The idea that merging municipalities will improve local services and economic competitiveness has its roots deep in the nineteenth century. Municipalities in the US were first merged as early as 1848. However, despite being merged at the turn of the twentieth the city of New York was effectively bankrupt by 1975. In contrast metropolitan Boston - often seen as a recent success story in global competition - comprises 282 distinct municipalities. Outside the United States, forced municipal mergers were a popular policy in many European countries and Canadian provinces during the 1960s and 1970s. The city of Laval, just north of Montreal, and the "unicity" of Winnipeg owe their origins to this period – both amalgamations failed to meet their original objectives. Despite the emergence of "public choice" theory - which justifies municipal fragmentation on market principles - some politicians and public servants in the 1990s have continued to advocate municipal amalgamations as a means of reducing public expenditure, particularly in Ontario. In Merger Mania Andrew Sancton demonstrates that this approach has generally not saved money. He examines the history of amalgamation, as well as studying recent forced municipal mergers in Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, and Sudbury. In the concluding chapter he examines the case for municipal amalgamation on the Island of Montreal and argues that those who would abolish locally elected municipal councils are obligated to explain very carefully - especially in light of evidence to the contrary - exactly why they think such drastic measures are necessary. A compelling examination of a timely issue, Merger Mania is a must-read for anyone interested in the politics of city governments. Andrew Sancton is professor of political science at University of Western Ontario and the author of several books on city politics.

Just as mergers and acquisitions begin to take off once again, this book reminds us that the emotional side of business is often at the heart of success and failure. With a terrific mix of case studies and in-depth conceptual thinking, Managing Emotions in Mergers and Acquisitions addresses the most fundamental of all issues in M&As how and why people sometimes disrupt the best merger plans, simply because they are, well, people. Sydney Finkelstein, Professor of Strategy and Leadership at the Tuck School at Dartmouth College, and author of Why Smart Executives Fail This is a very welcome addition to our knowledge on M&A process. This is an in-depth study on emotions, how these are effected due to M&A activity in two firms and how they influence the process itself. It helps us to understand, what emotions are? How we can deal with them? And, Why do M&As so often fail? It offers state-of-the-art knowledge on this complex phenomenon. The four cases present in depth and extremely rich insight into how emotions actually work and influence the success/failure in M&A process. In conclusion, it is a timely and innovative book which is a must read for anyone interested in mergers and acquisitions. Pervez Ghauri, University of Manchester, UK Research suggests that an increasing number of people experience organisational changes such as mergers and acquisitions as highly emotional life events. Indeed, given that, as the authors prove, 70% of all mergers and acquisitions fail to reach their initial goals largely because of neglected people issues, it is a must for every manager and M&A researcher to understand the emotional side of such change processes. This fascinating book explains how managerial behaviour and communication styles influence the emotions of employees and affect their readiness to contribute to a successful post-merger integration. It combines emotion theories from other disciplines with recent M&A findings, and offers practical implications through illustrative case studies. Academics and practitioners will find the combination of management literature with psychology and sociology literature of great interest.

Vikram Suri, CEO of TriNet Communications, is a new breed of corporate criminal---smarter and infinitely more dangerous. Behind the façade of oak-paneled boardrooms, fancy personal jets, and lavish mansions, Vik is masterminding a grand scheme of market manipulation, smuggling, money laundering, and extortion through an international network of banks, brokerage houses and dummy corporations. He is a megalomaniac who will stop at nothing to grow his corporate empire, even murder. As the clock winds down to Suri's deadly triumph, no one suspects his hidden agenda – except Tom Carter, an investment banker working on the deal. Torn between his job and his conscience, and locked in the crosshairs of the SEC, Tom enlists the help of Amanda Fleming, a beautiful and intrepid New York Times reporter eager to "break" a big story. Together, they must not only outsmart the brilliant Vik, but desperately try to stay alive! At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Two veteran merger and acquisition mavens take readers behind the scenes to examine successful and poorly managed corporate mergers to show what's required to achieve the best strategic, organizational, and cultural fit between any two companies. They outline steps to take before, during, and after.

Powerless under the country's constitution, Canadian municipal governments often find themselves in conflict with their provincial masters. In 2002, the Province of Quebec forcibly merged all cities on the Island of Montreal into a single municipality - a decision that was partially reversed in 2006. The first book-length study of the series of mergers imposed by the Parti Québécois government, The Merger Delusion is a sharp and insightful critique by a key player in anti-merger politics. Peter Trent, mayor of the City of Westmount, Quebec, foresaw the numerous financial and institutional problems posed by amalgamating municipalities into megacities. Here, he presents a stirring and detailed account of the battle he led against the provincial government, the City of Montreal, the Board of Trade, and many of his former colleagues. Describing how he took the struggle all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, Trent demonstrates the ways in which de-mergers resonated with voters and eventually helped the Quebec Liberal Party win the 2003 provincial election. As the cost and pitfalls of forced mergers become clearer in hindsight, The Merger Delusion recounts a compelling case study with broad implications for cities across the globe.