Overcoming pension and benefit issues in M&A transactions

Speakers: Adam Rosenberg and Eric Warner
 

M&A activity (including acquisitions, divestitures or joint ventures) has become part of daily life for multinational companies. In recent years, these organizations have learned that their transactions are most successful when HR is involved early, as part of the deal team – beginning in the pretarget phase – and following through to due diligence and integration.

Despite the clear benefits of this approach, we continue to hear from our clients about the difficulties and complexities of coming to grips with pension and benefit issues in such transactions – particularly in cross-border or multicountry situations.

Typical problems include:

1. Understanding local accounting treatments

2. Keeping up with new regulations

3. Planning for integrated benefit provision

4. Dealing with significant pension deficits relative to market capitalization

A global Mercer team with expertise in dealing with these and other issues in M&A situations will address common pitfalls and offer guidance in overcoming such challenges. The speakers will also discuss four activities that are critical to effecting change.

A thorough and robust examination of people risks and costs is a necessary component of any due diligence process – especially when doing an M&A transaction. And ignoring pension and benefit red flags can and will threaten the ultimate success of the deal.

Please join us for an enlightening presentation on effecting change through your pension and benefit plans during M&A transactions.

Tuesday, 3 April 2007, 12:00 noon - 1:00 pm ET

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2007 executive compensation: The current state and future direction

Speakers: Diane Doubleday (Moderator), Mike Halloran, Steve Harris and Joann Lublin (The Wall Street Journal)
 

Mercer Human Resource Consulting will release its US study of CEO pay in 350 major industrial and service companies (the “Mercer 350”) on April 9 to The Wall Street Journal for its annual special section on CEO pay.

Attend this special web briefing on Wednesday, April 11, when we’ll sift through all the newly available data for insight on future pay trends and discuss the issues weighing on the minds of board members and compensation committees today, including:

• Executive pay levels. Get Mercer’s read on the 350 CEO pay packages surveyed. What do the total compensation figures signal?

• Perquisites, benefits and post-termination benefits. In this new disclosure era, what do the filings reveal about changing practices or practices that might need changing?

• Rebalancing the long-term incentive (LTI) mix. Almost all companies are reporting under a full year of option expensing. Initial reaction was dramatic; what does the CEOs’ LTI mix look like now?

• Advances in pay for performance. Companies have long touted a pay for performance philosophy. Have companies made the case that they do pay for performance? What practices seem to be working and what ones aren’t?

• The influence of shareholders. How are institutional and individual investors affecting CEO compensation decisions?

Wednesday, 11 April 2007, 12:00 noon - 1:00 pm ET

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TFR reform in Italy - Will you be ready?
Speakers: Stefano Busatto, Massimo Magni and Carl de Montigny

TFR reform presents profound challenges to both employers and employees with respect to planning for their future pension ... but it also offers a number of opportunities. Please join our speakers, Massimo Magni, Stefano Busatto and Carl de Montigny of Mercer’s Milan, Italy office, for a timely discussion of the steps that employers must take prior to the June 30 deadline with respect to TFR plans.

By way of background, in late December 2006, the Italian parliament approved the reform of the “statutory severance indemnity – TFR,” to be effective in 2007. Intended as a stimulus to increase participation in pension funds, the reform presents employees with a new range of alternatives with respect to the future investment of their future TFR contributions. Only smaller employers will be able to continue to maintain future TFR accruals as company book reserves.

Please join our colleagues from Mercer in Milan, Italy, for a timely discussion of the steps that employers must take prior to the June 30 deadline. Topics to be addressed include:

• Key dates for compliance

• Available funding vehicles

• Employee communication strategies

• Accounting for TFR

Tuesday, 24 April 2007, 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm ET

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Massachusetts health care reform
Speakers: Amy Bergner, Susan Connolly and Trish Farrell

In 2006, Massachusetts enacted a ground-breaking, broad health care reform law mandating affordable health coverage for all state residents. Most employers with employees working in Massachusetts – regardless of the employer’s home state or whether health benefits are insured or self-funded – are grappling with provisions of the law that affect them. All individuals will have to have health coverage, and most employers will have to offer their Massachusetts employees access to pretax health insurance premium payment through a section 125 cafeteria plan. Those that don’t adequately contribute to their employees’ health coverage will pay a fair share contribution to the state, and all employers will have reporting and information collection requirements.
 

Please join us as we discuss employer requirements and responsibilities under the law, the status of regulatory guidance, how employers are reacting and steps employers may want to take now.

Wednesday, 25 April 2007, 12 noon - 1:00 pm ET
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