Hrm should be locally responsive to respect local ____ regarding hrm and work practices.

International Human-Resource Management Defined (IHRM) 

deals with the entire relationship of the employee with the organization in an International context. IHRM adds two elements to the traditional equation. These are; a) the composition or mixture of workers of different nationalities (staffing), and b) how to adapt to our policies to international culture in terms of the national, business, and social context.

Human Resource Management (HRM)

deals with the entire relationship of the employee with the organization. IHRM deals with the entire relationship of the employee with the organization in an International context.

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are:

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are:

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are:

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are:

The basic HRM and IHRM functions are:

in identifying and attracting qualified people in the organization.

is the process by which companies choose people.

is the process by which employees acquire skills and knowledge. Remember that training is short term and development is more long term in changing behaviors. HR people call this “learning new tricks.”

is the system used to measure and assess performance. This is also known as performance management.

a holistic look at the organization’s entire reward package to include health insurance, retirement, base wage, incentive pay, and other benefits.

consist of the continuing relationship between an employer and employee who are represented by labor organizations.

an employee who comes from a different country from where he or she is working.

different types of expatriates are:

different types of expatriates are:

different types of expatriates are:

expatriate employees who come from the parent firm’s home country. For instance, Bayer AG may send a German citizen to the US to run operations. I mention Bayer because they are very strong in the International arena in terms of HR and corporate governance.

expatriate workers who come from neither the host nor home country. This is very common in heavy construction projects such as in China and Dubai.

typically non-managerial workers from the host country where the unit is located.

employees from foreign countries who work in the country where the parent company is located.

employees who are sent on frequent but short-term international assignments.

Adaptation of HRM Practices

Effective IHRM has both company-wide HRM policies & procedures adapted to different country locations. One of the most important IRHM issues relates to the implementation of multinational strategies to develop the correct HRM policies and procedures regarding use of expatriate managers.

When should management positions filled by expatriates or filled by home country nationals?

A firm can approach this staffing decision by answering the question such as “What is our preference for this position?” “Do we prefer a host country, home country, or third country national?”

Expatriate assignments help the company coordinate and control operations dispersed geographically and culturally. These assignments can also provide important strategic information, provide crucial detailed information about local markets, and provide important network knowledge.

Is the Expatriate worth It?

Total compensation of expatriate managers is often three to four times higher than home-based salaries and benefits.

Is the expatriate worth it?

To get a handle on this, Mercer Human Resources Consulting has created an International cost-of-living index to help firms accurately adjust salaries. Even with what may be inflated costs, the success of an expatriate manager is not guaranteed.

Is the expatriate worth it?

Surveys show that U.S. multinationals often have failure rates for managers in overseas assignments ranging from 10 to 40%. This is usually due to the personality of the manager, lack of technical proficiency, and the lack of motivation for the International assignment.

Is the expatriate worth it?

****the number one reason for failure is that the spouse or family members fail to adapt to local culture or environment

There are other cultural and organizational reasons that the International assignment fails. These may include:

The manager fails to adapt to the local culture and develop relationships with key people in the new country because of complexities or cultivating networks with diverse people.

There are other cultural and organizational reasons that the International assignment fails. These may include:

The excess of difficult responsibilities in the international assignment.

There are other cultural and organizational reasons that the International assignment fails. These may include:

The company’s failure to provide cultural training and other important pre assignment training such as language and cultural acquisition training.

There are other cultural and organizational reasons that the International assignment fails. These may include:

Company promises but fails to provide the technical support domestic managers are used to.

There are other cultural and organizational reasons that the International assignment fails. These may include:

Failure of the company to consider gender equity when considering candidates.

International cadre or “Globals"

separate group of expatriate managers who specialize in a career of permanent international assignments.

international cadre or "globals"

recruited from any country and are sent to worldwide locations to develop cross-cultural skills and to give the company a worldwide perspective

international cadre or "globals"

Their main job is to promote sharing and learning by all organizational locations and by multinational employees of all nationalities

international cadre or
"globals"

They act like a diplomatic corps and move from one international assignment to another.

international cadre or "globals"

develop their own culture and interaction from other companies. They are more common in European firms than in U.S. multinationals.

Flexpatriates are the frequent flyers who travel on short notice for shorter time durations while maintaining their family and personal lives at the home-country location.

They are often are sent to explore markets, consider problem areas in the foreign subsidiary, manage projects, and help with technology transfer.

