Grace, not her real name, was very pretty. Long blonde hair. Tall. Fun.
But we used to joke that she could never develop a relationship because she didn’t like her suitors’ financial statements.
It’s not that financial considerations don’t enter into the larger issue of finding a desirable spouse. It’s that they’re only one slice of what is important.
Medical group mergers aren’t much different.
Mating two weakly performing groups rarely yields a successful future. And, a poorly performing group can be an anchor, dragging down a previously thriving practice.
But even two balance sheet appropriate candidates can be the match made in hell.
Group culture, governance styles, and what I call the jerk-to-normal ratio, among other soft factors, are often more important than tallying the ability to put cash in the bank.
As to Grace, that’s another story.
