The time span analyzed is from the merger until approximately one year after. The case describes the "Best of Both Worlds" integration approach adopted by Lenovo and the top management team's attempts to set aside egos and learn from each other, as well as to make decisions that are in the best interest of the new company, e.g., the decision to move the corporate headquarters to the US and to use English as the working language. The case illustrates the significant cultural differences separating the two companies and draws attention to the first major difficulties starting only eight month after the merger when the new CEO, Steve Ward, was replaced by Bill Amelio, an ex-Dell executive. This raised questions as to whether Lenovo was able to build a diverse top management team that could successfully run a global business.

The Lenovo-IBM Case Study Part B: Integration Challenges (download provided by ePubWU)