Drawing on empirical research material from a Public Sector Service Organisation and secondary literature, this thesis explores the processes that produce, protect and facilitate the migration of hegemony in organisations. The purpose of the thesis is to contribute to the body of theory that describes and explains hegemonic processes. This thesis draws in particular on the theory of hegemony developed by Gramsci (1971) who is a common source that researchers of hegemony use. Gramsci proposed a three-dimensional model of hegemony, which contrasts with much of the Organisation and Management Studies literature in which hegemony is sometimes understood as a one-dimensional concept; as a form of socio-ideological control. This thesis seeks to make a contribution to the Organisation and Management Studies literature by synthesising the broader Gramscian conception with aspects of other applicable theories (Opler, 1945; Goffman, 1959; Blumer, 1969, Spradley, 1980; Bourdieu, 1991; and Hum phreys and Brown, 2002) and the constructs that emerge from empirical analysis, thereby developing a more encompassing explanatory model of the operation of hegemony in organisations. The findings of this research concur with Gramsci's conceptualisation of hegemony as a three-dimensional phenomenon: (1) a form of power; (2) as a dimension of social construction processes; and (3) as a theory of social change. Whilst Gramsci's model is intended to operate at the macro level of societal processes; it is not itself sufficient to explain the micro processes of hegemony. The Gramscian model will be supplemented using concepts derived from grounded theorising, informed by a literature review, on the basis of empirical research at the micro level of interaction within an organisational setting. This thesis develops and illustrates the application of a composite model through an ethnographic study which traces hegemonic practices as they impact on identities and perceived realities in the workplace. The emergent model seeks to explain, at the micro level of analysis, how hegemony is produced, migrates, and is protected within organisations.

Political scientists have been searching for a comprehensive theoretical framework to explain the dynamics of European integration since the European Communities came into being in the early 1950s. European integration theory was dominated by neo-functionalism in the 1960s and by realism in the 1970s and early 1980s. In the late 1980s these two paradigms were finally confronted. As a result of this confrontation, there seems to be an emergence of a new approach based on the idea that neither neo-functionalism nor realism alone can explain European integration but that each perspective provides fundamental insights. Multi-level governance models and even state-centred models tend to recognise that both theoretical frameworks have something to offer. Is it possible to view neo-functionalism and realism as complementary instead of competing theories of European integration. If both approaches contain some elements of truth but neither taken on its own is sufficient, insights from each may be needed to really understand the dynamics of integration. This piece of work tries to establish whether the idea that these two explanations need to be combined is worth considering at all. This hypothesis is tested in relation to European merger policy. The European Economic Community's (EEC) Merger Regulation represents the single most important extension of Community competition law since its inception. Merger control was explicitly contemplated in the 1951 Treaty of Paris but the EEC was created in 1957 without any reference to these policy arrangements. For the first time in 1973, the Commission submitted to the Council a proposal for an EEC merger regulation. Yet it was only after five amendments and sixteen years that, in 1989, a merger control regulation was agreed upon. Why was an agreement on European merger regulation possible in 1989 rather than before. This research addresses this question using both neo-functionalism and realism as explanatory theories.

Motivated by the plethora of theories in explaining the conflicting evidence on the acquiring firms’ profitability after a merger, this thesis examines how market conditions affect the most prominent takeover motives and the acquirers’ abnormal returns and analyse changes in acquiring firms’ default risk around the announcement on four different types of diversification. In the takeover process, information asymmetry holds a very central role, along with other firm and deal variables which release new information in the market and alter investors’ views. Further, market conditions around the announcements significantly affect not only the takeover activity but also investors’ beliefs and optimism which will eventually drive the acquirers’ stock prices. We first investigate the main takeover motives by analysing the wealth creation of the acquiring, the target firm and their combined gains. Firms react to both internal and external conditions by restructuring their business and takeovers are the fastest strategy to do so. Consequently, we re-examine takeover motives by incorporating the potential influence of market conditions (i.e. market misvaluation and merger waves). The results indicate that value increasing acquisitions are driven by both synergy and hubris, while value decreasing acquisitions by managerialism, after controlling for the hostility of the deal and extreme market valuations. We then turn our attention to the diversification benefits of mergers; although recent evidence suggests that mergers increase default risk for the acquiring firms, we find that due to the less uncertainty around horizontal mergers, acquirers can actually enjoy the risk-reducing diversification benefits of this related type of merger. Finally, we investigate how firm, market and industry valuation errors affect acquires performance in the UK market, after we control for multiple deals, method of payment and target type. Results suggest that although firm and deal characteristics help investors to revalue the potentials of an acquisition, investors are more likely to base their views on the state of the market/industry or the value of the firm and this will in turn drive the acquiring firms’ abnormal returns.

