Acquisitions and Corporate Strategy Alliances, Performance, and Divestment

Corporate restructuring (acquisitions, alliances and divestment) is a visible form of corporate strategy. For example, firm investments in buying and selling assets exceed the gross domestic product of the majority of nations. Most research in this area examines acquisitions, but informing practice is limited by examining acquisitions in isolation or using a narrow focus. For example, a lingering problem is that average acquisition performance is consistently around zero, suggesting a need to identify practically relevant relationships. In addressing this need, research on three fundamental questions is covered: 1) How do acquisitions relate to other corporate strategy options?; 2) What helps to predict acquisition performance?; and 3) What are persistent acquisition research issues? The first question is intended to overcome a research limitation that acquisitions are often examined independent of other corporate strategies, including internal development, alliances, and divestment. The second question addresses novel relationships associated with the primary focus of acquisition research in examining what drives acquisition performance. The third question reflects on the underlying complexity of the phenomenon that makes it a challenge to identify what drives acquisition performance. Overall, the intent of presenting ideas on these fundamental questions is to illustrate promising areas for future research. This book presents the latest state of knowledge on the topic and will be of interest to researchers, academics, and advanced students in the fields of strategic management, international business, and organizational studies.

Section I How do acquisitions relate to other corporate strategy options? 1 Alliances as precursors to an acquisition Elio Shijaku, David R. King, and Ainhoa Urtasun 2 Review of Divestment Research Sina Amiri, David R. King, and Sam DeMarie 3 What follows what? Sequences and combinations of acquisitions and divestitures Oleksandra Kochura, Nicola Mirc, and Denis Lacoste 4 Cross-border acquisition and greenfield investment: Substitutes or complements? Nan Zhang and Joseph Clougherty Section II What helps to predict acquisition performance? 5 Merging dynamic capabilities and acquisition process research: Toward an integrative theoretical framework Svante Schriber 6 Capability transfer: Improved performance from acquiring polluting targets Pankaj Patel and David R. King 7 Cross-border acquisition performance insights from predictive modeling Camilla Jensen, Peter Zámborský, and David R. King Section III What are persistent acquisition research issues? 8 A reconceptualization: The mis(measurement) of acquisition performance ten years later Olimpia Meglio 9 Improving acquisition research methods: Addressing endogeneity Gonzalo Molina-Sieiro 10 Cultural dynamics in acquisitions Satu Teerikangas and Melanie Hassert

David R. King is the Higdon Professor of Management at Florida State University, USA.