This article focuses on the dynamics of middle management intervention in post-merger processes. The literature on middle management intervention has focused on conflicts of interests between top and middle management in implementing strategic intent. The author suggests a more complex view of middle management intervention where the strategic intent is operationalized in the tension between groups of middle management driven by self-interests. The data and research generated in a merger between four Nordic partners show how the centralized support staff and operational management operationalized strategic intent in contradictory ways that led to implementation failure. These two middle management groups were given room for this destructive intervention for two reasons. First, the strategic intent gave unclear prescriptions for implementation and contained inherent contradictions between differentiation and integration. Second, the top management was largely absent in the implementation process and did not intervene until the merged corporation had persistent negative performance.
Anbefaler slakt av Nordea [Recommends that Nordea is split up]. (2003, August, 16). Dagens Næringsliv, p. 6-6.
2.
Balogun, J. (2003). From blaming the middle to harnessing its potential: Creating change intermediaries. British Journal of Management, 14, 69-83.
3.
Balogun, J., & Johnson, G. (2004). Organizational restructuring and middle management sensemaking. Academy of Management Journal, 47, 523-549.
4.
Barney, J. B., & Hesterly, W. S. (2006). Strategic management and competitive advantage. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
5.
Biggart, N. W. (1977). The creative destructive process of organizational change: The case of the post office. Administrative Science Quarterly, 22, 410-425.
6.
Bourgeois, L. J. III, & Brodwin, D. R. (1984). Strategic implementation: Five approaches to an elusive phenomenon. Strategic Management Journal, 5, 241-265.
7.
Buono, A. F., & Bowditch, J. L. (1989). The human side of mergers and acquisitions. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
8.
Burgelman, R. A. (1983). A process model of internal corporate venturing in the major diversified firm. Administrative Science Quarterly, 38, 223-244.
9.
Chandler, A. D. (1962). Strategy and structure: Chapters in the history of the industrial enterprise. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
10.
Creswell, J. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design. Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
11.
Culbert, S. A., & McDonough, J. J. (1980). The invisible war. Pursuing self-interests at work. New York: John Wiley.
12.
Currie, G. (1999). The influence of middle managers in the business planning process: A case study in the UK NHS. British Journal of Management, 10, 141-155.
13.
Currie, G., & Procter, S. J. (2005). The antecedents of middle managers’ strategic contribution: The case of a professional bureaucracy. Journal of Management Studies, 42, 1325-1356.
14.
Dent, E. B., & Goldberg, S. G. (1999). Challenging “resistance to change.” The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 35, 25-41.
15.
Dopson, S., & Neumann, J. E. (1998). Uncertainty, contrariness and the double-bind: Middle managers’ reactions to changing contracts. British Journal of Management, 9, S53-S71.
16.
Dopson, S., & Stewart, R. (1990). What is happening to middle management?British Journal of Management, 1, 3-16.
17.
Essex, E. M., & Wyss-Flamm, E. (2005, August). Dynamic scheming: Middle managers striving for a sustainable future. Paper presented at the Academy of Management Conference, Honolulu, HI.
18.
Floyd, S. W., & Lane, P. (2000). Strategizing throughout the organization: Managing role conflict in strategic renewal. Strategic Management Review, 25, 154-177.
19.
Floyd, S. W., & Wooldridge, B. (1992). Managing strategic consensus: The foundation of effective implementation. Academy of Management Executive, 6, 27-39.
20.
Floyd, S. W., & Wooldridge, B. (1994). Dinosaurs or dynamos? Recognizing middle management’s strategic role. Academy of Management Executive, 8, 47-57.
21.
Floyd, S. W., & Wooldridge, B. (1997). Middle management’s strategic influence and organizational performance. Journal of Management Studies, 34, 465-485.
22.
Galbraith, J. (1973). Designing complex organizations. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
23.
Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine.
24.
Goold, M., Campbell, A., & Alexander, M. (1994). Corporate level strategy. Creating value in the multi-business company. New York: John Wiley.
25.
Guth, W. D., & MacMillan, I. C. (1986). Strategy implementation versus middle management self-interest. Strategic Management Journal, 7, 313-327.
26.
Hartley, J. F. (1994). Case studies in organizational research. In C. Cassell & G. Symon (Eds.), Qualitative methods in organizational research: A practical guide (pp. 208-229). London: Sage.
27.
Haspeslagh, P., & Farquhar, A. B. (1994). The acquisition integration process: A contingent framework. In G. V. Krogh, A. Sinatra, & H. Singh (Eds.), The management of corporate acquisitions (pp. 414-447). New York: Macmillan.
28.
