Building an International Workforce: Strategy and Selection Chapter 12 Building an International Workforce: Strategy and Selection

Overview International human resource management Options for staffing foreign operations Selecting and developing employees Considerations for expatriates Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

International HR Management Linked to international strategic planning Well-developed workforce may provide competitive advantage Difficult to emulate Identify new business opportunities Satisfied and committed staff with low turnover Less likely to violate cultural norms and values Better equipped to deal with rapid changes Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural Differences Make It Harder for MNCs to Share information and technology between home office and foreign locations Spread innovations and knowledge throughout firm Promote organizational changes Minimize conflict between employees Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Dealing with Cultural Differences International Human Resource Philosophy Describes corporate values and attitudes about HR Core international human resource policies Define how employees around the world treated Culturally sensitive policies Type of employees PCN, HCN, TCN Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Options for Staffing Parent-Country Nationals (PCNs) Expatriates Traditional option Citizens of country where headquarters located Lack of expertise not available locally Monitoring or control needed Expensive and high failure rates Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Why use expatriates? Possible Benefits for Companies and Employees

Options for Staffing (cont’d) Host-Country Nationals (HCNs) Nationals from local country Better grasp of local culture and business practices Less expensive Good public relations Less control or unified corporate culture Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Options for Staffing (cont’d) Third-Country Nationals (TCNs) Nationals from other than home or local country May have necessary skill set Can be less expensive than expatriates Need to consider conflict or rivalries between countries Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Developing International Talent International cadre Permanent expatriate Inpatriates Importance of international experience for career development Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Types of International Staff and Their Potential Movement Across Locations

Philosophies for Selecting & Developing Employees Geocentric—stress ability and performance Regiocentric—collaboration among subsidiaries, employees move from place to place Polycentric—subsidiary is semi-independent and controls staffing Ethnocentric philosophy—stress methods of home office Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Do You Measure Up? The Skill Profile for International Managers Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Developing International Skills No one best way Rotate promising employees through international assignments Recruit foreign students Training programs Formation of international teams Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural Considerations in Selection and Development Hiring practices Nature of questions Interview procedures Testing and comparisons Training programs Self-focused Group-focused Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Assisting Women & Minority Expatriates Hiring Predeparture training On-site support Role modeling after repatriation Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Managing Diversity Two basic types Cross-national diversity Interactions between rcns, hcns, and tcns Intranational Diversity Interactions between different races, ethnic groups, etc. Increasing in the U.S. Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Four Diversity Strategies Multiculturalism Being open to positive aspects of all cultures Separation Rejection of all cultural values except own Assimilation Subordinate group conforms to dominant culture Deculturation Each group maintains its own culture Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Expatriate Considerations Many expatriates are employed by MNC 1.3 million by U.S. companies alone 80% have spouses or partners Many also want careers Many have children Concerns for safety and security Impact on career development Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Selecting Expatriates Candidates should be matched with goals and requirements of specific assignment Critical predictors of success Functional skills Psychological factors Family dynamics Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

A Recommended Process for Selecting Expatriates

Expatriate Assignments: Factors That May Contribute to Success…or Failure Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Expatriates: The Consequences of Failure Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Screening Potential Candidates Interviews Including partners Standardized tests Adaptability Emotional maturity Performance in training exercises Assessment of past accomplishments Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Training and Preparing Expatriates Two main goals Help employees be effective as quickly as possible Minimize employee and family adjustment problems Many companies don’t offer cross-cultural training Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Cross-Cultural Training Should Incorporate Paying attention to cultural differences Retention of knowledge about behavior that is culturally appropriate Practicing culturally appropriate behavior Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Determining Cross-Cultural Training Needs Importance of assignment Length of assignment Extent to which expatriate must interaction with local population Cultural toughness Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Levels of Cross-Cultural Training Rigor Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How It Works: the Cross-Cultural Training Process Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Trends in Expatriate Preparation Programs that challenge prejudices, assumptions, and attitudes Create more open-minded expatriates Transcultural competence Programs that address family and dual-career issues Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Repatriation Issues Values change during foreign assignment Reverse culture shock Change in home environment New structure, people New job assignment Disconnect, promotion/demotion, ambiguity Reorientation to home living conditions and standards i.e., No cook or gardener Feeling unappreciated by home office Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Steps for Improving the Repatriation Process Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Leadership Challenges for MNCs Diversity of contexts Macro-level and micro-level factors National and corporate values Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.