Whilst
mergers and acquisitions are a favoured means of strategic renewal and
expansion for firms, scant academic attention has been given to the
growth patterns of construction professional services firms (CPSFs). The
role of mergers and acquisitions in the evolution of CPSFs is examined.
The findings are based on an analysis of the growth patterns of the top
25 CPSFs in the United Kingdom between 1988 and 2013. Since the 1990s,
the increase in merger and acquisition activity has shaped the size,
international presence, and multidisciplinary reach of the major CPSFs.
However, CPSFs differ with respect to the intensity with which mergers
and acquisitions are pursued. Whilst large, public limited companies are
active acquirers, smaller and/or privately owned firms succeed in
growing with a more selective acquisitive strategy, as they tend to rely
more on organic growth. The findings call construction economists to
attend to how acquisitions are radically changing the construction
landscape and its main players. As the competitive advantage of firms is
increasingly human capital-based, the example of the privately owned
CPSFs that rely on organic modes of growth prompts a critical rethink of
the role of mergers and acquisitions in firm growth.