This empirical study investigates the performance of cross border M&A. The first stage is to identify the determinants of making cross border M&A complete. One focus here is to extend the existing empirical evidence in the field of cross border M&A and exploit the likelihood of M&A from a different perspective. Given the determinants of cross border M&A completions, the second stage is to investigate the effects of cross border M&A on post-acquisition firm performance for both targets and acquirers. The thesis exploits a hitherto unused data base, which consists of those firms that are rumoured to be undertaking M&A, and then follow the deal to completion or abandonment. This approach highlights a number of limitations to the previous literature, which relies on statistical methodology to identify potential but non-existent mergers. This thesis changes some conventional understanding for M&A activity. Cross border M&A activity is underpinned by various motives such as synergy, management discipline, and acquisition of complementary resources. Traditionally, it is believed that these motives will boost the international M&A activity and improve firm performance after takeovers. However, this thesis shows that such factors based on these motives as acquirer’s profitability and liquidity and target’s intangible resource actually deter the completion of cross border M&A in the period of 2002-2011. The overall finding suggests that the cross border M&A is the efficiency-seeking activity rather than the resource-seeking activity. Furthermore, compared with firms in takeover rumours, the completion of M&A lowers firm performance. More specifically, the difficulties in transfer of competitive advantages and integration of strategic assets lead to low firm performance in terms of productivity. Besides, firms cannot realise the synergistic effect and managerial disciplinary effect once a cross border M&A is completed, which suggests a low post-acquisition profitability level.

The main objective of this thesis is to provide a comprehensive understanding of Chinese domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As), including the merger motives of acquiring firms, stock performance, and key determinants of performance. The key issues and empirical findings are summarised below. Chapter 2 focuses on merger momentum and motives under various market valuation periods for domestic M&As. We demonstrate that there is a form of merger momentum at the market level. The primary motive of mergers and the source of merger momentum is synergy creation, as predicted by neoclassical theory. However, the effect of merger momentum may be less important when market valuation deviates from its neutral level. Our results suggest that in high-valuation markets, bidding firms’ managers are more likely to be overconfident and to favour the market-timing strategy, but overly optimistic investors are not evident. In contrast, these managerial incentives are not indicated during low-valuation markets, but investors are found to be overly pessimistic towards any merger announcement. Chapter 3 provides new evidence on the role of investment banks in domestic M&As. Based on a modified reputational measurement, which accounts for the difference between the abilities of small and large bidders to select advisors, we find support for the “superior deal” hypothesis. The overall reputational effect of an investment bank is reflected by an increase in the stock price of the bidding firm in the short term with no long-term reversal. We further find that the deal duration is significantly greater for top-tier investment banks, which supports the “diligent advisor” hypothesis. Additionally, we find that the deal completion rates differ insignificantly between the two tiers of investment banks and that this difference can be explained by the trade-off between the “preventing poor deals” and “better deal completion skills” hypotheses. Overall, our results indicate that the short-term improvement associated with top-tier investment banks stems from their skills, diligence, and trustworthiness. Chapter 4 studies the wealth effects of acquirers that are engaged in cross-border M&As (CBMAs). Specifically, we examine both the short- and long-term abnormal returns of CBMAs that were undertaken after the RMB exchange rate reforms or during the financial crisis period, stratified according to whether the transaction was resource-related. We show that although resource-related CBMAs promote national interests, they are not value-destroying for shareholders. Indeed, such deals are especially welcomed by the market around the deal announcement if they are focussed. Furthermore, currency appreciation increases the relative wealth and decreases the cost of capital for acquirers, which allows them to gain significantly higher abnormal returns in both the short and long terms. Finally, the wealth destruction associated with higher managerial risk taking significantly outweighs the benefit of the lower cost of acquisition for acquirers during the financial crisis period, which leads to significant underperformance over the long term.

