Much of it has to do with the disclosure in the section about acquiring and retaining younger talent but it does go deeper than that. Let's take a look at events in the late 1990s which set a foundation for the current merger mania.         

• A 1998 AICPA conference was one of the first to focus on the plans of competing consolidators. It sold out, was standing room only, and the AICPA had to rerun the event to accommodate the overflow from the conference.
• “Bigger is better” was the mantra driving the voracious appetite.
• Consolidators such as CBIZ, HRB Business Services, American Express Tax & Business Services and Centerprise Advisors (now known as UHY) made bold claims and began a plan of executing very aggressive acquisition plans.  

Though the furor died down for a while, it does lead to this: In June of 2009, Barry Melancon, President and CEO of the AICPA, made this statement while addressing the Association for Accounting Marketing:  “Between 2007 and 2017 there will be more mergers in our industry than in the previous 120 years combined.” 

The major reasons merger mania is alive and well now and for the foreseeable future is that merging firms, at a minimum, expect to:  

• The aging of the baby boomers will make merger mania continue for years to come as firms seek to establish internal and external plans for their short term and long term succession
• Establish competitive advantage
• Eliminate competitive disadvantage
• Affiliate for purposes of niche development and/or enhance current niche services or industry focus
• Solve a potential problem such as future succession issues or industry penetration
• Expand their geographic footprint for better client acquisition opportunity
• Cross-sell services
• Expand current service portfolios
• Stabilize revenue streams