Haspeslagh, P., & Jemison, D. B. (1991). Managing acquisitions: Creating value through corporate renewal. New York: Free Press.
29.
Haspeslagh, P., & Jemison, D. B. (1994). Acquisition integration: Creating the atmosphere for value creation. In G. V. Krogh, A. Sinatra, & H. Singh (Eds.) The management of corporate acquisitions (pp. 448-479). New York: Macmillan.
30.
Huy, Q. N. (2001). In praise of middle managers. Harvard Business Review, 79, 72-79.
31.
Huy, Q. N. (2002). Emotionally balancing of organizational continuity and radical change: The contribution of middle managers. Administrative Science Quarterly, 47, 31-69.
32.
Ingen vellykkede nordiske banker [No successful Nordic banks]. (2003, May 14). Dagens Næringsliv, p. 13-13.
33.
King, N. (1994). The qualitative research interview. In C. Cassell & G. Symon (Eds.), Qualitative methods in organizational research: A practical guide (pp. 118-134). London: Sage.
34.
Langley, A. (1999). Strategies for theorizing from process data. Academy of Management Review, 24, 691-710.
35.
Lawrence, P. R., & Lorsch, J. W. (1967a). Differentiation and integration in complex organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 12, 1-48.
36.
Lawrence, P. R., & Lorsch, J. W. (1967b). Organization and environment. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
37.
MacMillan, I. C., & Guth, W. D. (1985). Strategy implementation and middle management coalitions. Strategic Management Journal, 3, 233-254.
38.
Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
39.
Mintzberg, H. (1978). Patterns in strategy formulation. Management Science, 24, 934-948.
40.
Nahavandi, A., & Malekzadeh, A. R. (1988). Acculturation in mergers and acquisitions. Academy of Management Review, 13, 79-90.
41.
Nahavandi, A., & Malekzadeh, A. R. (1994). Successful mergers through acculturalization. In G. V. Krogh, A. Sinatra, & H. Singh (Eds.), The management of corporate acquisitions (pp. 293-305). New York: Macmillan.
42.
Napier, N. K. (1989). Mergers and acquisitions, human resource issues and outcomes: A review and suggested typology. Journal of Management Studies, 26, 271-289.
43.
Nordea nær milliardsalg [Nordea close billion dollar sale]. (2003, October, 20). Dagens Næringsliv, p. 6-6.
44.
Nordea Group. (2001). Annual report. Stockholm, Sweden: Author.
45.
Nutt, P. C. (1987). Identifying and appraising how managers install strategy. Strategic Management Journal, 8, 1-14.
46.
Pablo, A. L. (1994). Determinants of acquisition integration level: A decision making perspective. Academy of Management Journal, 37, 803-836.
47.
Quinn, J. B. (1980). Strategies for change: Logical incrementalism. Burr Ridge, IL: Irwin.
48.
Rajagopolan, N., & Spreitzer, G. M. (1997). Toward a theory of strategic change: A multi-lens perspective and integrative framework. Academy of Management Review, 22, 48-79.
49.
Schilit, W. K. (1987). An examination of the influence of middle-level managers in formulating and implementing strategic decisions. Journal of Management Studies, 24, 271-293.
50.
Schweiger, D. M., Csiszar, E. N., & Napier, N. K. (1994). A strategic approach to implementing mergers and acquisitions. In G. V. Krogh, A. Sinatra, & H. Singh (Eds.), The management of corporate acquisitions (pp. 23-49). New York: Macmillan.
51.
Sykes, W. (1990). Validity and reliability in qualitative market research: A review of the literature. Journal of the Market Research Society, 32, 289-328.
52.
Søderberg, A. M., & Björkman, I. (2003). From words to action? Socio-cultural integration initiatives in a cross-border merger. In A. M. Søderberg & E. Vaara (Eds.), Merging across borders: People, cultures and politics (pp. 139-175). Copenhagen, Denmark: Copenhagen Business School Press.
53.
Thompson, J. D. (1967). Organizations in action: Social science bases of administrative theory. New York: McGraw-Hill.
54.
Turnbull, S. (2001). Corporate ideology—Meanings and contradictions for middle managers. British Journal of Management, 12, 231-242.
55.
Van de Ven, A. H., & Huber, G. P. (1990). Longitudinal field research methods for studying processes of organizational change. Organization Science, 1, 213-219.
56.
Vroom, V. H. (1964). Work and motivation. New York: John Wiley.
57.
Yin, R. K. (1989). Case study research: Design and methods. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
58.
Zollo, M., & Singh, H. (2004). Deliberate learning in corporate acquisitions: Post acquisition strategies and integration capability in U.S. bank mergers. Strategic Management Journal, 25, 1233-1256.
