings anymore. Which is retarded when you literally have legacy systems, processes, teams, etc still functioning.
TL:DR, you might get let go, hopefully they take care of you if you do. If you stay, it’s probably going to be a mixed bag of “good” and “bad”.
0
Posted on 2/5/26 at 6:04 pm to Naked Bootleg
I started my career at H&E in Baton Rouge. Years later, I found myself in Southwest Florida working for Hertz, which at the time owned a heavy-equipment subsidiary called HERC. After HERC spun off in 2016, I eventually left Hertz to join HERC directly. And in a twist no one could script, during my time there we ended up acquiring H&E.
That meant return trips to Baton Rouge—back to the corporate office where I’d worked from 2005 to 2012—to learn their processes from people I’d known for years. The hard part was knowing those same people were training me because they were losing their jobs. It wasn’t a celebratory acquisition. As is often the case, the acquiring company doesn't keep the corporate staff.
That meant return trips to Baton Rouge—back to the corporate office where I’d worked from 2005 to 2012—to learn their processes from people I’d known for years. The hard part was knowing those same people were training me because they were losing their jobs. It wasn’t a celebratory acquisition. As is often the case, the acquiring company doesn't keep the corporate staff.
Posted on 2/5/26 at 6:40 pm to Naked Bootleg
Had that happen several years ago. National company in the same industry who unsuccessfully attempted to expand into our territory. They failed so they concluded we were better and bought us. Afterward we were basically the same, just the larger company's Gulf Coast region.
Another time we got bought out by a publicly traded company that sucked so I left.
Another time we got bought out by a publicly traded company that sucked so I left.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 6:20 am to jdd48
quote:
And only one or two would be a good thing or even on 'okay' thing.
quote:
Lies. Getting bought out is almost never a good thing, no matter how much the parent company insists "nothing will change".
I'm in upper management though not exec level and been with the company over 25 years. If I got a severance offer based on tenure as the current company typically offers during RIFs or early retirement offers, I'd take it and run. All other scenarios are rife with what-ifs.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 6:22 am to TheRealTigerHorn
quote:
Not all PE is the same. Some PE firms are actually in it for the long run to grow businesses, but it's the bottom feeders (who generally buy distressed assets - aka dying companies) and the clowns with massive amounts of cash who just plug in a freshly minted Ivy League MBA as CEO and hope for the best that make the news and ruin the opportunity.
Other PE firms are all about building companies with bolt-ons until they are either a cash cow or ready for IPO. Still others just build companies for the sake of growing their portfolio.
Competitors - referred to as "strategics" in the investment banking biz - can be anywhere from the best thing ever to train wreck as well, but they generally do have more of a vested interest in sustaining the business and keeping key employees, particularly if they live in an adjacent market and only want to consolidate back office and exec roles.
Thanks
And thanks to everyone else who responded. I honestly feel more equipped to navigate this after hearing your experiences. I really appreciate it.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 6:43 am to Naked Bootleg
Yup. A couple of different occasions.
This happens often. Actually striking a deal and getting it all done is a whole other story.
This happens often. Actually striking a deal and getting it all done is a whole other story.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 6:54 am to Naked Bootleg
We knew it was coming because other departments were being sold off. We found out last week that we were sold to Ryder. They are “offering” us to keep our positions, with a serious pay and PTO cut, to avoid paying a severance. It’s a dirty move. I’ve been there for 26 years. It’s time to move on.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 7:10 am to Bamafig
People don’t like the truth, but the fact of the matter is if your company is sold to PE and people massively let go and departments sold off then there’s a damn good chance the reality is it wasn’t profitable. One of the last moves before going bankrupt is to sell.
If your company is incredibly profitable, sure they can sell to PE and that’s going to be expensive and PE still has to make their ROI but things were working so they likely aren’t touching the good parts.
If you are older I still think taking a severance makes a lot of sense as you can pivot to partial retirement.
If your company is incredibly profitable, sure they can sell to PE and that’s going to be expensive and PE still has to make their ROI but things were working so they likely aren’t touching the good parts.
If you are older I still think taking a severance makes a lot of sense as you can pivot to partial retirement.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 7:17 am to Naked Bootleg
I'm on my 4th startup so my entire career at this point is building systems that build a resilient business to ultimately entice buyers.
All I want is an exit then I'll go work at a golf course.
All I want is an exit then I'll go work at a golf course.
This post was edited on 2/6/26 at 7:18 am
Posted on 2/6/26 at 7:34 am to Naked Bootleg
It depends on the PE firm. If it is one like KKR, you're likely screwed. We got bought by one out of France in 2015 and when sold to a corporation 3 years later most of us netted a pretty good payday. Of course the size of it depended on how much of your personal money you invested after the PE acquisition. I have always preferred working for private over corporations but if you are up for sale due to funds being tight and unable to do capital projects that is the one positive of getting bought by a large corporation. The negative is all the focus on DEI and ESG scores that in the long term damage performance and cause the good people to leave.
Posted on 2/6/26 at 7:35 am to Naked Bootleg
Not me but my wife (no pics) has gone/is going through this now.
Family owned business for four generations sold to PE 4 years ago. Current generation wanted the cash and not to run the business. PE is now actively looking for buyers and she expects the buyer to be a competitor. That will mean she is out of a job (she’s corporate) and the business will close since the competition is buying it to get it out of the market.
So she’s actively looking for work.
Family owned business for four generations sold to PE 4 years ago. Current generation wanted the cash and not to run the business. PE is now actively looking for buyers and she expects the buyer to be a competitor. That will mean she is out of a job (she’s corporate) and the business will close since the competition is buying it to get it out of the market.
So she’s actively looking for work.
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