This paper talks about international human resource management and how it has its differences with human resource management in general; the latter being a much more prominent and widely known concept. The paper also talks about the culture of an organization and what role does this play in the workings of the human resource management including conflict resolution, recruitment etc. It also specifically focuses on Hofsteds five cultural dimensions in correlation with how a Human Resource manager could handle all people at the workplace effectively.
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
There are various functions and aspects on a business. There are many things and departments that need to be taken when considering the entire formula that makes up the total list of activities that a business or an organization or any company does, irrespective of it being large or small. Human resource management is one such department or section that needs to take into account how employees are being handled, from their internal to external hiring, to pay, motivation, appraisal etc. hence, it is said that human resource basically deals with the management function that deals with placement, recruitment, training/ induction and development of members of an organization, in other words, the employees (at all levels). (Stoner, J.; Freeman, R.; Gilbert, D., 1998)
International human resource however, has its own management related functions attached to it that are also very important to the overall efficiency of an organization through the way that an Human Resource Manager deals with the people working in his organization.
When the concept of international human resource management is mentioned, this generally means how well people from another race or country are recruited, trained, motivated and retained to work with an organization the person or the manager is working for. International human resource management is the method of acquiring, allocating, and efficiently making use of the resource called ‘human resource’ in specifically a multinational corporation (MNC). It has the basic same functions as that of human resource management in general, but has a few technicalities that are pertinent to a multinational company.
Tasks in International Human Resource Management (IHRM)
The MNC’s human resource manager needs to make sure that all policies are procedures are well in line with the long-term goals of the entire company. MNCs locate and operate in different countries as the name suggests hence, the second task in IHRM is to have flexibility in the HR department worldwide, so that a there is implementation of a customized approach that caters to each location that the company is situated in separately. This way individual countries’ or regions’ practices, traditions and customs are kept in coordination with those of whole of the company’s.
Relationship between HRM and IHRM
Integration and control while also harmonizing of strategic goals of the organization, this being the MNC are the basic criteria in International HRM. Here incorporation and integration of mutual goals come in the synchronization of goals between the Head Quarter and the operating location/ region; and the flexibility in procedures as above mentioned comes in at the local level that is the operating place, or where for instance the MNC’s factory is located. These two are the basic issues that surround the work of an IHR manager.
Some still have the view that both types of human resource management have their key points well matched, however others say that this is not the case. The pointers that keep international human resource management separate from human resource management are:
· IHRM has more functions generally.
· IHRM’s goals and functions are varied and much more diverse. These issues could range from international taxation laws, regulation and policies, re-location decisions, international relations (IR), appraisals etc.
· There is always a continuous need for flexibility and changes in viewpoints.
· There is more participation and attachment involved when talking about an employee, wherever IHRM is mentioned.
· There are many external factors at work, when dealing with IHRM
· There is a chance of a greater risk involved in IHRM as compared to HRM
(Fisher, C.; Schoenfeldt, L.; Shaw, J., 2005)
Significance to the HR Professional
A study that was conducted on human resource recruitment, when a lot of diversity among people exists, found out many things. Human resources are basically a pond of many different people (different race, class, society etc.) working together. This means that managers need to make sure what each person’s values are and then appraise accordingly. This way there is opportunity for each individual to develop the way they think is highly efficient of them. The study in conclusion also said that with each diverse person, the importance given to different reimbursements was different, and an organization that understand these differences well, is the one who will be most successful with this type of an important resource- human resource. (Price, A., n.d.)
Conclusion
Hence, as can be found out from the above discussion, customization with respect to handling and management of human resources is what is more important when dealing with multinational corporations as compared to any other local companies. This is because the former are always in contact with different cultural, societal issues of different societies and regions and hence they need appropriate focus on integrating these differences into one unified form into the strategic goals of the entire MNC.
`CULTURE IS MORE OFTEN A SOURCE OF CONFLICT THAN OF SYNERGY. CULTURAL DIFFERENCES ARE A NUISANCE AT BEST AND OFTEN A DISASTER`.
This statement above is one very famous one of Prof. Geert Hofstede, Emeritus Professor, Maastricht University. He basically talked about culture in the workplace and how values there are correlated with the former.
Hofstede studied a large sample of employees and correlated their value scores from 1967 to 1973. This was a sample collected by IBM and it catered to any diversity in regions, culture, race etc. since it covered around 70 countries throughout the world. He pointed out the significance of culture to the concept of management and collective decision making when taking into account that differences between people and their respective cultures exist.
