The economic downturn and credit crunch has had a significant impact on global mergers and acquisitions. This session will review the impact on industry consolidation trends and how design firms can best position themselves to successfully close deals in the new environment, whether they are buyers or sellers. The program will consider valuation and deal structure as well as market positioning. There will also be discussion of the underlying business and corporate organizational factors that impact value that can be managed and evaluated when pursuing M&A deals. Presented December 8, 2011.