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Most studies of mergers and acquisitions focus on the financial motivations (‘synergy’) of the acquiring and acquired firms, as well as managers’ self-interest and overconfidence. Few studies consider the contextual contingencies that motivate a merger and acquisition. This study examines non-financial motivations that drove the 1969 Fiat company’s acquisition of the Ferrari company. The financial records and historical context surrounding this acquisition are analysed through an institutional logics framework, examining annual reports, minutes of board meetings and media coverage of the acquisition. The findings suggest the acquisition was driven by family control, brand reputation and professional expertise, and that financial and accounting motivations had only marginal importance.

Performance measurement innovation in the public sector has been gaining a great deal of interest among academics, practitioners and policy makers since the implementation of the New Public Management reforms. The aim of this paper is to contribute to the current debate on the topic through the study of the conditions and factors that may hinder or foster the introduction of performance measurement systems, such as the Balanced Scorecard (BSC). The results derive from two longitudinal studies conducted in two Italian public administrations, which introduced the BSC device. The empirical evidences are discussed through the Ferreira and Otley’s (2009) framework, as extended by Broadbent and Laughlin (2009). The paper tries to contribute to both the extant literature on the BSC device and the usefulness of the extended conceptual framework in an empirical context.