Le rôle du contrat psychologique dans la compréhension de la cohabitation entre un cédant et un repreneur

In order to cope with the risks of the labor market, buying an existing firm may quickly become a credible alternative for some workers. For instance, more and more senior executives are making this career choice, to the extent that they are becoming the majority in external takeovers (Fusacq 2011). However, the profile of these new buyers has one peculiarity in common: despite solid professional backgrounds, most of them need specific assistance when making this choice due to the fact of being external to the world of VSEs and SMEs and to the core business of the firm they wish to buy. In this configuration, rather than the use of traditional support solutions, it is above all the management of the business entry that becomes decisive: one third of takeovers fail because of ?mistakes committed or originating in the transition period? (Rollin 2006: 13). This paper takes as its starting point the limitations of the ?tutorship agreement? and uses several case studies in order to better understand the ?buyer/seller? relationship during this pivotal period. As a matter of fact, the use of an analytical framework based on the concept of the psychological contract allows a psychological reading of the transition and of the conditions likely to promote a premature rupture of the support relationship. The results highlight the existence of reciprocal moral obligations?exactly specific to the transition period and the buyer/seller relationship?which in case of perceived infringement may weaken the course of the support relationship.