商务风险管理指南：多元化和收购、兼并重组.pdf

21 Diversification, Acquisition, Divestment and Partnership ‘They’ve been coasting for years,’ says Grant. ‘Using our contacts, we could double their sales inside five years. It would pay for itself.’ Grant wants to buy a mid-size contractor. ‘It’s a different kind of market, though,’ you say. ‘And what happens if sales decline? We’re taking on a load of debt.’ ‘You’re such a wet blanket,’ is Grant’s scornful riposte. ‘Get with it. Let’s shake things up a bit.’ Stick to the Knitting, or Spread the Risk? As we saw in the last chapter, a business needs to be in the right markets for long-term success; and achieving this may involve the business in either acquisition or divestment. The passion for diversification in the 1970s and the rise of the conglomerate was quickly dissipated when many conglomerates got into difficulty. Some companies lacked synergy and the conglomerates, with their wide range of products and markets, were more difficult to manage. Nevertheless, companies can reduce their risk by operating in more than one market. There may be strong practical reasons involved: some diversifications are designed to counter seasonal sales troughs. In the 1920s Walls started making ice cream to match the fall in demand for its Walls sausages. And a well-run business can add value to an acquisition through its management skills and capital strength. Acquisitions: Risks and Rewards An acquisition can bring many benefits, including: • economies of scale; • bigger market share; • broader product portfolio; • entry into a new market; • the acquisition of specialist knowledge; • preventing competitors from acquiring a useful asset. When you can’t achieve sufficiently fast organic growth, acquisition looks like common sense especially if, as the acquirer, you have a mature business with a pile of cash. In recent years, successful online businesses like Google have acquired countless smaller businesses, aware of the short lif