Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) can be pursued for economies of scale, market consolidation, or improving competitiveness. However, two thirds of M&As fail due to inability to merge cultural and human factors between companies. Human resource issues are one of the major reasons for M&A failure, with success rates estimated at only 30-40%. HR plays an important role in both pre-acquisition cultural assessment and post-acquisition integration activities like addressing differences in culture, job security concerns, compensation structures, and organizational structures.