As we climb the corporate ladder, we have much more at stake in our careers. Executives, in particular, play a high stakes game every day when it comes to career management. It is common knowledge that the more we earn, and the higher up we are on the ladder, the longer it takes to find a job when, for whatever reason, we are out of one.

Our ears often ring with “Always keep your resume up to date.” The winds of change can blow us and our careers in different directions. We can also hear that, “During change, no one’s job is safe.” This is a strong concern in the cases of mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Therefore, keeping your resume up to day during M&As becomes imperative. Do we do it? Not a chance. Take heart, an M&A doesn’t always mean a job loss and there are ways to prepare better and even, in some cases, take control. Let’s look at some scenarios and options.