Sharon Van zeeland on M&A
From 2026 Luminary Panel: Insight from Sharon Van Zeeland and Peter Coffee · · Corum Group
“For M&A and strategic partnerships we think about the three Ps: proven technology (has it been prototyped and tested with customers), protected (patents or a defensible competitive mode), and a proven, addressable market large enough to justify an investment.”
On , Sharon Van zeeland, Vice President of Strategy & Corporate Development at Rockwell Automation, spoke about M&A during 2026 Luminary Panel: Insight from Sharon Van Zeeland and Peter Coffee on Corum Group.
About Sharon Van zeeland
Sharon Van Zeeland, Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development at Rockwell Automation, has discussed the company's M&A approach in several recent podcast appearances. She stated that Rockwell has completed about a dozen transactions over the last five years, spending more than three billion dollars across hardware, software, and services. Van Zeeland said the company is increasingly focused on targets with profitable growth and a fit within specific verticals. She described evaluating potential acquisitions using what she called the "three Ps": proven technology, protected intellectual property or a defensible competitive mode, and a proven, addressable market. She also emphasized the importance of transparency from founders early in the process, noting that Rockwell prefers to know about challenges such as product, intellectual property, or cost structure issues upfront. Van Zeeland has also commented on broader industry trends, identifying artificial intelligence as the most obvious trend for 2026 and stating that companies need to consider generative and autonomous systems. She noted that major technology firms were projected to spend between $70 billion and $100 billion on AI-related capital expenditures in 2025. Regarding corporate development, Van Zeeland said the role extends beyond closing deals to creating value for customers, employees, shareholders, and communities. She described Rockwell's practice of conducting quarterly reviews that include strategy, M&A, and integration teams to monitor execution against the original deal thesis.