Human Resource Management

adult male Resource counseling1. IntroductionBy description Human Resource Management (HRM) is the function at heart an government activity that focuses on recruitment of, coverment of, and providing direction for the multitude who spring in the administration (Hofstede,G 1984) Human Resource Management (HRM) pot alike be performed by line animal trainers. As much(prenominal) than than and more cooperation be suitable global in their operations muckle perplexity is becoming more complex and sophisticated. In this report it is briefly questi hotshotd whether it is possible to manage people from disparate countries with the same policies and procedures across the continents i.e. whether it is possible for a multinational elevated conjunction to select ethno centimeric approach and still yield global bearing or should they adopt more geocentric approach to succeed in contrasted commercialises. According to Porter (1980, 1985) HRM can help a house obtain c ompetitive advantage and thither is a direct correlativity betwixt strategic HRM and economic successSince, the major (and developing) markets for mobile phones and electronics argon USA and europiuman countries, to be closer to these large markets a manufacturing figureset should be established in either of the continents. It is very valuable for the ships companys management to mystify clear understanding of HRM figures of both the continents (societies) onwards they invest in new plant in either of the continents. Its clear from the studies in the past that for operational success in foreign land it is important for the management to pro lay outly workplace the local anaesthetic HRM practices. A few studies have investigated the establishs of grow on use of HRM strategies (Gooderham et al., 1999 Tregaskis, 1997), purpose that the HRM strategies used by companies may radiate the heathen values of the managers and employees ( Gooderham et al., 1999 Hofstede, 1991 cited in Fields,D., Chan, A. , Akhtar, S. and Blum, T.C. (2006 ). This report will scan spousal relationship the Statesn as well as European culture for human imageryfulness practises and comp be it with Asian HRM practices (where sozzled is currently based) , also it will throw some airheaded on cultural values, recruitment and education, payments and rewards, motivation and employment relations of North American (USA Canadian) and Europe Union companies.2. Culture The most important part to look for while globalising the operationsThe best and most comprehensive definition of culture so far has been given by anthropologist Kluckhohn in 1951, check to definitionCulture consists in patterned ways of thinking, feeling and reacting, acquired and inherited mainly by symbols, constituting the distinctive achievements of human root words, including their embodiments in artefacts the essential spunk of culture consists of traditional (i.e. historically derived and selected) ideas and especially their attached values.Culture involves a set of cognitions that atomic number 18 sh bed by all or some members of a social unit these cognitions argon acquired through social tuition and socialization processes, and they include values, common understandings, and patterns of beliefs and expectations (Rousseau, 1990). According to Hofstedes in his studies in 1984 it was found that there argon main 5 dimensions to culture which are Power Distance, Individualism, Un certainty Avoidance and Masculinity/Femininity.When dealing with people from several(a) background senior managers play the most important piece in formative cultural values of the agreement (Sharma,B. and Chew,K.H 2005). Employment practices play an important role in shaping the governmental culture and nonplus the motivating factor for employees. To have successful implementation of HRM policies and practices above mentioned cultural dimensions shouldnt be ignored by HR manager especially when globalizing the operations.2.1 juicy and mild mise en scene Cultures uplifted context culture refers to a cultures tendency to cater towards in-groups, an in-group world a group that has analogous experiences and expectations, from which inferences are drawn. In a last context culture, many a(prenominal) things are left unsaid, letting the culture explain. High context cultures are collectivised in nature. (Hall, T.E 1976)Low mise en scene culture has tendency to cater towards in-groups. Low context cultures, such as Germany or the United States make a lot less extensive use of such similar experiences and expectations to transport. Much more is explained through words or verbalization, instead of the context. Low context cultures are usually individualist. (Hall, T.E 1976)In rank to communicate successfully managers have to admit the cultural differences and have to alter communication process fit to individualistic or left-wingeric cultures. It is best to expla in theses differences in frontiers of low- and high-context communication. Context has to do with how much you have to know before you can communicate effectively. (Hall, T.E 1976)3. Types of OrganizationIn 1991 kabanoff in his research developed a typology that describes quartet value profile types organizations can fall into Elite, meritocratic, adepters and Collegial. The value profile of an organization is determined by two factors the degree of equality versus inequality in their structures and the degree of equity versus equalitarianism in their processes.The Collegial profile describes an organization where cohesion is the principal concern. Power, rewards and mental imagerys are evenly distributed it relies upon a commitment to shared values and individual function for actions as the basis for task-achievement rather than upon more tangible rewards the organization exercises relatively inadequate control over peoples activities (e.g. professional bureaucracies). ( Kabanoff, 1991). The Meritocratic profile describes an