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Socio-Cultural Integration in Mergers and Acquisitions pp 1–16Cite as

A New Research Agenda for Managing Socio-Cultural Integration

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Abstract

Post-acquisition socio-cultural integration has received increasing attention from both scholars and practitioners since the early 1990s. During the past decade, research has increasingly focused on emotions and identity in mergers and acquisitions. This chapter introduces the reader to the vibrant research field and its relevance. This section sets the scene for the book, which provides a deeper understanding of how emotions—both positive and negative—as well as values and identity enable a deeper socio-cultural integration after a merger or acquisition, and how leadership plays a crucial role in making it all happen. This chapter also highlights how the Nordic approach to post-acquisition socio-cultural integration refers to a large community of Nordic academics focusing on the softer social and human side of acquisition, often relying on a huge variety of qualitative methods, and to Nordic companies that are not afraid of adopting a more collaborative approach to post-acquisition integration.

Keywords

  • Merger and acquisition
  • Post-acquisition
  • Socio-Cultural integration
  • Emotions
  • Identity
  • Management
  • Values

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Although M&As are commonly used interchangeably in the literature, mergers remain a minority of the deals. Additionally, in terms of culture , the basis for integration is completely different. A merger is also sometimes used to refer to the integration process . In this paper, following the convention in M&A literature, we use the more generic concept of M&A to refer to acquisitions . Merger syndrome is a specific condition explained in the text and is related to post-acquisition integration.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK

    Mélanie E. Hassett

  2. School of Economics, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Mélanie E. Hassett & Niina Nummela

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  1. Mélanie E. Hassett
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  2. Niina Nummela
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Johanna Raitis

  2. University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Riikka Harikkala-Laihinen

  3. University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom

    Mélanie E. Hassett

  4. University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Niina Nummela

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Hassett, M.E., Nummela, N. (2018). A New Research Agenda for Managing Socio-Cultural Integration. In: Raitis, J., Harikkala-Laihinen, R., Hassett, M., Nummela, N. (eds) Socio-Cultural Integration in Mergers and Acquisitions. Palgrave Pivot, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74341-7_1

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