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At Honan, we’re big believers in growing an exceptional brand, business, and reputation through exceptional people. With over 15 years of experience in the legal field, Belinda Muir, General Counsel, plays a crucial role in Honan’s acquisitions. Known for her unrelenting curiosity and love of learning, it didn't come as a surprise that she wanted to immerse herself in the world of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) at Harvard University. We sat down with Belinda to hear more about her role during the M&A process, what it was like to study at Harvard, and whether it’s anything like it appears in the movies.
It was number one on my bucket list and my time at Harvard Business School exceeded all of my expectations. The pace was fast, dynamic, and exciting. Some of the biggest learnings came from my peers in the classroom – each person in the room had their own experiences to share and made a unique contribution to the classroom discussion, which challenged my thinking on almost every topic. The teaching staff offered magnificent insights based on their own experiences and took a very practical approach in their sessions. There are lessons I won’t forget from my time on campus.
As Harvard is one of the most prestigious universities in the world, if not the most prestigious, everything about the school is designed to maximise learning. From the chalk and blackboards, to the horseshoe-shaped classrooms where everyone can see and hear from everyone else, to the “no tech” preference in class to minimise distractions – for a nerd like me this was the ultimate learning environment.
Nobody put anyone down, criticised another for having a different point of view, or elevated themselves above the group. I thought that was really special.
The course was a natural complement to what I do in my day job and gave me an opportunity to focus on the business aspects of M&A activity as opposed to just the legal aspects. There was a fair bit of pre-reading and preparation involved before classes commenced (everyone came prepared to the class which made the discussions very engaging) and most nights we were given homework for the following day. We were living and breathing M&A and we were encouraged to share views and take risks as part of our group exercises removed from real-world consequences. By far my favourite session was on bankruptcy – this session was taught by Professor Stuart Gilson who loved his Irish wolfhounds almost as much as teaching Finance.
You don’t get to pick and choose when things happen. Transactions are not smooth; you need to be agile and responsive.
1. The right deal at the wrong price is better than the wrong deal at the right price. This was said many times.
2. Trust your gut. If your early gut feel in a transaction is that you are dealing with a vendor lacking integrity, don’t assume that by some magic that won’t be the case after the deal is done.
3. Bad integration can ruin a deal like a public scandal can ruin a reputation. Enough said.
I work with a wonderful internal deal team and I am heavily involved in all legal aspects of our transactions, from diligence to negotiation through to completion. The decisions we make as a deal team are informed by the business’s appetite for risk – this is often a point of difference from our external advisers. The growth journey through M&A has been terrific and every deal is an opportunity to learn and improve as a business.
It’s even more amazing than how it appears in the movies. Everything is just right – the grounds are picturesque and at that time of year the snow covers the ground with a thin film of white. Nothing completes a trip to Harvard likesome Harvard merchandise – I came back with t-shirts, caps, jumpers, socks, and more, all with the Harvard branding. Even my kids have Harvard gear which is quite ostentatious!
I went to HBS knowing it would be brilliant but not having firmed up any expectations about particular aspects. One thing I did come to realise is that the school puts a lot of effort into and focus on having the right mix of people in the classroom to enhance the learning experience. We are asked on our application forms what we can teach as a contributor to class discussions and what we hoped to learn and it was obvious that this had been taken into account by the teaching staff when selecting applicants for the course. This created a setting from start to finish where there were no silly questions, no judgement for things unknown and full support for active contribution.
