Information Systems in Mergers and Acquisitions: Four Decades of Research and Future Directions

Abstract

In an increasingly digital corporate landscape, information systems (IS) integration has become central to realizing the synergies anticipated in mergers and acquisitions (M&A). While the complexity of IS integration in M&A contexts is widely acknowledged, prior research remains fragmented across disciplines, methods and thematic perspectives, limiting cumulative insight. This study aims to address this fragmentation leveraging bibliometric techniques to examine 207 peer-reviewed publications on IS integration in M&A indexed in Scopus between 1984 and 2024. The findings highlight how IS integration has evolved over time, pivoting from being initially framed primarily as a technical challenge into a multi-dimensional process shaped by organizational structures, human agency and strategic intent. The analysis further reveals that scholarly output has been dominated by contributions from the USA, China and several European countries, while also indicating a gradual broadening of geographic engagement, including increased contributions from emerging economies such as India. Recent research increasingly focuses on the role of digital platforms, data-driven architectures and artificial intelligence, alongside the continued influence of people and culture in determining post-merger outcomes. The review also exposes areas that remain underexplored, including aspects such as decision-making dynamics, human–technology interactions and the mechanisms through which value erosion occurs in delayed or failed integrations. By consolidating dispersed research streams, this study extends prior qualitative reviews and provides a structured basis for more cumulative theoretical and empirical inquiry into IS integration in an M&A.