The Bayer–Monsanto fusion: countering brand tarnishment and rebuilding reputation

Philippe Rebiere and Hareesh Mavoori ()
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Philippe Rebiere: ICN Business School, CEREFIGE - Centre Européen de Recherche en Economie Financière et Gestion des Entreprises - UL - Université de Lorraine
Hareesh Mavoori: ICN Business School, CEREFIGE - Centre Européen de Recherche en Economie Financière et Gestion des Entreprises - UL - Université de Lorraine

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Abstract: Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the antecedents, internal/external drivers and circumstances that diminish the importance of reputation and permit it to be circumvented in the context of a fusion (Monsanto-Bayer) and propose a comprehensive stakeholder perception-molding ("sense-giving") model to counter reputation-damaging factors. Design/methodology/approach The present study is a longitudinal case study of merging entities using an intra-organizational evolutionary perspective combined with external analysis. Findings Reputational hurdles can be successfully circumvented by a multifaceted strategy leveraging timely and tailored combinations of cognitive, conative and linguistic perception-molding strategies for effective management of diverse stakeholder perception processes spanning across identity orientation, legitimacy, posture, consistency, commitment, justification and transparency. Research limitations/implications The research is susceptible to the general limitations of case studies such as omission bias in terms of focusing on only two purposefully chosen market-leader firms involved in a merger, though every effort was made to track competitor movements, broad trends in markets and the micro- and macro-environments. Practical implications The proposed heptagonal reputation circumvention perception-molding framework (Figure 1) summarizes various actionable strategies to help managers develop a global vision and portfolio of strategies to proactively or reactively manage attacks on reputation. Originality/value An in-depth and multi-decade study of antecedents and internal/external drivers of the successful mega-fusion of two companies with a long history of reputational shocks was leveraged to provide unique insights into the interplay of various strategies targeting diverse stakeholder perceptions. These insights were then generalized to create a comprehensive perception-molding strategic framework to help firm managers circumvent reputational tarnishment hurdles.

Keywords: Strategic management; Stakeholders; Sense-making; Reputation; Evolutionary perspective; Monsanto–Bayer; Perception-molding (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019-04-09
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Published in Journal of Business Strategy, 2019, 41 (1), pp.27-37. ⟨10.1108/JBS-10-2018-0185⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02125355

DOI: 10.1108/JBS-10-2018-0185

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