TL;DR: This week’s Template Tuesdays spotlight is the M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) Projects Management template, created by Szilvia Becző. Designed to streamline the intake and management of Business Development initiatives, this template guides projects like Greenfield investments and M&A deals from evaluation through due diligence and execution, complete with dedicated financial tracking and automated pipelines.
Hey Community 👋
Welcome back to Template Tuesdays! Every Tuesday, we spotlight a powerful space template, give you a quick overview of its core features, and show you exactly how to start using it right away ✔️
Wrike’s Templates & Solutions Center helps teams with ready-made workspaces for common workflows and use cases. You can access it directly from your profile menu or when creating a new space. Packed with pre-built elements like custom fields, dashboards, request forms, and automation rules, these templates give you a solid foundation that you can easily customize to fit your organization's needs.
This week, we’re diving into a finance and strategy-focused workspace: the M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) Projects Management template created by @Szilvia Becző 🚀
Managing complex development initiatives requires balancing rigorous due diligence with tight execution schedules. Without a structured process, tracking pipeline status, handling specialized financial metrics, and managing compliance timelines can quickly become disorganized. This template centralizes your intake and evaluation workflow, offering clear financial oversight for critical metrics like CAPEX (capital expenditure), payment schedules, revenue, and ROI to support informed decision-making.
What’s Inside This Template?
- Dashboards: Three pre-configured dashboards for pipeline and tracking visibility.
- Request Forms: A standardized intake process for new project proposals.
- Structured Folders: Organized stages from active evaluation to archived pipelines.
- Automation Rules: Built-in routing based on project type and status updates.
- Custom Fields: Dedicated financial, date, and dropdown fields for project metrics.
- Custom Item Types (CITs): Tailored item behaviors for distinct investment models.
- Custom Workflows: Specialized project and task paths for different deal types.
How to Install This Template
- Click on your profile picture in the top right corner.
- Select Templates & Solutions.
- Under the Created by Community section, select Community.
- Search for M&A Projects Management and click Use template.
💡 Note: You can also find this template directly using this LINK. From there, it can be used to create a brand-new space or added directly into an existing one. For a step-by-step guide on installing it into a pre-existing space, check out this article. Plus, thanks to our recent Wrike Labs release, you can now map template configurations (such as Custom Fields) directly to your existing space setup during installation to avoid duplicates!
Let’s Take a Closer Look 👀
Once the template is installed, you will find several pre-configured Folders & Views designed to organize your deals and investments right from the start:
- New Projects & Active Projects
- Closed Projects & Abandoned projects
- Greenfield and Brownfield Pipeline
- M&A Pipeline
Complex corporate transactions rely on standardized data intake, automated routing, and deep financial tracking. Here is how this template supports your project lifecycle:
1. Centralized Intake via the "New Project Request" Form
New initiatives enter the workspace through the New Project Request (Business Development) form, allowing stakeholders to submit all key operational and financial details directly rather than using disparate emails or pitch decks.
2. Automated Custom Item Types (CITs)
When a form is submitted, the template automatically generates an item within the space using a specific Custom Item Type based on the answers provided. The template includes two distinct CITs:
3. Tailored Workflows & Custom Fields
To capture specific transaction variables, the space uses multi-format Custom Fields, including currency, single-select, and date fields. Tasks and projects are routed through three Custom Workflows rather than a generic default setup:
- Greenfield Workflow
- M&A Project Workflow
- M&A Task Workflow
4. Automation Rules
To reduce manual administration, this template includes several pre-built automation rules to route work dynamically. Examples of these rules include:
- Pipeline Routing: Automatically moves new Greenfield or M&A projects into their respective pipeline folders based on their Custom Item Type designation.
- Archive Status: Instantly transfers canceled or rejected projects to the Abandoned Projects folder to keep active workspaces organized.
5. High-Level Dashboards
Keep leadership and teams aligned using three pre-configured dashboards:
- Template Overview Dashboard: Provides a quick orientation of the space with setup tips to maximize team productivity.
- Project Pipeline Dashboard: Features visual widgets displaying active projects grouped by country, projects sorted by status, and a full operational list of projects.
- Tracking Your M&A Dashboard: Delivers a focused, high-level overview specifically dedicated to ongoing M&A deals and target milestones.
Customize the Space for Your Needs
You can adapt this workspace to your specific internal processes using these customization options:
- Refine the Intake: Modify questions in the request form to capture unique parameters, legal entities, or initial valuation ranges.
- Adjust Custom Fields: Edit financial custom fields to include internal funding codes, specific tax jurisdictions, or internal rate of return (IRR) models.
- Update Custom Item Types: Expand your custom item types (CIT’s) if your department also handles joint ventures, licensing deals, or venture capital arm investments.
- Tailor Workflows: Add custom stages for "Letter of Intent (LOI) Signed," "Board Approval," or "Post-Merger Integration."
Share With Your Team 👥
Once you've tailored the space, maximize its utility by sharing it:
- Share the Request Form link with business unit leaders or corporate strategy teams who propose new initiatives.
- Grant Space and folder access to your immediate deal teams, analysts, and legal reviewers handling due diligence tasks.
- Share the Dashboards with executive sponsors and steering committees to maintain total visibility over the investment pipeline.
We hope this overview gives your corporate development team a head start on streamlining your investment pipeline! Thanks to @Szilvia Becző for creating and sharing this template with the Wrike Community so other users can benefit from it as well 🙏
Are you currently managing M&A deals or capital investment workflows in Wrike? What mechanisms does your team use to track financial milestones and due diligence checklists? Let us know in the comments below! 👇
Want to share a setup you're proud of? Fill out the Wrike Community Templates Submission Form to be featured in a future spotlight! 😁
