70
Gütersloh;
55
Sudi Sudarsanam 1995;
56
Sudi
Sudarsanam 1995;
57
World Bank 2013;
58
World Bank 2013
References
Aon Hewitt 2010. A report prepared by CFO
Research Services in collaboration with Aon
Hewitt , Human Capital Management and the
Success or Failure of M&A, Boston, Nov. 2010.
Boston Consulting Group, 2016. Gearing Up
for the New Era of China’s Outbound M&A.
[Accessed 12 January 2017].
Bradt, G., 2015. The Root Cause Of Every
Merger‘s Success Or Failure: Culture. [Online]
2173[Accessed 28 March 2016].
Chen, Y. & Werle, H., 2014. Chinese Inward
Mergers & Acquisitions by European Companies
and Chinese Outward Mergers & Acquisitions in
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cess Factors , Zurich: University of St. Gallen.
Cheung, F. & Lee, A., 2015. A brilliant plan:
One Belt, One Road. [Online] Available at:
[Accessed 18 March 2016].
Ernst & Young, 2016. Chinesische Unterneh-
menskäufe in Europa: Eine Analyse von M&A-
Deals 2005–2016, s.l.: Ernst & Young.
Euro-China Centre at Antwerp Management
School, 2013. Euro-China Investment Report
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Hanemann, T. & Huotari, M., 2015. Chinese FDI
in Europe and Germany: Preparing for a New Era
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rope_Full.pdf [Accessed 12 January 2017].
IMD 2017 World Competitiveness Yearbook
2017, Lausanne 2017.
Johnson, G., 1992. Managing Strategic
Change-Strategy, Culture and Action. Long
Range Planning, 1(25), pp. 28-36.
Kennedy, S., 2015. Made in China 2025.
2012;
9
See Wellner 2016;
10
See Wellner 2017;
11
See Wellner 2010;
12
See Wellner 2010;
13
See Wellner 2017;
14
See Ernst & Young, 2016;
15
Adapted from Ministry of Commerce of
People’s Republic of China, 2014;
16
See PwC,
2016;
17
See Wellner 2010;
18
See PwC, 2016;
19
Adapted from UNCTAD, 2016;
20
Adapted
from Boston Consulting Group, 2016;
21
Adap-
ted from Rhodium Group, 2015;
22
Adapted
from Rhodium Group, 2015;
23
Adapted from
Ernst & Young, 2016;
24
See PwC, 2016;
25
See
IMD 2017;
26
See Simon, 1996;
27
See Simon,
1996;
28
See Wellner, 2016;
29
See Wellner,
2016;
30
See Simon 2012;
31
See Wellner 2010;
32
See Wellner 2001;
33
See Chen 2014;
34
„Made in China 2025“ is an initiative to com-
prehensively upgrade Chinese industry. The in-
itiative draws direct inspiration from Germany‘s
„Industry 4.0“ plan. See Kennedy, 2015;
35
“One Belt One Road” is strategic initiatives
from China State Council and President Xi Jin-
ping. Its goal is to create an economic belt that
connects countries on the original Silk Road
through Central Asia, West Asia, the Middle
East and Europe, as well as a maritime road
that links China’s port facilities with the African
coast, pushing up through the Suez Canal into
the Mediterranean. The project aims to redirect
the country’s domestic overcapacity and capital
for regional infrastructure development to im-
prove trade and relations with ASEAN, Central
Asian and European countries. See Cheung and
Lee, 2016;
36
See Hanemann and Huotari,
2015;
37
See Chen 2014;
38
See Euro-China
Centre at Antwerp Management School, 2013.;
39
See Knoerich, 2010;
40
Adapted from Minis-
try of Commerce of People’s Republic of China,
2014;
41
See Euro-China Centre at Antwerp
Management School, 2013;
42
See Euro-China
Centre at Antwerp Management School, 2013;
43
Table created by the author based on the sur-
vey results;
44
See Porter, 1998;
45
Sudi Sudar-
sanam 1995;
46
See Sauer, 2012;
47
See Wong,
2011;
48
Adapted from Chen and Werle, 2014;
49
See Simon 2012;
50
See Simon 2012;
51
See
Wellner 2010;
52
Data gathered from company
press releases, newspaper articles by the Ger-
man newspapers Handelsblatt, Spiegel and Fo-
cus, as well as Ernst & Young yearly reports on
Chinese-German M&A;
53
See Ernst & Young,
2016;
54
See e.g. Sohm, et al., 2009 – Chinesi-
sche Unternehmen in Deutschland – Chancen
und Herausforderungen, Bertelsmann Stiftung,
win-win situation in this whole process. These
investments and acquisitions are the result and
culmination of bilateral business relationships.
China Mergers & Acquisitions Association and
German Federal M&A Association have re-
cently announced the launch of a special joint
fund with an initial capital of 1 billion Euros to
better serve M&A activities between the two
countries.
The reasons for Chinese investors selecting
German SME and Hidden Champions as poten-
tial acquisition in favor to British or French and
Dutch companies is interesting, as one of the
key reasons on acquiring these companies is a
long term perspective in Image, Innovation and
special know how. The survey showed that in
many cases the financial aspects do play a mi-
nor role for Chinese investors vs. so called soft
skills. Which are image and long term perspec-
tive and know how (admiring) of the acquired
brand or company. German and Swiss hidden
champions and innovation/technology leader
are major image factors for Chinese compa-
nies. While 1a investments in real estate in the
last decade were the major image giver mainly
in Chinese OFDI in the United Kingdom. With
the strong growth and price increase of the
German Real Estate market since 2013 and the
Brexit vote in the UK, the Chinese Real Estate
investment shifts from England to Germany. On
the other hand leads the strong German manu-
facturing basis and innovation and technology
leadership of major industries in Germany to an
increasing interest of Chinese investors. This
trend is underlined by the strategy 2030 of
Building a Modern, Harmonious, and Creative
High-Income Society
57
in China with a strong
emphasis on innovation and technology leader-
ship in manufacturing and (environmental) sus-
tainability.
58
All of these factors provide a solid foundation for
the optimistic growth and development of further
Mergers & Acquisitions deals in the future.
Footnotes
1
See Wellner 2017;
2
See Wellner, 2016;
3
See
Johnson, 1992, pp. 34-35;
4
See Bradt, G.,
2015;
5
See Aon Hewitt, 2010;
6
See Aon He-
witt, 2010;
7
See McGrath, 2014;
8
See Simon
Hidden Champions
