HUGGED TO DEATH

A Practitioner's Guide to M&A Integration

Andrew Ross

Hugged to Death

A Practitioner's Guide to M&A Integration

By Andrew Ross
Desswood Advisors Press
Available June 2026

About the Book

Seventy percent of M&A fails to create value. Boards commission expensive post-mortems to understand what went wrong. But they won't invest the same time upfront pressure-testing whether the integration approach will protect what makes the asset valuable—or hug it to death.

Valuation and deal structure get debated endlessly. Integration gets a cursory discussion and then falls apart. The difference between success and failure is Architecture (the integration approach you design upfront) and Choreography (your ability to adapt when plans meet reality).

Drawing on 20+ years as EVP of Strategy, M&A and Integration at Estée Lauder Companies, EVP of Strategy and M&A at ConAgra Foods, and Partner at McKinsey & Company, Andrew Ross provides the frameworks boards, CEOs and integration leaders need: the 2×4 diagnostic to pressure-test Architecture before you sign, the governance approach that enables Choreography without losing control, and the courage to walk away when you've got the Architecture wrong.

For

  • Boards evaluating acquisition proposals
  • CEOs navigating post-merger integration
  • Integration leaders executing complex deals
  • Private equity investors assessing portfolio company acquisitions
  • M&A professionals who want to understand why deals succeed or fail

About the Author

Andrew Ross was EVP of Strategy, M&A and Integration at Estée Lauder Companies and EVP of Strategy and M&A at ConAgra Foods, where he led corporate strategy, acquisitions, divestitures, and post-acquisition integration. Previously, he was a Partner at McKinsey & Company. He is the Founder of Desswood Advisors and a Senior Advisor to private equity and venture capital funds, advises beauty and consumer companies on growth and M&A strategy, and serves on four private company boards. He writes about the expensive mistakes, and occasional successes, he's learned from on both sides of the table.

Available June 2026 in paperback and ebook