Integration process performance, capturing the extent to which integration teams realize their integration milestones, is significant in absorption acquisitions, because it constitutes an important intermediate step towards eventual M&A performance. Still, we know little about the conditions that motivate and enable integration teams to attain the goals of the post-acquisition integration process. Based on goal-setting theory, we suggest that integration process performance in absorption acquisitions depends on the fit among the ambitiousness of the cost and growth goals with which an integration team is tasked, the ampleness of integration team staffing, and the extent to which target firm employees are involved in integration planning. Fuzzy-set Comparative Analyses of 199 integration teams in 23 absorption acquisitions reveal three distinct configurations of these conditions that can engender high integration process performance. The results of this study extend research on post-acquisition integration by offering theory and fine-grained empirical evidence at the task-level of the integration process and provide helpful guidelines for managerial practice in acquisition integration in absorption acquisitions. We further outline the potential of configurational reasoning for the analysis of mergers and acquisitions, as a way to methodologically rejuvenate the field.

整合过程绩效，反映整合团队实现整合里程碑的程度，对于吸收收购非常重要，因为它构成了实现最终并购绩效的重要中间步骤。尽管如此，我们对激励和使整合团队实现收购后整合过程目标的条件知之甚少。基于目标设定理论，我们认为吸收收购中的整合过程绩效取决于整合团队所承担的成本目标和增长目标的远大程度、整合团队人员配备的充足程度以及目标实现的程度之间的契合度。公司员工参与整合规划。对 23 个吸收收购中的 199 个整合团队进行的模糊集比较分析揭示了这些条件的三种不同配置，这些配置可以产生高整合流程性能。本研究的结果通过在整合过程的任务层面提供理论和细粒度的实证证据，扩展了对收购后整合的研究，并为吸收收购中收购整合的管理实践提供了有益的指导。我们进一步概述了配置推理在并购分析中的潜力，作为方法论上振兴该领域的一种方式。