Layoffs 55 that comprehends the business objectives and motives will better understand stakeholder priorities, drivers, cultures, and values. To conclude, M&As are inevitable in large enterprises today. UX management can provide effective leadership during this period of transition by focusing on people first, understanding the relative UX maturity of both companies, and aligning the UX organizational goals to the success of the business. 2 Personally, I was part of the UX team involved in integrating the Virsa Systems into SAP to form the Governance Risk and Compliance Suite, and Business Objects to form the Performance Optimization Suite of Applications. 3 For a transcript of our discussion notes, please visit http://mergers-acquisitions-ux.wikispaces.com/. 2.4 BUILdINg ANd MANAgINg A CONSULtINg teAM By Robert M. Schumacher, PhD, Managing Director, User Centric, Inc., Oakbrook Terrace, IL Early in my career, I never would have thought I'd end up running a consulting company. I was very happy doing technical work or leading a team within an organization. The opportunity to join User Centric arose at a good time to move from my current situation. But like many who find they may be accomplished technically, they often find that successful management uses different skills. I really was not equipped to help build and lead one of the largest, most successful user experience consulting firms in the world. As much as anything else, I had to grow into the position