An effective culture is closely related to business strategy. Indeed, Chatman and Cha (2003) contend that a culture cannot be crafted until an organization has first developed its business strategy. Just as a successful business needs a clear strategy, so does the combination. At the broadest level, senior executives need to decide how much to integrate two firms in a combination. When it comes to putting together, say, manufacturing or marketing, the synergies therein may dictate different levels of integration. For instance, in many high-tech acquisitions, marketing and sales in a subsidiary are absorbed into the parent company which often has more competence and better distribution channels. But the acquiree’s engineering and manufacturing may be given high levels of autonomy to “do their thing.” In health care combinations, back office functions may be consolidated, and systems and procedures standardized, but the
delivery of care is left to each of the providers. In oil industry mergers, in turn, refining and distribution are often consolidated yet each company’s dealerships and brand kept separate. In all of these cases, decisions about integration hinge on the business case behind the combination.