A couple of points to your post.
"Given that compensation is usually in stock, how do you see a compensation package which will not involve pleasing GE??"
I believe that with a cutting edge technology such as AM (in this case specifically EBM) that when it comes to key research employees (employees that can move the needle), that quality is more important than quantity.
If I was a highly trained EBM researcher/techie, and I had the choice of going with GE in terms of stock options, or another company whose stock was singularly tied to EBM, I think I would go with the later. Not sure how wealthy I would get with GE stock. But a small start up...different story.
One of the reasons I was thinking that GE might be inclined to leave Arcam as an independent company is that they will need to compete with other firms on compensation. Not an issue now ... but as the EBM eco-system starts to grow, attracting/retaining employees could be an issue. If Arcam remains a separate company, GE might have more latitude to offer greater incentives to attract/motivate/retain key employees.
And, there is always the issue of the attractiveness of working for a conglomerate vs. a small company. If you recall GE's recent TV adds talking up the desirability of working for them. I don't ever recall a company doing that much advertising devised just to get people to consider working for them. There may be reasons for this (i.e., GE recognizes that they face challenges on the HR front)
In terms of Eliot, I guess if I agreed with your view of their role as extortionist, then yes I would be more concerned with them getting out after making a quick buck. Yes, you could be right about their intentions. However, I am more inclined to see Eliot as an investor that sees Arcam as being a tremendous growth story, and that as such Arcam shares are worth more money than what GE offered. I say this in large part because this is in fact my view of Arcam and it has been for 2 plus years. So, this guesstimate of their intentions seems reasonable to me.
I would not be surprised if the institutions that sold their Arcam shares saw the same value, but just could not be bothered with the complexities of being a hold out in a business that they knew would have such low liquidity. Also, remember that Eliot has not exited their position with Axis and keep in mind their patience collecting on their bond payments from Argentina. Springer does not seem like a guy that looks to cut his loses and run.
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