This thesis examines the impact of financial media on UK merger and acquisition (M&A) deals from several perspectives. The Chapter 2 examines the impact of financial media on M&A performance using UK M&A data from 1981 to 2010. The results show that, both in the short run and long run, deals with media coverage outperform deals without media coverage. Moreover, the results indicate a significantly negative correlation between media pessimism and post-merger performance both in the short run and long run. These findings suggest that pre-merger news released by influential financial media has a large impact on market reactions to M&A announcements, consistent with the investor recognition hypothesis. Furthermore, the negative correlation between media pessimism and acquirer returns suggests that high media pessimism about M&As leads to downward pressure on market prices. Chapter 3 examines how media coverage and media pessimism influence takeover outcomes, based on the same database as in the first chapter. It is generally believed that financial newspapers directly impact investor sentiment concerning both individual stocks and the market as a whole (Antweiler and Frank, 2004; Joe et al., 2009; Ferguson et al., 2012; Jegadeesh and Wu, 2012; Chen et al., 2013; Garcia, 2013). Moreover, M&As often occur due to either takeovers or tender offers and usually require bidders to buy the target stock for more than its current market value (Jensen and Ruback, 1983). However, Branch et al. (2008) state that about 10% of announced takeover attempts fail, including those withdrawn by the acquirer or rebuffed by the target firm. Failure usually consists of withdrawn or pending takeovers. Successful takeovers are contractual agreements in which both acquirers and targets have enough interest to agree on an offer. Chapter 4 tests the different impacts of media pessimism in hot and cold markets. This paper is primarily motivated by the growing importance of media sentiment among merger waves. The principle result suggests that acquirers are subject to less media pessimism when the deal is announced during a hot market valuation period. Moreover, the results also show that acquirers obtain significantly higher short-run announcement returns for deals announced during hot markets with low media pessimism and significantly lower long-run returns for deals announced during cold markets with low media pessimism. The finding is in line with early investigations by Petmezas (2009), who states that managers undertaking takeovers during hot markets can earn positive returns in the short run and earn insignificant returns during cold markets.

This thesis examines the matter of dignity in organisations. Contending that existing work has conceived of dignity as an object, and thus has difficulty in finding dignity in empirical situations, I instead argue for a view of dignity as a performance. Thus the work presents an approach to dignity which rather than engaging with an ontology of being, examines how dignity may be conceived from an ontology of becoming (Weick 1979). Through membership and performance, it has been suggested that dignity may be understood as an ongoing achievement of persons in organisations. In order to investigate how this is done, qualitative research is undertaken in three different empirical sites. These three sites each provide a different perspective on membership, as the researcher progresses from non-participant observer in two companies, through to participating performing member in the last case of a predominantly volunteer-run performance based organisation. In investigating membership and performance, the thesis employs the work of Rolland Munro (1996; 1999) and Erving Goffman (1959; 1967) to examine the doing of dignity in organisations, identifying that the ambiguous nature of dignity lies in the mechanics of how such performances are challenged or affirmed. Finally, the doing of dignity as a performed accomplishment is identified as a process involving the use of various resources, and the organisation is shown as just one source of those.

No description available.

