Find the answers to the questions in the text.

Why are companies interested in alliances?

What is a merger?

What is an acquisition?

What is a takeover?

What are the three forms of mergers between firms?

What are the steps of a successful acquisition?

What ensures the successful integration of the new business?

 

Match the terms on the left to the definitions on the right.

1. joint venture	a) money risked or invested in a company
2. MBO (management buy out)	b) two or more companies joining to form a larger company
3. merger	c) offer money for shares in a company
4.takeover/acquisition	d) when a company's top executives buy the company they work for
5. bid	e) a business activity in which two or more companies have invested together
6. stake	f) getting control of a company by buying over 50% of its shares

 

Circle the noun which forms a word partnership with the verb.

1 take 2 make 3 launch 4 target 5 set up 6 make

a stake / a bid / an acquisition a merger / a stake / a bid a bid / an alliance / a stake a company / a bid / a takeover a share / a joint venture / a stake a merger / a joint venture / an acquisition

Use the following words or phrases to complete the extracts.

 

merger take over bid stake joint venture

Banco Popolare Italiana has finally received agreement from the Bank of Italy to launch a............................... for Banca Antonveneta, in competition with ABN Amro of the Netherlands. ABN Amro's offer is worth more than Banco Popolare's, but some analysts think that Banco Popolare may already control more than 50% of Antonveneta's shares.

Japan yesterday confirmed the creation of the world's biggest bank when shareholders approved the.................... of Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group and UFJ Holdings. The new bank will be headed by MTFG's Nobuo Kuroyanagi, aged 63.

PC-Ware, the German IT services specialist, has increased its......................... in its domestic competitor Senas from 5P0% to 100%.

The Swiss bank.UBS, is in talks with Beijing Securities to set up a China-based.......................... By working together on a number of projects, the two banks will be able to compete more effectively against western rivals such as Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch.

From the Financial Times.

Complete the text with the best word.

Strategic Alliances

As companies seek to extend their reach, share risks, reduce costs or import knowledge, many of them decide to form strategic alliances. Considering that such alliances often fail, one may wonder whether this is due in part to a poor understanding of the management. Skills...¹ required to make them work.

According to a recent report, alliance managers have to be impartial. They must not be fiercely............² to one company or............³. They must be able to tolerate different ways of doing things, and they also need to be willing to take risks and let things happen.

The report points out that the challenges............⁴ by alliances are different from mergers because they are temporary, involve............⁵ ownership and have fewer formal structures and little hierarchy.

Furthermore, many alliances are between past or present competitors, so it is crucial to build trust. Accessibility, face-to-face contact and personal example are needed, and there is no place for............⁶ agendas.

It is also vital to know how to develop a............⁷ of employees, both specialists and managers, who are capable of working in various complex yet temporary alignments. This, according to the report, will become a key............⁸ of competitive............⁹.

	a) expert	b) skills	c) science	d) capability
	a) committed	b) determined	c) indebted	d) destined
	a) mark	b) name	c) make	d) brand
	a) resulted	b) posed	c) made	d) caused
	a) divided	b) joined	c) shared	d) split
	a) concealed	b) invisible	c) disguised	d) hidden
	a) cadre	b) batch	c) caucus	d) party
	a) line	b) spring	c) source	d) way
	a) gain	b) force	c) advantage	d) value

 

Brainstorm the ideas on strategic alliances.

Read this short text to get information about mergers.