A merger or acquisition is usually a challenging endeavor with a single ultimate aim: to create value for the owner. However, stakeholder theory shows how such a narrow and one-sided focus is detrimental to value-creation in general - not only for other stakeholders within and outside the organization, but also for the owner. Especially in a merger or an acquisition, it is evident that there are many groups and individuals who have a stake in the success or failure of a business.So far, the overwhelming majority of research in the field of mergers and acquisitions has focused on the merging organizations, and so researchers have mainly studied internal stakeholder groups, such as employees and managers. This book shows how different stakeholders, internal and external, may play a critical role during a merger or an acquisition process. The book builds on empirical examples that illustrate how various stakeholders play active roles throughout the different phases, and, thus, ultimately affect the outcome and the value formation process of the merger or the acquisition. There is still much debate on how and when to best measure the outcome of a merger or an acquisition. With its comprehensive focus on stakeholders, this volume explores why some mergers and acquisitions fail while others succeed.

1. Introduction: A Stakeholder Approach to Mergers and Acquisitions Helén Anderson, Virpi Havila and Fredrik Nilsson Part I: Shareholders and Top Managers 2. The Growing Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility in Mergers and Acquisitions Tommy Borglund 3. Top Managers as Stakeholders, Their Motives and Sensemaking in a 'Hostile' Merger and Acquisition Process Mona Ericson Part II: Middle Managers and Employees 4. The Arranged Marriage Syndrome - Challenges to Subsidiary Managers during the Integration Process between Two Merging Multinational Companies Roger Schweizer 5. Internal Legitimacy for Change in Mergers and Acquisitions Magnus Frostenson 6. The Internal Auditor's Involvement in Acquisitions Fredrik Nilsson, Nils-Göran Olve and Olof Arwinge 7. When the Integration of Management Control Systems Is At Stake - Experience From the Car Industry Peter Beusch Part III: Suppliers and Customers 8. Managing the Influence of External Competitive Change during Integration Svante Schriber 9. Supplier Relationships at Stake in Mergers and Acquisitions Johan Holtström 10. Why Do Customers Dissolve Their Business Relationships with the Acquired Party Following an Acquisition? Christina Öberg Part IV: Public Bodies, Other Parties of Public Interest and Scholars 11. Mergers of Authorities in Central Government: Role Ambiguities and Blame-Avoidance Louise Bringselius 12. Bank Mergers in Sweden - The Interplay between Bank Owners, Bank Management and the State 1910-2009 Sven Jungerhem and Mats Larsson 13. The Stake of High Failure Rates in Mergers and Acquisitions Annette Risberg 14. Epilogue: Reflection on the Critical Role of Stakeholders in Mergers and Acquisitions Helén Anderson