What's included
Integrations fail in the gaps between functions. The template gives every workstream its own visible lane so nothing sits unowned between them:
- Pre-close planning, Integration management office set up, workstream leads named, day one checklist, and the clean-team analysis permitted before close. Milestone: close.
- Day one readiness, Legal entity readiness, communications to staff and customers, access and payroll continuity, and the first-week operating rhythm.
- Organization & people, Org design, selection and retention decisions, consultation where required, and harmonization of terms, the workstream with the most legal exposure.
- Finance & reporting, Chart of accounts mapping, consolidated reporting, banking and treasury, and the first combined close. Milestone: first combined month-end.
- Systems & data, Application rationalization, identity and email migration, ERP and CRM consolidation and data migration.
- Customers & synergies, Customer and contract migration, brand and go-to-market alignment, and tracked delivery of the synergy case. Milestone: synergy run-rate achieved.
Who uses this template
Integration management office leads, corporate development teams, and functional workstream owners use this in the weeks after a deal closes. It covers day-one readiness, org design, systems consolidation, finance integration, customer continuity, and synergy tracking, keeping dozens of parallel workstreams accountable during a high-pressure integration.
How to customize it
- Set close as day zero and let every workstream count forward from it; pre-close work sits in negative time.
- Name an owner on every workstream row, unowned lanes are how integrations lose months.
- Move HR consultation earlier and lengthen it if you operate in jurisdictions with statutory consultation periods.
- Add a row per synergy initiative once the case is broken down, so delivery is tracked rather than asserted.
- Mark close, first combined month-end, systems cutover and synergy run-rate as milestones.
Scheduling tips
- Stand the IMO up before close. The integration management office is what turns a deal thesis into a schedule, and starting it after close costs a quarter.
- Sequence identity and email first. Almost every other systems workstream depends on a single directory and working communication between the two organizations.
- Do not consolidate ERP in year one unless you must. It is the most disruptive item on the list; many integrations sensibly run parallel systems until the operating model settles.
- Track synergies against the chart. A synergy with no dated task behind it is a forecast, not a plan.
- Watch retention risk on the critical path. Key people leaving mid-integration is the most common untracked dependency.
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Frequently asked questions
How long does post-merger integration take?
Most integration programmes run 12-24 months, with day one readiness compressed into the weeks around close. This template covers the first twelve months, which is where the majority of the value is won or lost.
What workstreams belong in an integration plan?
Typically an integration management office, day one readiness, organization and people, finance, systems and data, and customers and go-to-market with synergy tracking. All are pre-loaded as separate lanes here.
How much can be done before the deal closes?
Planning and clean-team analysis, subject to legal advice and antitrust constraints, the template puts that work before the close milestone so the boundary stays explicit.
Is the integration plan template free?
Yes. Free Excel, PowerPoint and CSV downloads, and free online editing with no account.