July-Aug. 2004

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 5:45 PM
Filed under: Acquisitions | Corporate Strategy | Corporate Venture Capital | Cover Story | Joint Ventures and Alliances | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: alliances , biotech , Cialis , corporate strategy , David Thompson , Eli Lilly , joint venture , M&A , partnership , pharma , venture capital

Eli Lilly and Co. spent $2.4 billion on life-science R&D last year, exploring everything from antisense technology to synthetic exendin-4. But the biggest experiment under way at the company isn't taking place in a lab or a clinic. And the results of that experiment - highly promising so far...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 5:25 PM
Filed under: Counterparties | Divesting and Restructuring | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: carveout , corporate , divestiture , financial , private equity , strategic

When German engineering group Siemens AG announced its $993 million acquisition in May of the systems and services business of United States Filter Corp., it was welcome news for Veolia Environnement SA, the parent company and seller. Paris-based Veolia, an environmental company and formerly part of Vivendi Universal SA,...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 5:10 PM
Filed under: Case Studies | Corporate Strategy | Divesting and Restructuring | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: divestitures , Gerard Lamarche , Mestrallet , restructuring , Suez , utilities

In February 2003, European utilities giant Suez SA named Gérard Lamarche its CFO, senior executive vice president and point man in the execution of an extreme makeover. Lamarche had spent the previous three years in Naperville, Ill., running financial and administrative matters at an American water treatment subsidiary. He...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 3:44 PM
Filed under: Job Description | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: corporate development , Korzeniewski , M&A , VeriSign

For a time, Bob Korzeniewski admits, VeriSign Inc. did corporate development by the seat of its pants. Like when the company offered $19 billion in stock to buy Network Solutions Inc. on a Thursday in March 2000 and signed the deal later that weekend. But even though that price...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 3:39 PM
Filed under: Acquisitions | Case Studies | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: acquisitions , analysis , M&A , study

The data is in: Acquisitions destroy value. Right? Well, that is what the well-publicized averages say about large transactions. And that is where the problems in applying reason to merger studies begin. In reality, no company manages an "on-average" merger, and most deals are too small to be included in...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 3:31 PM
Filed under: Corporate Strategy | Corporate Venture Capital | July-Aug. 2004 | Legal Brief | The Magazine
Tagged: corporate venture capital , private equity , strategic

Contrary to what you may have heard, corporate venture capital is alive and surprisingly well. Despite the mistakes venture capitalists of all kinds made during the bubble years, the innovation needed to sustain many industries continues to develop outside major companies. In recent years we've seen new corporate entrants...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:56 PM
Filed under: Acquisitions | Corporate Strategy | Deal International | Joint Ventures and Alliances | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: acquisitions , Asia , international deal , joint venture , Life Masters , media , MTV , News Corp. , strategy , Time Warner , Viacom

Can your average corporate dealmaker learn anything from watching "Life Masters"? You might not think so. For one thing, the TV show - which features a couple of perky hosts offering advice on how to handle household challenges - is broadcast in Mandarin. Yet the program does have a...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:44 PM
Filed under: Best Practices | Corporate Strategy | Joint Ventures and Alliances | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: alliances , ASAP , biotech , Cialis , Eli Lilly , joint venture , OAM , Particia Martin , pharma , R&D

Patricia Martin has been an energetic advocate, both inside and outside Eli Lilly and Co., for a simple idea. "There's life after the deal," she says. "And it's worth paying attention to." That in a nutshell is the mission of Lilly's Office of Alliance Management, which monitors, supports and helps...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:25 PM
Filed under: Corporate Strategy | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: cash , deals , M&A , stock

As everybody knows, a strong equities market inspires companies to use stock as currency for acquisitions. And, as everybody also knows, buyers who pay in stock usually pay more, both because they lack the discipline a cash transaction imposes, and because sellers demand a premium if they're going to hold...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:16 PM
Filed under: Corporate Venture Capital | Joint Ventures and Alliances | July-Aug. 2004 | People | The Magazine
Tagged: alliances , Daniel Malina , DuPont , General Mills , joint venture

Alliances are an increasingly important tool, a spring survey by CFO Research Services and PricewaterhouseCoopers found. But Daniel Malina, vice president of corporate development at General Mills Inc., already knew that. Among other relationships, the Minneapolis grocery giant has a partnership with Nestlé SA to sell cereal around the...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:05 PM
Filed under: Divesting and Restructuring | July-Aug. 2004 | People | The Magazine
Tagged: movers , Raymond Arthur , restructuring , Target Corp. , Toys "R" Us , Wal-Mart

Raymond L. Arthur's move into the CFO's office at Toys "R" Us Inc. comes at a pivotal time for the company, landing the executive in the middle of a planned reorganization that will determine the retailer's future. These are tough times in toyland, with multiple bankruptcies (KB Toys Inc.,...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 2:01 PM
Filed under: July-Aug. 2004 | People | The Magazine
Tagged: acquisitions , Bridge Software Holdings , Fair Isaac , Gresh Brebach , movers

If there were any doubt, Fair Isaac Corp. underlined its commitment to growth through acquisitions in January. That was when the software and services company that scores your creditworthiness hired Gresh Brebach as vice president for corporate development. Like Fair Isaac CEO Tom Grudnowski (who had been handling most of...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 1:49 PM
Filed under: July-Aug. 2004 | People | The Magazine
Tagged: bankrupt , Foster Wheeler , Kaiser Aluminum , La Duc , movers

Famous names on hard times: It's becoming a theme for John T. La Duc. In April, La Duc, 61, left his job as chief financial officer at bankrupt Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp. after a 35-year career at the Houston-based company. He's now CFO at Foster Wheeler Ltd., the troubled...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 1:39 PM
Filed under: July-Aug. 2004 | People | The Magazine
Tagged: John Zieser , M&A , magazines , Meredith , movers

John Zieser pulled off a few deals for Meredith Corp. while serving as its general counsel and vice president of corporate services. One was the $115 million acquisition of American Baby magazine two years ago; another was the purchase of a Saginaw, Mich., radio station last month. But now...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]

Posted on August 15, 2004 at 1:33 PM
Filed under: From Ken | July-Aug. 2004 | The Magazine
Tagged: corporate dealmaker , editor , Klee

Which 20th century management guru is proving most relevant for 21st century corporate strategists? Drucker? Doubtful. Porter? Possibly. But I say it's Hammerstein. You know - Oscar Hammerstein, partner of Richard Rodgers and the guy who wrote the lyrics to "You'll Never Walk Alone." This is a tune that more...  Continue reading

[ Share ]  [ E-mail ]  [ Leave a Comment ]  [ Full Story ]