International Human Resource

Management

Lecturer/Tutor: Ms. Brigitt HooSang

Email: bhoosang@utech.edu.jm

Tutors: Mrs. Myrtle Weir

Email: mweir@utech.edu.jm
 OBJECTIVES

• Define key terms in international human

resource management (IHRM)
• Outline the differences between domestic
and international human resource
management
• Discuss challenges in the global work
environment and the context in which
IHRM functions and activities are
conducted
 Background to HRM
Definitions
• Strategic Human Resources Management
– Organizational use of employees to gain or
keep a competitive advantage against
competitors
• Human Resource (HR) Planning
– The process of analyzing and identifying the
need for and availability of human resources
so that the organization can meet its
objectives.
 What is unique about Human
Resource Management?
• HR is multidisciplinary: It applies the disciplines
of Economics (wages, markets, resources),
Psychology (motivation, satisfaction), Sociology
(organization structure, culture) and Law (min.
wage, labor contracts)

• HR is embedded within the work of all

managers, and most individual contributors due
to the need of managing people (subordinates,
peers and superiors) as well as teams to get
things done.
 Context of HR System
The “Five Factors” Influencing the HR System
1. External Environment
– Social: social values, roles, trends, etc.
– Political: political forces, changes (Minimum
wages, Govt MOU).
– Legal: laws, court decisions (IDT), regulatory
rules.
– Economic: product, labor, capital, factor
markets.
 Context of HR System
2. The Workforce
– Demographics

3. Organization Culture
– Weak vs. Strong culture
– “Type” of culture
 Context of HR System
4. Organization Strategy
– What are a firm’s distinctive competencies?
– What are a firm’s strategic objectives?

5. Technology (Production) & Organization of Work

– Physical layout/employee proximity
– Required employee skills
 HR Operational Overview

© 2002 Southwestern College Publishing. All rights reserved.

• There are 3 broad approaches in the field
of IHRM:

– Cross cultural management

– Industrial relations
– HRM in international firms
Inter-relationships between approaches in the field
Just what are we talking about?
Let’s start at the beginning:

What is HRM? Simply it is those tasks that ensure we

utilize the organizations human resources effectively.
Typically this means:
H R Planning
Staffing (Recruitment, selection and placement)
Performance Management
Training and Development
Compensation and benefits
Industrial Relations
When an organization goes International the
basics obtain, plus:

1. Basic – procure, allocate and utilize

2. Now involves:
Host country ( where subsidiary is)
Parent country (headquarters)
Other country (support such as finance)
3. Categories of employees:
Host-country national (HCN)
Parent-country national (PCN)
Third-country national (TCN)
A model of IHRM
 Differences with IHRM
• More H R activities
• Need for broader perspective
• More involved in the personal lives of employees
• Risk exposure
• Broader external influences
• Emphasis changes as the workforce mix
changes
– i.e. the number of locals vs. expatriates
 More H R activities
• Language translation services
• Relocation and orientation
– Pre departure training
– Housing
– Medical care, recreation, education
• International taxation
– Application of policies differ
– Will they be a disincentive to assignments
– Lag time
• Administration
– Legal practices
• Medical testing
– Ethical practices
– Policies and procedures – congruence
– Government transactions
• Work permits
 Broader perspective

• Compensation issues
– Administration of umbrella policies
– Premiums for assignments
 More involvement
• Selection and training
– Housing arrangements – HC and abroad
– Medical conditions
– Banking
– Visas and spousal arrangements
• Discrimination issues on selection
– Children and schooling - especially if left
behind
 Risk exposure
• Terrorism
– Safety of expatriate employees and family
• Consequences to human resources and
finances at times considerably more
detrimental than in domestic situation.

• Expatriate failure premature return

• Underperformance high cost of problems
 Broader perspective

• Government
• Economy – generally accepted business
practices
• Cost of labour
• Learning curve of expatriate manager
 Oh how we forget……..
The perception that H R is easy, and not
that important blinds some organizations in
underestimating the number of issues that
are involved.

Poor operational results are often linked to

the poor management of human resources.
 Operating Variables
• Cultural Environment
• Industry type
• Reliance of multinational on home country
market
• Attitudes of senior management to
international operations.
 The Organizational Context
Human Resources must always operate
from a business perspective.

Policies should lead rather than follow

operational decisions.
 Approaches to International
Operations

• Ethnocentric
• Polycentric
• Geocentric
• Regiocentric
• ETHNOCENTRIC – centralised decision-
making, little autonomy at subsidiaries.
Key positions at both Head Office and
foreign operations are held by HO
personnnel
• POLYCENTRIC – subsidiary is distinct,
decision making entity, managed by
locals.
• GEOCENTRIC – ability over nationality.
• REGIOCENTRIC – operations within the
ambit of a particular geographical region.
 Additional Sources

• www.csus.edu/indiv/e/estenson/153/HRM10eChap02
• leeds-faculty.colorado.edu/.../ MBAO