ABSTRACT

I n May 1998 two corporate giants in the world of auto manufacturing madean equally giant announcement: Daimler-Benz AG and Chrysler Corporation were about to undergo a $130 billion merger. Much debate ensued over the cultural conflicts that were certain to arise. Some pundits even speculated that the cultural conflict would cause the new entity to fail. Could Daimler avoid the fate of other foreign buyers who failed after spending billions in mergers with U.S. companies?