Rethinking Mergers in Global Development

 We’re diving into a topic that’s hitting close to home across the global development sector: mergers, consolidations, and what happens when organizations decide they’re stronger together.

I sat down with my colleagues, Tom Dente and John Glover, to talk about what we’re hearing from leaders right now, and what it really takes to make these big organizational shifts work. For so many NGOs, the choice to merge isn’t just about strategy anymore; it’s about survival.

Tom, John, and I have spent months talking with CEOs and leadership teams who are navigating this very thing. What’s clear is that the success of any merger isn’t just in the spreadsheets or the legal agreements, it’s in the culture. It’s in how leaders bring people along, how they hold space for uncertainty, and how they stay anchored to the mission while everything familiar is being redefined.

Tom said it so well: “Boards need to be braver, faster. It’s easy to protect the logo; it’s harder to protect the purpose.” 

And John reminded us, “Organizations are adaptive systems. The culture that served you in the past may not serve you in the future.” 

The merger and consolidation efforts need to focus less on combining structures and more on merging people and the identities they carry with them. Our conversation centered on the fact that mergers are opportunities to reimagine organizational culture and to “re-recruit” staff, boards, and partners into a renewed shared purpose. Adapting and co-creating new cultural norms are essential for resilience in a fast-changing world.

As we talked, something bigger came through. Yes, mergers are about sustainability, but they’re also about courage. The courage to end one chapter so a new one can begin.

This conversation will resonate with those in the global development sector who are contemplating mergers, consolidation, and joint ventures. Join us for an honest look at what it means to merge not just organizations, but missions, people, and purpose.