Technology acquisitions: a process perspective on search, selection and implementation

Technology acquisitions have become an important external source of innovation. But notwithstanding the abundant literature on the topic, relatively little is known about the acquisition process itself and how it impacts acquisition performance. Some papers have used a process perspective as point of departure, but these studies focus at one component of the acquisition process and neglect to question how these different process components interact to influence acquisition performance. To address this gap, we carefully scrutinize each process component for its influence on the subsequent acquisition stages and performance. Using a case study design, we find that the decisions and managerial actions taken in the search and selection phase have an important impact on the success of implementation. We identify search and involvement of the client department as crucial mechanisms in the acquisition process and reveal their implications for the structure and composition of the team managing the acquisition.