Psychologists advising on mergers and acquisitions need to understand the workforce implications of different integration strategies to know when and why we assess leaders in addition to how we do it. Haspeslagh and Jemison (1991) proposed three strategies: Preservation for when high autonomy and low interdependence are needed; Absorption for when high interdependence and low autonomy are needed; and Symbiosis for when high autonomy and high interdependence are needed. Preservation implies retaining existing management. Absorption suggests replacement or restructuring. Symbiosis suggests retaining management short term to protect culture while managing collaboration.
Source: Schijven, Heimeriks, Graebner, Haspeslagh & Mitchell (2024). Strategic Management Review.