organization whose members are highly concerned with both cohesion and productivity. This type shares many of the integration-oriented qualities of the collegial culture but with increased emphasis on mathematical process and rewarding people for execution of instrument (Kabanoff, 1991).An worldwide human vision manager should postponement culture (of the ground in which organization is based) and type of organization he works for in mind while designing or forming the people management policies for the organization to have successful results. some organizations advance high implementation work systems also known as high commitment or high involvement practices or systems (Wood, 1999 cited in Zacharatos, A., Hershcovis, M.S., Turner, N., Barling, J. 2007).This type of organizations treat its employees as assets, managers in these types of organizations treat employees with fairness and with respect more importantly emplo yees in such organizations become part of decision devising process. Such organizations provide employees with job security, opportunities to upgrade their skills or pay employees comparatively better wages. (Wood, S., Wall, T., 2002)According to Wood, S. and Wall, T., (2002) all the organization with high performance work systems have following characteristicsa) Foster employee involvement in their work.b) Fosters employee involvement and commitment towards organizational goal.c) Opposite to Taylorist model in which control is favored, in high performance work systems instead individual and group autonomy is preferred.So far in this report we have discussed culture and its impact on work environment also, for clear understanding of the concept organizational types have been discussed. Now moving further this report will briefly discuss European and North-American work culture and compare it with Asian practices of human election management. This knowledge will help management to understand what changes needs to be made to current employment practices in order to successfully manage and motivate employees in western countries.4. Popular Models of HRM4.1 The European model of HRMIn his studies of HRM-economics success equation Beyer (1991) has said Human Resource Management is the whole true important determinant of success. In the past most of the authors of HRM studies have focused on US and Japanese models of HRM practices as US is realiseed to be the birth place of management studies and Japanese model of organizational structure( including human vision practices) have been very successful in the past. Very little has been written or said about European model of HRM .There are clear clownish differences which can be understood and explained in the context of each national culture and its manifestation in history, law, institutions and cover sexual union and employing organization structures or in terms of regional clusters within Europe (Filella, 19 91 as cited in Brewster, C 1993).In the words of Thurley, K. and Wirdenius, H. (1991)European Managementis emerging, and cannot be said to exist except in limited component is broadly linked to the idea of European integration, which is continuously expanding further into different countries (i.e. the 12) reflects key values such as pluralism, tolerance, etc., but is not consciously developed from these values is associated with a balanced stakeholder philosophy and the concept of neighborly Partners.4.1.1 Importance of Trade Unions in EuropeIn European countries the armorial bearing of unions are important the definition, meaning and reliability of unions varies from country to country in European Union (Brewster, C.1993). European countries are heavily unionized as compared to US. Countries like France, Germany for example has legislation making obligatory for firms over certain size and employee strength to consult trade unions in certain circumstances. (Brewster, C.1993). Few academicians argues that workforce in Europe as a continent is deeply influenced by trade unions for example Sweden has union membership of 85 per cent of working population, UK has 40 per cent and France has 12 per cent which is double of US (Gunnigle et al., 1993 cited in Brewster, C.1993 ). The most important function of trade unions in European countries is to get a collective bargain for the employees on industrial or national level (Gunnigle et al., 1993 cited in Brewster, C.1993). By studying the European name of management it can be said that Trade Unions can be go acrossn by management as Social Partners which has a positive role to play in human resource management. This type of view of trade unions is quite opposite to American style of management.4.2 The US model of HRMHR policy is defined by a set of principles, which aim to break up a set of problems and that materialize in a set of practices (Tome, E.,2005). The pioneering study in the field of scientific manage ment which found its way in modern HRM was conducted by Taylor in US in 1964. Few of the important points from Taylors study are as followsHuman skills and organizational competences are essential to the outgrowth of any company.The skills pyramid has a small pass by and large base.Knowledge is essentially accepted by the small group at the top.The small top group members should be highly rewarded because they possess a very important asset knowledge. (Cited in Tome, E., 2005).These points have acted as base of US model of HRM since long time. According to Hofstede (2001) in his studies have shown that US culture is more individualistic and achievement-oriented as compared to any some new(prenominal) country, Managers from US give more importance to knowledge as compared to anything else and employees do not relate personally ( honorable connections) to the jobs like Japanese employees do.4.2.1 Anti- Unionism in USUS model of HRM is anti-union and anti-collective-bargaining. Th e contemporary approach of HRM ignores trade-unions and are