The 5th International Research Symposium on Service Management (IRSSM-5) June 8-12, 2014 Pärnu, Estonia Merger of an Investment Bank: the psychological impact on employees Ellen Chung Faculty of Business Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia The banking industry in Malaysia has undergone several waves of mergers and acquisition since the last Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the impact of restructuring on individual work performance, work engagement, burnout and mental well-being among employees of an Investment Bank. This study employed a quantitative descriptive method to analyse data using statistical procedures, supplied with a qualitative interview. A survey questionnaire was hand-delivered to 120 respondents from four regional offices in Malaysia and followed by an interview with the four regional heads. The questionnaire comprised of four different scales: Individual Work Performance Questionnaire (IWPQ), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental well-being Scale (MEMWBS), and the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Paired-sample T-tests were conducted to examine the differences between pre- and post- restructuring announcement on employees’ individual work performance, engagement, burnout and mental well-being. The findings of this study suggested that the respondents were negatively affected in all four dimensions, though only mental well-being and work engagement were significantly different statistically. The qualitative interview analyses supported the quantitative findings. The study implied that as a result of the merger announcement, employees’ mental well-being was affected and employees have become less engaged with their job. For future studies, a post-merger implementation survey should be conducted to obtain a more comprehensive picture on the impact of mergers on employees. Keywords. Mergers, restructuring, investment bank, individual work performance, work engagement, burnout, mental well-being, Malaysia. INTRODUCTION The environmental dynamics in the global markets have forced organisations to reduce costs, improve the quality of products and services and locate new opportunities for growth and survival (Cartwright & Cooper, 1996). These challenges have placed pressure on organisations to change their systems, structures and processes in order to ensure the continued survival and existence of their business (Peach, 2009). Mergers have consequently become a preferred choice of strategy for a growing