His thinking is simple, straightforward, and powerful.  It resonates with my experience and from a personal perspective, it can be hard to keep the why in mind when dealing with the challenges of business and life.

We recently talked to a large company that has merged two divisions.  The company leaders are asking the question, How are we better together?  I believe their how is Simon’s why.

When is the last time you’ve really looked at your why?

Danny Ludeman, CEO of Wells Fargo Advisors, recently spoke at Webster University as part of its Success to Significance Speaker Series.  He spent part of his time talking about lessons learned during the A.G. Edwards: Wachovia Securities merger including several surprises that even a CEO as experienced as he was not prepared for.

We’ll share just a few them for your consideration.  First, he talked about never underestimating the human impact of an acquisition or merger.  He noted that the economics of the transaction were fairly simple.  It was the effect on people that one should never underestimate.

Secondly, he felt that his team focused too much on the similariites of cultures.  For example, both were customer-centric cultures.  But the ways in which they expressed customer service were quite different.  They underestimated the impact of those differences on their efforts to integrate the organizations.

One final observation of Ludeman’s that he spoke of as a both a business and a life lesson:  the importance of differentiating between wants and needs.  The concrete example he used from the A.G. Edwards:Wachovia Securities merger was the legacy A.G. Edwards employees’  ”need” to be part of an organization with a reputation for integrity and customer service.  As a result, they expressed their “want” to retain the A.G. Edwards name.  Their “want”  was a barrier to seeing other ways to meet their legitimate need.

As you think about mergers and acquisitions you have experienced, which of these lessons resonate with you?

This story illustrates why great people often leave companies who need them.  I’ve heard the same idea described in different ways.  For instance, another senior person who left a great company said “I just didn’t see a future I could get excited about.”I know that many CEOs are very concerned with the viability of their business.  They are trying to stem the bleeding, right-size their headcount, and assess their markets.  But their employees are still looking for signs of who the company is and where it is going in order to decide if they want to stay.  Especially the best employees.

I was talking with another very talented guy yesterday, Joey Reiman.  He has a clip on his website that talks about how if you’re not being nurtured, you’re being abused (you’ll have to click on a firefly to see the video). “Abuse is no words; a wall of silence is abuse,” Joey says.  Now I don’t know if this executive felt as though he was being abused, but I do know he is talking to investment bankers about the possibility of buying the very company that he left!  How’s that for talent?

Think about your company.  Where are you going?  Have you talked about it lately?  How connected do your best and brightest feel to what you stand for?