Merger and acquisition strategies

A. are one of the best ways to help a company strongly differentiate its product offering and use a differentiation strategy to strengthen its market position.

b. are a particularly effective way of pursuing blue ocean and outsourcing strategies.

C. seldom are a superior strategic alternative to forming alliances or partnerships with these same companies because of the financial drain of using the company's cash resources to accomplish the merger or acquisition.

D. may offer considerable cost-saving opportunities and can be beneficial in helping a company try to invent a new industry and lead the convergence of industries whose boundaries are being blurred by changing technologies and new market opportunities.

E. are never prone to mistakes, such as deciding which activities to leave alone and which activities to meld into their own operations and systems.