Integration projects as relational spaces: A closer look at acquired managers’ strategic role recovery in cross-border acquisitions

Abstract

Acquired and acquiring middle managers are in a central role in mergers and acquisitions (M&As), as they are responsible for the execution of the acquisition's strategy. However, the context of cross-border acquisitions considerably alters the strategy roles of the acquired middle managers. This paper explores the post-acquisition phase as a collection of integration projects. In so doing, the paper contributes to an emerging stream bridging the M&As and project management literatures. Using a mixed methods research design, our findings are based on an international sample of 52 interviews and 65 survey responses. We offer two contributions to extant theorizing. The first contribution is in revealing the role of integration projects as relational spaces wherein inter-firm interaction and post-acquisition strategy execution is undertaken. The second contribution demonstrates that the recovery of acquired middle managers strategic roles is not only linked to the existence of these relational spaces, but further depends on the project type. Our findings are a call for more research connecting the M&As and project management literatures.