The role of the bidding process in the corporate governance of bidding firms: the case of abandoned acquisitions

This thesis is structured around an empirical investigation of the experience of bidding firms in abandoned acquisitions. Existing research suggests that, in certain circumstances, abandoned acquisitions may play a governance role, disciplining bidder managers for proposing acquisitions which reduce shareholder wealth. However, there has been little work analysing how, and in what circumstances, abandoned acquisitions perform this governance role. This research addresses this gap, by investigating the causal mechanisms of abandoned acquisitions and their aftermath. The thesis develops an innovative, multi-dimensional conceptual framework, blending existing theories of acquisitions and corporate governance. This framework guides the empirical investigation, which uses the causal process tracing (CPT) method, not previously adopted in this field. The work builds cumulatively, to analyse the causal mechanisms, in cases of abandoned acquisitions, involving UK bidding firms. To enhance the identification of the nature of the impact of abandonment on bidding firms; disciplinary or otherwise, a different conceptualisation of the post-abandonment experience of bidding firms is adopted.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Nottingham Trent University

Year dc:date.issued

2013

Author dc:creator

• McCann, M

Language dc:language

en