Individual-level outcomes in poorly managed cross-border mergers and acquisitions: A holistic view of the relevant processes

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article (with the provisional title "Undesired individual-level outcomes in cross-border mergers and acquisitions: A process approach") published in Schmalenbach Business Review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version, "Individual-level outcomes in poorly managed cross-border mergers and acquisitions: A holistic view of the relevant processes" in Special Issue 3/11, 92 - 116, 2011 is available online at: http://www.sbr-online.de/special_issues.html.We explore the processes that lead to undesirable individual-level outcomes in crossborder mergers and acquisitions (M&As). Based on the empirical findings from an in-depth longitudinal case study that describes the unsuccessful integrative efforts between a German multinational company and an Austrian service provider, we develop a generic model that describes a holistic view of the processes and its relevant associated dynamics. These processes raise the awareness of aspects that significantly impact the integration process, but whose dynamics have not been linked. Our model provides an explanation of why traditional attempts to integrate mostly meet with failure

An analysis of core-competences of successful multinational team leaders

Copyright @ 2010 The Authors. This is the author's accepted manuscript. The final published article is available from the link below.Researchers have endeavoured to understand the factors that enable effective functioning of multinational teams (MNTs) but with few exceptions they have ignored studying the competences of MNT leaders. In this paper we present those competences leaders must possess in order to effectively lead MNTs. Our findings are based on 70 problem-centred interviews with MNT leaders and members from five multinational corporations. The competences our interviewees mentioned most frequently for effective leadership were knowledge management and transfer. Results further indicated that a leader must be cross-culturally competent and multilingual in order to motivate MNT members to fully explore, exploit and transfer valuable knowledge within the team and beyond

Cultural influences and the mediating role of socio-cultural integration processes on the performance of cross-border mergers and acquisitions

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.This paper reports findings from a longitudinal case study (2005–2011) of a merger between an Austrian and a German energy provider. I develop a model of socio-cultural integration processes based on an analysis of critical incidents expressed in 71 problem-centred interviews and observations with acquired and acquiring employees at four different points of time: immediately before the takeover and during the first negotiation talks, and one, three and six years after the takeover. The findings suggest that the relationship between national and organizational cultural differences and M&A outcomes is mediated by socio-cultural integration processes defined in terms of the formation of interpersonal relationships, trust and shared identity. Based on these findings I formulate specific propositions and build an evidence-based model of M&A socio-cultural integration processes that guides future research and practice

Integrating highly-qualified migrants: allowing a personal narrative to set future research directions

Using a unique case history of a highly-qualified migrant family pushed from its country of origin due to war I elucidate the emotional, cultural, societal, and situation-specific challenges that its members faced in their new country of destination. I then link their stories to the current literature in the field of migration studies and formulate several avenues for future research. By allowing narrative theory to guide the field, I make a contribution to the current discourse and formulate questions that truly matter

Knowledge Exchange Processes in Multicultural Teams: Linking Organizational Diversity Climates to Teams’ Effectiveness

We developed an evidence-based model illuminating team knowledge exchange processes as a key link between organizational diversity climate and the effectiveness of multicultural teams (MCTs). Our analysis is based on 143 in-depth interviews and extensive observations of team interactions that occurred in 48 teams from 11 companies. Our findings revealed that teams that oscillated between assertive and cooperative knowledge exchange processes were more effective. We also found such dual processes were more prevalent in organizations that had an engagement-focused diversity climate characterized by utilization of diversity to inform and enhance work processes based on the assumption that cultural differences give rise to different knowledge, insights, and alternative views. Based on our findings we developed specific propositions about optimizing MCT knowledge-exchange processes to guide future research and practice

International demands for austerity: examining the impact of the IMF on the public sector

What effects do International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans have on borrow-ing countries? Even after decades of research, no consensus exists. We offer a straight-forward explanation for the seemingly mixed effects of IMF loans. We argue thatdifferent loans have different effects because of the varied conditions attached to IMFfinancing. To demonstrate this point, we investigate IMF loans with and withoutconditions that require public sector reforms in exchange for financing. We find thatthe addition of a public sector reform condition to a country’s IMF program signifi-cantly reduces government spending on the public sector wage bill. This evidencesuggest that conditions are a key mechanism linking IMF lending to policy outcomes.Although IMF loans with public sector conditions prompt cuts to the wage bill in theshort-term, these cuts do not persist in the longer-term. Borrowers backslide oninternationally mandated spending cuts in response to domestic political pressures

Responsible migration management from the business perspective: The case of human value chains

Migrant worker predicaments and human rights violations are prolific and well documented. Previous research has identified policy options for national governments and development actors. However, very little attention has been paid to the role of the private sector- large and small firms - in redressing the abuse of migrant labor as it evolves into a critical part of global production networks and trade. In this policy brief, we explore the implications of international migration for the operations and strategies of firms, describe the role that businesses and associated actors can play in shaping global mobility, and provide policy recommendations for both firms and governments