The Long Game in M&A with Giovanni Ghisetti, Head of Global Business Development at Diageo

In this episode of the Strategy Thinkers Podcast, I speak with Giovanni Ghisetti, Head of Global Business Development at Diageo and formerly Global SVP M&A at Ferrero. Giovanni led more than €9bn of acquisitions, taking Ferrero from a European chocolate leader to a global player in sweet snacking. We spoke about what it takes to build M&A as a capability and how to make it work in practice. Giovanni is open about failure, about culture, and about the scale effects that only appear with patience. Key lessons from our discussion: ✅ A $100m acquisition was initially chosen to embed learning. It led to market leadership and the following $10Bn of acquisitions ✅ Growth synergies create lasting value; cost savings do not ✅ Scale economics matter — profitability shifts only once revenue passes ~$2bn in the food and beverage market in US ✅ Culture and trust decide whether integration succeeds For senior leaders thinking about scale, acquisitions or growth, this conversation offers lessons that go beyond theory.