Managing Mergers and Acquisitions

Content

The course offers a theoretically grounded and practically relevant overview of the key themes in Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) and specifically in post-merger integration (PMI). Building upon a theoretical understanding of organizational changes and M&A-specific concepts and frameworks, the course concentrates on the various problems and challenges in M&A and PMI. These include strategic integration and synergies, cultural challenges, identity-building, cognitive and emotional dynamics of inter-firm collaboration, politics, communication and learning.

Learning Outcomes

The course provides the students with an up-to-date understanding of theories and practices of M&A that will help them to understand the nature of M&As and plan and implement post-merger integration successfully. Upon completing the course, the students should be able to:

1. Understand the challenges that organizational members involved in mergers and acquisitions are confronted with;

2. Analyze the M&A process with its challenges and dilemmas from different theoretical angles;

3. Learn to develop an integration plan for M&As that would allow maximizing strategic synergies, while minimizing cultural challenges and risks;

4. Be able to assess and manage the complex dynamics in unfolding M&A integration.