Strategic decision-making in the post-integration process of cross-border mergers and acquisitions : a qualitative research synthesis

As a result of globalization, the number of cross-border mergers and acquisitions increased constantly the recent years. The merger and acquisition process is highly uncertain, complex resulting in unpredictable outcomes and therefore one third of all mergers and acquisitions worldwide still fail. The most critical step in the process is the post-integration as most of the mergers and acquisitions fail in this particular part of the overall process. This research identifies the most common made human failures within the post-integration decision-making process of cross-border mergers and acquisitions using qualitative research synthesis. By using qualitative research synthesis prior qualitative studies focusing on failures in the cross-border post integration process are analysed, synthesized and interpreted to identify common failures within the post-integration process. The common failures identified are internal uncertainty and ambiguity, organizational politicization, voluntary departure of key people, organizational negligence, cultural differences and leadership vacuum. Based on these identified failures potential strategic decisions for executive management are set to increase practical relevance and to avoid these failures in future post-integration. To successfully integrate organizations within the post-integration creating synergistic exploitation, the executive management should mainly focus on implementing HR practise and focus on cross-cultural management. With appropriate cross-cultural management, clear cultural standards and cultural values the amount of cultural conflicts are reduced.