being based on a unitary view of organizations (Strauss, 1968). Since the US society is high on individualistic characteristics so trade-unionism is not very habitual in American society.According to research conducted by Marsh,R. and Pedler, M in 1979 on unionization in white collar jobs, eight factors were found that affect white collar unionization in US and UK ( impose Appendix 1) (1) follow organisation structure(2) Occupational composition of the workforce(3) Managerial attitudes(4) Existence of staff associations(5) Employers Associations(6) Trade Union recruiting strategies and organisation(7) passkey Associations(8) Government Interventions4.3 Asian model of HRMManagers and actors from companies originated from Asian countries may tend to see a relationship with an organization as a moral connection, where the collective unit and worker have reciprocal obligations to each another(prenominal). On the other hand , US managers may tend to view employment relationships as principally calculative in nature (Hofstede, 2001 cited in Fields,D., Chan, A. , Akhtar, S. and Blum, T.C. ,2006 ). This difference may reflect the higher personal identity in US culture, where conformity to an organization is seen negatively as intrusion in the self- pursual of the employee (Hofstede, 2001).Managers and worker in Asian countries for example China and Hong-Kong differ from the workers in US (North America) in place distance i.e. a preference is given to more formal interactions with superiors. to a greater extent importance is given to communism in Asian societies as compared to individualism in western societies. These cultural differences may combine to establish differences in decision-making and models of employee-organization relationships that influence choices of strategies to counteract uncertainties in the supply of labor (Fields, D., Chan, A., Akhtar, S. and Blum, T.C. (2006).4.3.1 Performance judgmentIn Asian cultures workers may view performance monitoring and perspicacity positively. Increased performance monitoring can be perceived as a symbol that managers are taking a greater interest in the workers (Hofstede, 2001). Performance assessment is viewed by Asian workers as one of the ways by which they show their moral connections with the company. According to Redding and Wong, 1986 the retention of active workers in Asian organizations may be increased by placing more emphasis on performance monitoring and assessmentOn the contrary, because of begin bureau distance in US culture increased performance monitoring is seen negatively. It is seen as managements way of emphasizing the differences between bosses and workers (Hofstede, 2001). In US and European countries this policy of constant and strict performance assessment/monitoring can lead to high attrition within the organization, also it may lead to workers seeking different jobs which could possibly lead to la bor scamage in the organization.4.3.2 Training and provokementIn collectivist culture like Asian cultures more emphasis is paid on homework and development of existing employees as companies/organizations take it as their moral obligation to increase its employees skills (Hofstede, 2001 cited in Fields, D., Chan, A., Akhtar, S. and Blum, T.C. (2006). Also, Asian firms view training of employees as one of the way to reward them, these in-house trainings make employees feel that they are accepted and important part of collective unit. (Redding and Wong, 1986).In US and European culture where workers are more individualistic and self-interested in their pursuits companies see training as building technical and interpersonal skills of employees (Drost et al., 2002). Such employment practices are popular in US and Europe because of tight labor market and individualistic employees use newly acquired skills to find better position elsewhere.5 Five Key Factors for successful transferral of HR policies from HQ to subordinate (See Appendix 2)5.1 International experience of local HR directorThe local HR director plays an important role while transferring HR policies. HR director needs to deal effectively with HQ staff, the foreign chief executive officer and the colleagues from other countries. It is desirable that the local HR director have international experience from working and living abroad. (Diplomingenieur, W.S., 2004)5.2 International experience of HQ HR staffHQ staff needs to have the experience of the other side to be a valuable partner to the subsidiary. The necessary experience, in addition to subject expertise, includes cultural sensitivity and a keen common sense for the daily business challenges in the subsidiaries. (Diplomingenieur, W.S., 2004)5.3 Practice manual of arms of armss, clear guidanceCompany/firm should avoid generic policies and guidelines that need to be translated into practices to be let off to management in HQ. HR managers should r ather have clear practice manuals and directives, with the freedom to deviate if appropriate. As a simple example consider a policy that says performance review is mandatory versus a manual that says in April each year every employee gets to speak scene to face with his or her manager about past performance and expected forthcoming performance(Diplomingenieur, W.S., 2004)5.4 Establish feedback routes to HQ other than the chief executive officerUsing the CEO as a feedback route to HQ for HR matters is a short term fix that prevents the long term solution of having a more versatile and internationally functioning HR, both in HQ and in the subsidiaries. (Diplomingenieur, W.S., 2004)5.5Organisation by region, not by issue (mentor) heathenish barriers are reduced and a more direct communication is possible if responsibilities in HQ are organised by region rather than issue. If every country has their HR generalist in HQ as a partner, there will not only be fewer misunderstandings but also the HQ tendencies to have very theoretical, or specific, policies