Can Two Rights Make a Wrong? Insights from IBM’s Tangible Culture Approach
By Sara J. Moulton Reger
IBM Press, April 2006
304 pages, $24.99
It was an intriguing book idea: Those involved in IBM’s $3.5 billion acquisition of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting back in 2002 would explain just how hard it was to integrate the two organizations. This insider account could serve as a how-to primer for others going forward. The good news: They do share lessons learned. If they had to do it all over again, they would work harder to make sure every leader felt he was an important part of the integration plan, communicate more about what was going on, and share feedback more broadly. The bad news: There is no drama here, and readers will need to figure out the how-to lessons they can apply to their own situations.