Compaq vs. Digital attitude

18 months after announcing its acquisition of Digital Equipment, Compaq continues to grapple with integration issues, particularly in Europe. Although Compaq Computer has managed to reorganize its executive staff for operations on the continent, it has faced a number of issues--labor laws, ambivalence about direct sales, and simple organizational resistance within divisions picked up in the Digital acquisition--that have made the region somewhat of a sore point for the company. The problem is as much cultural as organizational, where employees used to doing business one way have been slow to adopt to some of the company_s new initiatives. "There is actually a Compaq vs. Digital attitude in some of the geographies," said Lindy Lesperance, analyst with Technology Business Research.