will decrease. (Diplomingenieur, W.S., 2004)ConclusionIt is not essential that managing people is same in all the countries but it enormously depends on the organizational culture and values. Pieper (1990) in his study of European management styles has concluded that a single universal model of HRM doesnt exist. High and low context culture plays an important role in organizations success. An HR manager should keep typology of organization in mind while forming policies, procedures and processes for his firm as it is evident from empirical studies that companies fall under Elite, Meritocratic, Leadership and Collegial typologies and equality/inequality, power distance and individualism/collectivism in the organizational culture depends on typology of the organization.It can also be argued that a multinational company has to keep few values for e.g. The imaginativeness and mission of the organization uniform in each and every country of operation in order to achieve its short and long term goals. However, in its endeavor HR manager should not forget that people from different countries have different value system which makes International HRM a challenging task while globalizing the operations.RecommendationThe transfer of policies and procedures from the parent organization to subsidiary location is very important for the multinational organizations in order to globalize its the operations. The ability to transfer knowledge effectively across the peal is identity of a successful MNE, while doing this management should keep cultural difference in mind, to formulate policies and processes that are not only motivating for employees but also helpful to management for smooth operations. Management should keep five key factors mentioned above in mind to successfully transfer HRM policies to western countries. It is expected from local HR manager to adapt companies polices according to European or North-American style of HRM and translate into practice. Firm should encourage HR managers as well as employees to participate in cross-border cultural training. Recruit people with international experience or else some of the staff can be transferred from HQ in Asia to the subsidiary in Europe or North-America for short period of time. Create a company specific, regional, practice manual for HR. And lastly encourage at least one annual part for the local HR director at Europe or America to HQ in Asia.ReferencesBeyer, H.T. (1991) Personalarbeit als integrierter Bestandteil der Unternehmensstrategie paper to the 1991 DGFP Annual Congress, Wiesbaden.Brewster, C 1993 development a European model of human resource managementDiplomingenieur,W.S.,(2004) the language submitted in University of grey Queensland, Australia , on Transfer of human resource policies and practices from German multinational companies to their subsidiaries in South East Asia P 165-169Drost, H., Frayne, C. , Lowe, K., Geringer, J.M. (2002), Benchmarking training and development practices a multi-country comparative analysis, Human Resource Management, Vol. 41 No.1, pp.67-86.Fields,D., Chan, A. , Akhtar, S. and Blum, T.C. (2006), Human resource management under uncertainty.Gooderham, P., Nordhaug, O., Ringdal, K. (1999), Institutional and rational determinants of organizational practices human resource management in European firms, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 44 pp.507-31.Hofstede, G. (1984), Cultural dimensions in management and planning, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Vol. 1 No.2, pp.81-99.Hofstede, G. (1991), Cultures and Organizations Software of the Mind, McGraw-Hill, London, .Hofstede, G. (2001), Cultures Consequences, plunk for Edition Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA, .Hall,T.E (1976) Beyond CulturesKabanoff, B. (1991), Equity, equality, power and conflict, Academy of Management Re view, Vol. 16 pp.416-41.Kluckhohn, C. K. (1951). Values and Value Orientations in the conjecture of ActionMarsh,R. and Pedler, M. (1979),Unionizing the white collar worker P 2-6Pieper, R. (1990), Human resource management An international comparision, BerlinPorter, M. (1980) private-enterprise(a) Strategies, New York The Free PressPorter, M. (1985) Competitive Advantage, New York The Free PressRedding, G., Wong, G.Y.Y. (1986), Chinese organizational behaviour, in Bond, M.H. (Eds),The psychology of the Chinese People, Oxford University Press, Hong Kong, .Rousseau, D.M. (1990), Assessing organizational culture the case for multiple methods, in Schneider, B. (Eds), organizational Climate and Culture, Jossey Bass, San Francisco, CA,Strauss, G. (1968) Human relations 1968 Style , Industrial relations, 7 262-76.Sharma,B. and Chew,K.H (2005) The effect of culture and HRM practices on firms performance.Taylor, F. (1964), Scientific Management, Harper Row, London, .Thurley, K. and Wird enius, H. (1991) Will management become European Strategic choices for organisations , European Management Journal, 9, 2 127-34.Tome, E. (2005) Human resource policies compared What can the EU and the USA learn from each other? P 405-418Tregaskis, O. (1997), The role of national context and HR strategy in shaping training and development practice in French and U.K. organizations, Organizations Studies, Vol. 18 No.5, pp.839-56.Wood, S., Wall, T. (2002), Human resource management and business performance, in Warr, P. (Eds),Psychology at Work, Penguin, London, pp.351-74.Zacharatos, A., Hershcovis, M.S., Turner, N., Barling, J. (2007 ) Human resource management in the North American automotive industry A meta-analytic review 231 254Appendix 1Source Marsh,R. and Pedler, M. (1979),Unionizing the white collar worker P 2-6Appendix 2Source Diplomingenieur,W.S.,(2004) the dissertation submitted in University of Southern Queensland, Australia , on Transfer of human resource policies and pra ctices from German multinational companies to their subsidiaries in South East Asia P 165-169