This study addresses the research question of how the post-acquisition structures of structural integration and autonomy affect Merger and Acquisition (M&A) performance and New Product Development (NPD) performance within knowledge-based theory. Achieving the following research objectives: (1) to provide explanations about the roles of exploitation innovation and exploration innovation in the relationships between structural integration and autonomy and M&A and NPD performance; and (2) to examine the roles of knowledge transfer and knowledge sharing in the relationships between structural integration and exploitation innovation and between autonomy and exploration innovation, this study provides innovation-based explanations about a post-acquisition mechanism of M&A success and knowledge-based explanations about post-acquisition innovation. Therefore, this study contributes to existing literature on post-acquisition innovation and cross-border M&As within knowledge-based theory. This study adopted quantitative methodology and a survey method to make generalisation about findings from samples to a population and achieve primary data on acquiring firms’ behaviour and attitudes towards their most recent cross-border M&A, which would not be available as secondary data. Designing a survey in an online-format, a cross-sectional form, and a closed-question format, this study conducted rigorous data analysis and enhanced the variation and generalisability of research findings. In order to confirm the accuracy of survey measures and statements, the survey was pilot tested in April 2015 by six academics whose work was cited in the survey questions and an academic at Durham University Business School who had reviewed my progression of PhD study. Sending a pre-notification one week before sending a survey link, a data-collection process started in June 2015. Subsequently, sending two reminders at two intervals of two weeks, the data collection finished in December 2015. Therefore, the whole data-collection process from conducting the pilot study to sending the survey link and two survey reminders occurred between April 2015 and December 2015. The survey targeted those UK acquiring firms who purchased a non-UK acquired firm between January 2012 and July 2015 with a 100% full equity stake. Moreover, the survey was sent to the senior-level managers of the UK acquiring firms, who were the most knowledgeable informants about post-acquisition implementation and M&A outcomes. While data collection started in late June 2015, I added into the full survey any company that had completed a cross-border M&A by the end of June 2015 (i.e., the start of July 2015). They were added into the data collection effort in July 2015 as part of the final sample. Therefore, as a result of survey invitations to 593 firms, I received total 143 responses, which represented a response rate of 24.1%. The survey data collected was tested using regression and with the PROCESS macro in SPSS for further examining indirect (mediation) effects. It was observed that structural integration affected M&A and NPD performance via exploitation innovation and affected exploitation innovation via knowledge transfer from an acquiring firm to an acquired firm and knowledge sharing. On the other hand, there was no evidence of autonomy as a determinant of M&A and NPD performance. Specifically, it was found that autonomy affected neither M&A performance nor NPD performance via the mediating variable of exploration innovation. Moreover, autonomy affected exploration innovation via neither knowledge transfer nor knowledge sharing. No direct effects of autonomy on M&A and NPD performance were discovered either.

This dissertation presents a socio-anthropological investigation of social venture incubation: a process of providing enterprise support aimed at creating social change. Most previous research on incubation has focused on venture development and growth, and the efficacy of incubation in terms of the economic contribution firms make. In this study I contribute by investigating the process of incubation, conceptualising it as a rite of passage of both the entrepreneur and the venture. I conducted an ethnographic study following the rites of passage of one cohort of social entrepreneurs and their ventures - from selection to incorporation into the business world. The insider perspective provided access to both the organisers and designers of the process as well as the entrepreneurs over a period of 15 months. I thematically analysed my data with NVivo using an a priori and emergent coding system. The key finding of the study was the dual nature of the incubatee, the liminal entity in this rite of passage. As opposed to most incubation studies, I found that the process was as much a transition of the ventures as it was for the entrepreneurs. The rite of passage framework enabled me to identify the transition to becoming a social entrepreneur. In addition the study contributes theoretically showing the importance of social exchanges in participants’ relationships as well as the variety of different engagement patterns in the entrepreneurial rite of passage. Engagement also influences incubation outcomes and evaluation. The value of the research findings for managers of such initiatives include designing relevant evaluation systems and strengthening the case for social incubation. Policy makers and funders of such initiatives thus need to take into account the different outcomes and impact of the programmes when allocating resources. The dual nature of the incubatee and impact on the incubatee should thus be taken into account when setting expected outcomes.