Giving Sense to and Making Sense of Justice in Postmerger Integration

Abstract

The objective of this article is to elucidate how justice in general and distributive justice in particular are given sense to and made sense of in postmerger integration. Drawing on a longitudinal real-time analysis of a recent merger, we identify a pattern in which focus moved from equality to eqnity to less emphasis on distributive justice. To understand tbe dynamics involved, we develop a process model that explains bow actors reconcile pressures of value creation and sociopolitical concerns in dialogical "sensegiving" and "sensemaking" processes tbat lead to tbe enactment of specific norms of justice. Tbis analysis adds to researcb on mergers and acquisitions by facilitating understanding of the crucial role tbat norms of justice play in postmerger integration, of tbe way in wbich tbey cbange over time as integration processes unfold, and of tbe intergroup dynamics throngb wbicb tbese norms of justice are enacted. By uncovering the microdynamics of dialogical sensegiving and sensemaking processes, we also contribute to research on organizational justice, sensemaking, and process studies. Organizational justice plays a central role in mergers and acquisitions (M&As). This is especially the case with postmerger integration, which involves changes that are often difficult to understand or accept in their own right (Clark, Gioia,

Managing talent across advanced and emerging economies: HR issues and challenges in a Sino-German strategic collaboration

“…This enabled strands of narrative and storytelling approaches in the data collection (Czarniawska, 1998;Gabriel, 2000Gabriel, , 2004Phillips and Oswick, 2012). Narrative-style data and analysis can produce rich information and insights on strategic partnership topics, such as intercultural influences managerial behaviours (Xing, Liu, Tarba and Cooper, 2014), post-merger integration (Monin, Noorderhaven, Vaara and Kroon, 2013;Melkonian, Monin, and Noorderhaven 2011), national culture influence on foreign MNC local employees (Caprar, 2011).…”

The effect of leadership style on talent retention during Merger and Acquisition integration: evidence from China

“…Several research studies in the field of M&A have used the case study approach to address various issues that arise following acquisitions, such as the management roles of the acquired firm (Graebner, 2004), the seller's view of the acquisition process (Graebner and Eisenhardt, 2004), explorations of the dynamics of pre-acquisition employee reactions in the acquired firm (Teerikangas, 2012), knowledge transfer in M&As (Ranft and Lord, 2002,;Zou and Ghauri, 2008), trust in M&As (Stahl, Larsson, Kremershof, and Sitkin, 2011) and trust asymmetries in acquisitions of entrepreneurial firms (Graebner, 2009), cultural clashes in high-tech M&As (Drori, Wrzesnievski, and Ellis, 2011), and the implementation of post-acquisition integration approaches (Monin, Noorderhaven, Vaara, and Kroon, 2012;Schweizer, 2006;Teerikangas, Very, and Pisano, 2011). Consistent with earlier research and owing to the interpretive nature of the study, we adopted an in-depth case study together with semi-structured interviews.…”

The Process of Postmerger Integration: A Review and Agenda for Future Research

“…Other types of justice have also received attention, especially procedural justice, or the fair treatment of all parties in PMI decision-making ( Other research has examined how justice perceptions and related norms may change over time (Drori et al, 2011;Monin et al, 2013). Drori et al (2011) studied how and why social actors entering into mergers may enact a culture of equality.…”

“…Such a view is particularly relevant for understanding organizational phenomena involving complexity, unpredictability, uncertainty, and ambiguity (Corley & Gioia, 2004;Huy & Reus, 2011), characteristics that are typical of post-merger integration. Yet although both seminal studies (Haspeslagh & Jemison, 1991;Jemison & Sitkin, 1986) and some more recent works (e.g., Clark, Gioia, Ketchen, & Thomas, 2010;Monin, Noorderhaven, Vaara, & Kroon, 2013;Schweizer, 2005;Vaara & Tienari, 2011) have highlighted the importance of process issues, relatively few studies of post-merger integration have adopted the fine-grained, longitudinal approach required for fully explicating process dynamics. Thus, we believe that embracing a process lens will open promising new lines of inquiry regarding PMI.…”