Significance to the Practical World
Workplace culture is the habitat that a company and or business create with and for its employees (What is workplace culture and what does it mean, 2007). There are different people who also work differently in the workplace, due to them having different workplace ethics, personal ethics, experiences, and basically different cultures. Generally, the concept that overrides all is that we, humans, all of us are in actual the same, when infect as Hofstede pointed out, we are all quite different. Hence, when multinationals operate in many different countries, and do not take into account individual differences, individual here relating to individual countries, there are chances that a disaster might just take place.
The research that Hofstede undertook tells us that human resource managers or even managers in general that efficient contact and interaction with the people around you at the workplace requires taking into account everyone’s similarities and differences, and wherever the latter is mentioned, it is very essential that cultural differences are kept in mind. When there is hence, sufficient understanding of the above, then can a manager or an employee on a broader perspective work in peace, free of anxiety and stress. Hofstede hence talked about the five dimensions that pertain to the understanding of culture at the workplace. (Geert, H. and Gert-Jan. H., 2004)
Hofstede’s Five Cultural Dimensions
1. Power Distance Index (PDI):
This dimension talks about how the less influential employees in an organization get used to the idea that there is and will always be an ill distributed power base. This could even be the presence of discrimination issues, of which such “less powerful” employees are or have always been accustomed to. Hofstede says that this power is yes unequal in many societies, but what is more important is to realize that all societies are in fact diverse, and the only difference lies in the fact that a few of these might just be a little more uneven in distribution as compared to others.
2. Individualism (IDV):
This index talks about the individual and the personal characteristics. When talking about integration, employees are divided into either individualistic groups or in collectivistic groups. Whenever a society like that of the United States of America is found to be individualistic, then there is no concept of caring and sharing simply. On the other hand, in the case of a collectivistic society, people have strong bonds with each other and they form close relationships with each other.
3. Masculinity (MAS):
This index or dimension talks about how distribution is being made in between genders. The research conducted by Hofstede found out that there is a difference in the value systems that men and women share. And secondly, also men’s values are those of being assertive and of competing harshly, while women focused more on being modest and caring of people around them. This dimension separated the two “poles” in gender characteristics, by saying that masculine related to the characteristics associated with assertiveness, while feminine related to the characteristics associated with caring. Hence, all those countries that were part of the research concluded that differences exist in the value systems of women and men.
4. Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI):
This dimension deals with how much a society is patient with the unpredictable nature of its state of affairs, and how much do feelings of uncertainty make the people living in them uncomfortable or comfortable. The research concluded that people living in unstructured or unpredictable societies are more emotional, whereas in the other case, the people are more patient and tolerant of what others have to say about situations/ issues etc. There was henceforth more flexibility in societies that has characteristics pertaining to the latter.
5. Long-Term Orientation (LTO):
This dimension focused on virtue and not “truth” unlike UAI. Values in LTO were found to be those of perseverance, whereas in those of short-term orientation were those of execution of social obligations. (Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions, n.d.)
Conclusion
Hofstede’s work tells us that there is existence of cultural differences henceforth, which need emphasis when dealing with human resources and their control/ management. A real-life example could be that of the shaking of hands in the U.S. that declares reaching a conclusion to an issue; whereas the same could be seen in the Middle Eastern region as the starting of an even more intense talk about an issue, and not a conclusion.
Bibliography
Fisher, C.; Schoenfeldt, L.; Shaw, J. (2005) International Human Resource Management [Internet] Available from: http://www.expresscomputeronline.com/20050103/technologylife05.shtml [Accessed 29 October, 2008]
Geert Hofstede Cultural Dimensions (n.d.) [Internet] Available from: http://www.geert-hofstede.com/ [Accessed 30 October 2008]
Geert, H. and Gert-Jan. H. (2004) Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind. New York. McGraw-Hill U.S.A.
Price, A. (n.d.) Recruiting for Diversity [Internet] Available from: http://www.hrmguide.co.uk/diversity/diversity_rhetoric.htm [Accessed 29 October, 2008]
Stoner, J.; Freeman, R.; Gilbert, D. (1998) Management. India. Prentice-Hall of India Private Limited.
What is workplace culture and what does it mean (2007) [Internet] Available from: http://codelines.net.au/article/what-is-workplace-culture-and-what-does-it-mean/ [Accessed 30 October, 2008]
