Foremost on Cross-border Deamakers’ List of Concerns? Integrating Cultures

Announced global M&A transactions rang up north of $1.2 trillion so far this year. It is notable that cross-border transactions account for 40%, or $490 billion, of that total, double last year’s percentage, according to Securities Data Co. Industry consolidation, and, in Europe, currency consolidation, is spurring companies both to think and to act globally. That issue is foremost on the minds of cross-border deal-makers, according to a new survey, Mergers and Acquisitions: Critical HR Success Factors, published by human resources (HR) consulting firm Hewitt Associates. The company sent queries to 278 HR directors around the world, at both U.S. and multinational companies. Each company surveyed had participated in either a merger or an acquisition in the past two years.