Definition: The purchase of one corporation by another, through either the
purchase of its shares, or the purchase of its assets
There's only one real way to achieve massive growth literally
overnight, and that's by buying somebody else's company.
Acquisition has become one of the most popular ways to grow today.
Since 1990, the annual number of mergers and acquisitions has
doubled, meaning that this is the most popular era ever for growth
by acquisition.
Companies choose to grow by acquiring others to increase market
share, to gain access to promising new technologies, to achieve
synergies in their operations, to tap well-developed distribution
channels, to obtain control of undervalued assets, and a myriad of
other reasons. But acquisition can be risky because many things can
go wrong with even a well-laid plan to grow by acquiring: Cultures
may clash, key employees may leave, synergies may fail to emerge,
assets may be less valuable than perceived, and costs may skyrocket
rather than fall. Still, perhaps because of the appeal of instant
growth, acquisition is an increasingly common way to expand.