Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Intellectual Capital

Sorin Anagnoste and Gabriela Dumitru
A successful merger is certainly not all about speed or applying sophisticated tools for managing <strong>the</strong>
process. Instead, today’s successful integration managers use a different, more nuanced approach by
establishing clear structures – skillfully combining leadership with execution and placing greater
emphasis on achieving growth.
Leadership has a pivotal role in any merger integration, where a certain degree <strong>of</strong> chaos and
confusion is unavoidable. Two companies shed <strong>the</strong>ir separate identities to form a new, combined
organization – and without <strong>the</strong> familiar structures to hold things toge<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong>re is a tendency to pull in
different and sometimes, conflicting directions. Such situation requires strong leadership to ensure
that <strong>the</strong> merger is on <strong>the</strong> right track and all necessary tasks are being executed. (Ro<strong>the</strong>nbucher and
Declerq, 2008)
Most mergers fail. That’s a fact. After <strong>the</strong> merger, many companies cannot sustain <strong>the</strong>ir growth
momentum. A.T. Kearney finds that <strong>the</strong> major cause for post-merger financial slow-downs is treating
all mergers alike. In a study <strong>of</strong> 175 mergers, seven types <strong>of</strong> mergers were identified. Each type has its
own challenges and opportunities. Companies that tailor <strong>the</strong> merger approach to <strong>the</strong> merger type will
increase merger success and <strong>the</strong> value <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> new company. Altoge<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong>re are seven merger
types (please see figure below).
Figure 3: The seven types <strong>of</strong> mergers
Source: Cole, Rebel A., Ferris, Kenneth R. and Melnik, Arie L. (2010) The Cost <strong>of</strong> Advice in Merger &
Acquisition Transactions, AT Kearney
According to an A.T. Kearney study <strong>of</strong> 175 mergers, <strong>the</strong> key challenge <strong>of</strong> a merger is not achieving
<strong>the</strong> cost synergies as such but ra<strong>the</strong>r to sustain <strong>the</strong> growth <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> new company. The research
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