A merger announcement looks effortless from the outside. New logo, polished press release, a confident "better together" message. What the market never sees is everything happening behind it: two client lists that don't match, proposals mid-flight under the old name, a marketing team learning about the deal days before the world does. Clients and referral sources are watching that facade closely, and they're forming judgments about whether this deal was good for them. The first 100 days determine whether the seams show.

Join us for a candid panel conversation featuring both sides of the table: Jeff Mowery, Founder of Mowery & Schoenfeld, who brings the acquirer's perspective from leading multiple firm acquisitions, and Jen Lemanski, Senior Marketing Manager at Withum, who lived the acquired-side experience firsthand when PKF Texas was acquired by Withum and helped lead the marketing integration from the inside.

Together they'll unpack what every accounting firm marketer needs to know before a deal lands on their desk, including:

• Announcement readiness: controlling the narrative and sequencing communications so clients hear it from you, not LinkedIn
• Brand transition decisions: The hidden inventory of touchpoints that trips firms up
• Protecting your seat at the table: how acquired-side marketers turn local market knowledge into job security
• The PE factor: how private equity-backed roll-ups differ from strategic acquisitions, and what that means for pace, brand, and how marketing gets measured
• Lessons learned: what both panelists would do differently, and the mistakes acquirers keep repeating

Whether your firm is acquiring, being acquired, or just watching the consolidation wave sweep the profession, you'll leave with a practical playbook for making the transition look as seamless as the announcement promised.

Who should attend: Marketing, growth, and business development professionals at accounting firms of all sizes, plus managing partners who want their next deal to keep every client it came with.