Cross border acquisitions and mergers: learning processes of Mexican corporative groups

Abstract

SummaryDuring the recent years, firms have used acquisitions and mergers (A&M) as one of the main mechanisms to expand their operations into international markets. Cross-border acquisitions and mergers are now a distinctive feature of the dynamics of the global economy. Acquisitions and mergers also have been utilized to a great extent by Mexican firms, particularly by the large indigenous business corporations, known as business groups. This mechanism of growth has become a very significant element for the globalization of those business groups. The objective of this paper is to explore some of the issues arising around this phenomenon, particularly those related to technological and organisational learning. The analysis focuses on the learning trajectory of the acquiring firms and the accumulation and integration of capabilities during the A&M process. Two cases of large Mexican business corporations are analysed and contrasted: Cemex and PULSAR-ELM. The main conclusion is that the different learning trajectories they have followed, allowed these companies to accumulate different capabilities at different depths, which seems to explain the different results they have obtained from the execution of cross border A&M: while CEMEX (with a specialised trajectory) has learned to acquire and integrate firms, PULSAR-ELM (with a diversified trajectory) has just been able to complete the first phase.