Journal of General Management

In spite of a multitude of prior empirical investigations on factors explaining variance in company performance after a takeover each single study has typically incorporated only a narrow range of post-acquisition integration (PAI) design subfields. This paper applies a more comprehensive approach by developing hypotheses with regard to correlations between employee perceptions of six PAI subfields and their assessments of two acquisition performance dimensions. The hypotheses are empirically tested using data obtained in two standardised written employee surveys conducted about one year apart after a horizontal takeover in the information and communication technology industry in Germany. Responses were collected from 570 and 534 employees who worked for the merged organisation. PLS structural equation modeling results show that paths from employee perceptions of the quality of executive leadership in the PAI process, the degree of integration of business processes and corporate cultures as well as adequacy of integration speed to two performance constructs (internal reorganisation success, achievement of strategic objectives) are significantly positive. The results support the view that PAI investigations perform well with attempts combining various lenses of scholarly corporate acquisition research. Implications of the findings are discussed for future studies on PAI measures and for PAI management practice.

The aim of this paper is to analyse the patterns of industrial agglomeration in Portugal in order to understand their underlying dynamics. Industries tend to be concentrated geographically, rather than due to random causes, natural advantages or Marshallian forces. Empirically, industry pairwise coagglomeration is measured using the Ellison and Glaeser (1997) metric, with the goal of understanding the complementarity versus specialisation dynamics behind the industrial geographic concentration in Portugal. It is concluded that the most prominent industrial clusters in Portugal are as follows: textiles and clothing, footwear and transport, each one having a different agglomeration dynamic. While some sectors tend to benefit more from the interdependencies along the value chain (meaning vertical industrial relationships, related to complementary dynamics), others are more vulnerable to labour pooling (more to do with horizontal industrial relationships and specialisation dynamics), and others to both. For policymakers, for instance, it is of great use to know exactly the right triggers as the success of any programme results from the suitability of the initiatives being financially supported.

This study advances organisational learning research by exploring how and why learning patterns differ between different family businesses at different layers of China's market-oriented transformation. The focus is the locational difference, namely the separate urban and rural environments and outcomes. Combining case studies and in-depth interviews, the study investigated how family businesses interact with their institutional environment and consequently build learning patterns. Learning initiatives undertaken by relevant and motivated family members are found to reflect a dynamic process involving personal learning, business growth, and business innovation. Family conflicts and business growth were also found to impact learning in family businesses. Implications for organisational learning are discussed at the end of the paper.

In a constrained environment, social enterprise sustainability is trapped in a'survival and maintenance' mode characterised by obscurity. The purpose of this paper is to explore the phenomenon of sustainability from a strategic perspective by looking at two case studies that managed to thrive and grow. Drawing on ∥ in-depth interviews, the paper explores how the phenomenon plays out and how strategic practices are carried out in their local exchange contexts, rising above mundane challenges, and ending up improving the economic and social capacities of their communities. The paper contends that social enterprise sustainability is grounded in understanding the impact of contextual, organisational and individual spheres that correspond to three strategic ex-ante enablers: stakeholder orientation, relationship-oriented organisation, and entrepreneurial behaviour; all of which have had valuable contributions towards the upkeep of the enterprise. The study demonstrates that sustainability of social enterprises in a constrained environment is a function of a continuous entrepreneurial activity and the effective use of social and business models. Beyond its direct contribution to the literature on social enterprise in developing countries, the paper offers a practical framework that underlines the dynamism of a sustainable social enterprise while emphasising key managerial and marketing concepts. It concludes with a number of recommendations for policy and practice as to how to enhance the contribution of management and marketing concepts to sustainable social enterprises.