Abstracts Category : Other

The effect of post-merger and acquisition (M&A) integration on customers switching behaviour (A case study of Fidelity Bank, Ghana)

by Agnes Ivy Harrison

The world is in a state of flux, being influenced by the forces of globalization and fast technological changes and as a consequence firms are facing intense competition. To face the challenges and explore the opportunities, firms are going for inorganic growth through various strategic alternatives like mergers and acquisitions (M&As), strategic alliances and joint ventures. Overall, firms go for M&A with high expectations and there is conflicting evidence, both for and against, on impact of M&As on firm performance. In spite of these expectations, mergers and acquisitions have become more often associated with lowered morale, job dissatisfaction, unproductive behaviour, increased turnover and absenteeism, rather than with increased financial performance as expected. The general objective of this study is to examine the effect of Post-M&A integration on Customers switching behaviour in the Ghanaian banking industry using Fidelity Bank as a case study. The research employed both descriptive and explanatory research designs. The population for the research comprised customers, management and staff of Fidelity Bank. Fidelity bank has a staff strength of 3000 and an estimated customer base of 600,543. Both purposive and convenient sampling techniques were used. Data sources include primary and secondary. STATA 13 was used for the analysis. The study found a low customer switching behaviour among customers. I also found a positive correlation between customer switching behaviour and post M&A integration. The regression result also indicated showed an R2 of approximately 0.33 indicating that changes in the model can be explained by 33 per cent. The study also found a positive correlation between customer satisfaction and post M&A integration. The study recommends that management of Fidelity should commit more resources to upgrade current accounting software as most respondents disclosed that they received wrong statements especially whenever they used the Banks ATM services. A thesis submitted to the Department of Marketing and Corporate Strategy, KNUST, in partial fulfilment of the award of Master of Business Administration (Strategic Management Option), 2016 KNUST