Merger as a trigger for cultural change in the retail financial services sector

As providers of financial services aim to reduce costs and satisfy increasi ngly articulate customers, growth through acquisition or merger appears to provide them with the means to achieve these objectives. A significant aspe ct of merger is the legacy of cultural integration and the literature is re plete with examples of mergers where cultural matters have been poorly mana ged This paper argues that merging institutions may find that by matching c ultural developments to the dynamics of the environment significant competi tive advantage can be gained Far from creating dysfunctional turbulence mer ger activity might instead provide the necessary trigger to stimulate cultu ral change. Financial service providers and other merging institutions are advised to extend their horizons beyond achieving, smooth integration to in stilling a culture more in rune with the dynamics of the marketplace.