Knowledge Transfer in Acquisition of a Small Hydrology Business

Abstract

This study investigated the process of knowledge transfer during a company takeover. The target company is a small international company with offices in six countries that specializes in hydrology. The acquiring company is a large multinational with offices around the world.

The acquirer has no experience in the hydrology business and this represents their first experience with the industry. A further factor in the study is looking at how the takeover is affected by differences in culture between the two businesses. The acquirer is very structured and the acquired highly informal. Data for this study has been gathered from a questionnaire and interviews. The findings of the research were generally negative as there was little evidence of knowledge transfer taking place during the first seven months of the acquisition and a general failure to recognize the cultural differences. Furthermore, the acquirer has initially allocated insufficient importance and resources to this acquisition.