There is no one simple way to achieve integration. Here are some references which take this perspective in the integration process. Human issues are diverse and not always cultural. Refer to the books on this issue to better manage integration.

Managing the integration phase Resource My rating Feldman, M.L. & M. F. Spratt Five Frogs on a Log HarperBusiness, USA, 1999 (French edition: Fusionner, Editions Village Mondial, 2000) Written by two consultants at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, this book is useful to prepare the integration of a company and implement it. One of the few books which deals with the pace of change. However, the conclusions apply to the American model, or at best to the Western model, and are not applicable to all countries. Ghoshal, S. and P. Haspeslagh "The Acquisition and Integration of Zanussi by Electrolux: A Case Study" European Management Journal, 8(4): p. 414-433 (1990) The often used example of a takeover or integration, which may have seemed complex at first sight, was dealt with very efficiently by the buyer. Schweiger, D.M. and P.K. Goulet "Integrating Mergers and Acquisitions: An International Research Review" in C. Cooper and A. Gregory’s book (eds.) Advances in Mergers and Acquisitions, JAI Press: Amsterdam. p. 61-92 (2000) A scholarly work suggesting a review of the existing literature. It will enable the reader to trace back major studies that were conducted about integration management.

Human issues Resource My rating Risberg, A. Ambiguities Thereafter: An Interpretive Approach to Acquisitions Lund University Press, Malmö (1999) A scholarly work (initially a thesis) about the ambiguities felt by all parties involved in the process. Original and interesting. Buono, A.F. and J.L. Bowditch The Human Side of Mergers and Acquisitions Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, (1989) A reference book in the United-States, which focuses on the management of the human dimension as a major failure or success factor. Some interesting and detailed examples. Cardel Gertsen, M., A-M. Soderberg and J.E. Torp Cultural Dimensions of International Mergers and Acquisitions Ed. De Gruyter, Berlin (1998). This scholarly work is a compilation of writings about the cultural dimension and its influence on an international transaction. Everyone will find something interesting in one of the detailed chapters. Very, P., M. Lubatkin, R. Calori and J. Veiga Relative Standing and the Performance of Recently Acquired European Firms" Strategic Management Journal, Vol 18 (8), p.593-614, (1997) A scholarly article dealing with the “standing loss” issue and the “acculturation” phenomena. Human issues are not always based on cultural gaps.