Human Resource Issues & Challenges involved in Mergers and Acquisitions

Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) have become the dominant mode of growth for firms looking out for competitive advantage in an increasingly complex and global business economy. This paper addresses the mostly neglected human side of M&A by providing an insight into the major Human Resource challenges in a Merger & Acquisition. An analytical study has been conducted on recent empirical evidence to highlight the challenges faced by HRM in terms of culture, processes, values followed, and employee retention at the Integration stage of M&A. The purpose of this paper is to articulate a systematic, people oriented approach for effectively carrying out mergers and acquisitions, from the onset to Integration and Post-Integration. We start our research by identifying the types of strategies for mergers and acquisitions and move on to the many HR issues involved. This is followed by an overview of challenges and recommendations for the HR Personnel in case of any Merger & Acquisition.