Benefits of using Flexpatriates:

offer more flexibility as employees and are sent on a variety of shorter assignments around the world

Benefits of using flexpatriates: 

do not experience many of the family and personal difficulties and stress associated with expatriate assignments

Benefits of using flexpatriates:

the assignments are much less expensive than traditional expatriate assignments since they involve no relocation or repatriation costs

Problems when using flexpatriates: 

1. Taxation issues 2. Short nature of the assignment, the employee may not fully integrate into the local work environment and does not learn how to fully adapt locally

Selecting the Expatriate Manager

Technical, administrative, and leadership skills. Personality traits - able to deal with uncertainties, be flexible, desire to learn new things, ability to deal with ambiguity, interest in other cultures/people

Selecting the Expatriate Manager

***NUMBER 1 Characteristic: Emotional intelligence Relational abilities Family situation Motivation Stress tolerance Ability to speak, read, and write the new language

Being aware of one's self, understanding and relating to others. Number 1 characteristic for expatriate managers

reduces expatriate failure rates and increases expatriate job performances. Many US multinatls still do not invest heavily here.

the extent of effort by both trainees and trainers required to prepare the trainees for expatriate positions.

Training lasts for a short period an includes techniques such as lectures and videos on local culture and briefing with company operations.

training may last for over a month and contains more experiential learning, extensive language training, and oftentimes interactions with host country nationals

Problems with performance appraisals for the expatriate

Conducting a reliable and valid performance appraisal is one of the greatest challenges to the firm.

Problems With Performance Appraisals for the Expatriate

-fit of international operation in multinational strategy; can sometimes lead to unreliable data.

Problems with performance appraisals for the expatriate:

time differences and distance separation

Problems with performance appraisals for the expatriate:

-Separation of the local organization from the home office by geography and time differences makes it difficult to evaluate managers -Local cultural situations come into play in countries that differ on accepted work practices -Example: In Argentina, businesses close at midday for lunch and reopen at 4-5 pm until 9 pm.

provides a compensation package that equates purchasing power. There are allowances for cost of living, housing, utilities, furnishing, educational expenses, medical expenses, club memberships, and car and/or driver expenses.

allowances and perquisites (from expatriate balance sheet) include:

1. Foreign service 2. Hardship 3. Relocation 4. Home-leave

allowances and perquisites (from expatriate balance sheet) include: foreign service premiums:

from 10% - 20% of base pay and paid by approximately 78% of major US multinational firms

allowances and perquisites (from expatriate balance sheet) include: hardship:

Extra money for difficult posting

allowances and perquisites (from expatriate balance sheet) include: relocation

Extra money for difficult posting such as high risk or poor living conditions. 

allowances and perquisites (from expatriate balance sheet) include: home-leave

Transportation for expatriates and families to return home once or twice a year. 

Other expatriate approaches: headquarters-based compensation system:

1. Pay home-country wages regardless of location 2. Wean expatriates gradually from dependence on perks and allowances

Other expatriate approaches: host-based compensation system:

1. Pay based on local or regional markets 2. Selection of allowances somewhat similar to a cafeteria benefits plan

Other expatriate approaches: global pay systems:

1. Worldwide job-evaluation and performance appraisal 2. Designed to assess the worth of jobs and equitable reward for subordinates.

• Balance-sheetmethod: To matchhome purchasing power • Headquarters-based: Same foreveryone • Host-countrybased: Reducepremiums and use COLA • Globalpay systems: Based onworld-wide job evaluation

Bringing expatriate employees home and back into full participation in the company remains a difficult problem for many organizations which can result in “reverse culture shock.”

Research suggests that women can be successful if they are considered a ____ and not a female.

Cross cultural interactions 

___ depend more on how people in the local culture react to nationality rather then to the expatriate's gender.

Only __ % of expatriates are women; US uses more women internationally than does Asian or European companies. 

• Used tosave costs • Thesystem should: improveservices, not hidepeople, allow selfup-dating of recordsAllow access

To insure success with international... 

-Provide mentors and opportunities for interpersonal networks -Remove source of barriers -Provide support to cope with dual-career issues

IHRM (international human resource mgmt) strategies: 

-ethnocentric -regiocentric -polycentric -global

IHRM Orientation and Practices: ethnocentric

Home country nationals for key positions selected by technical expertise; host country nationals for lowest levels of management only.

IHRM Orientation and Practices: Polycentric

Home country natl for top mgmt/tech positions; host country for mid level mgmt; selection of host country based on fit with home country culture. 

IHRM Orientation and Practices: Regiocentric

Home country natl for top mgmt/tech positions; regional country natl for mid level mgmt and below

IHRM Orientation and Practices: Global

Worldwide throughout the company; based on best qualified for the company.

• You mayneed to negotiate with both. • Theymay have legal authority. • In somecountries, the Executive branch shares authority with the Church. • Mayrelate to days or hours of operation and working conditions.

What is the purpose of human resource practices quizlet?

What activity in international HR would not be required in a domestic environment?

What type of expatriate is a MNE most likely to have if it is starting to go international after many years of domestic market bliss?

Which three dimensions are represented in Morgan's model of Ihrm?