Hrm499 Human Resource : Economic Assessment Answers

Despite cultural differences in the organisations depending on the cultural differences in the nations, there is a common thread and that is setting priority for the employees. Since human resource management is an imperative process it needs to be effectively optimised with the consideration of the similarities and differences. Matching the HRM practices with the cultural grounds is a crucial act of the multinational companies venturing their business in different countries. On the basis of effective human resource practices the impact of the companies in terms of labour market is framed. In order to find out how the entire understanding of the entire concept of the comparison can be formed, there are different methods that can be taken in to certain consideration. As a matter of fact, it can be taken in to consideration that the Chinese human resource management policies have a distinct characteristic trait that is completely different from the European and the American countries.  Connecting to the global standard, China has become one of the major factors in determining how the paradigm is set. For instance, staff appraisal in China is completely different from that in USA. As a matter of fact, there is a clear understanding of the actual concept with the major effectiveness of the matter.  In terms of ensuring personal recruitment process the difference can be well identified. In fact, the process o personal recruitment has been adopted by the American firms.  Unlike the sectors in the other parts of the worlds, the companies in the United States are likely to be recruiting the employees through personal interview process.  In recent years, this personal interview process has been adapted by many of the MNCs working in non- American market.  While US companies put emphasis on the personal interview and direct screening is process, the Chinese companies recruit candidates on the basis of the written test scores. Hence, the difference in the judgement of the candidates has put a dual effect upon the distribution of the labour market in both the countries. In American firms, judgement is not done on the basis of the familiarity and adaptability of the local cultures whereas the Chinese firms are known to have been practising the opposite to it. If someone is hired in China the adaptability of an individual pertaining to the Chinese culture is assessed.

The other difference has been studied on the basis of the appraisal of the staff performance. In the American firms the appraisal of the employee performance is judged on the basis of the fact how the employees are meeting the obligations they are assigned for.  The staffs are motivated with the help of increment in remuneration.  When there is a clear understanding of the entire understanding of the cases that needs to be taken in to certain consideration.  On the other hand, the Chinese firms consider the appraisal of the employees on the basis of obedience, integrity and loyalty to the organisation and the state. Obligatory acceptance of the entire case has to be taken in to certain consideration with the case of the basic understanding of how the organisations consider the performance of the employees.  

Impact of National Culture in Determining IHRM: 

In the business condition of the twenty first century, internationalisation of the business sectorsa has direct effect upon the basic understanding of the entire case. As a matter of fact, it needs to be taken in to certain consideration that the changes pertaining to the organisational behaviour and human resource practices can be treated with the effective course of the entire issue. National culture is directly effective to the organisational culture and human resource practices. Since international human resource management practices do not consider the acceptance as a whole, it depends on the basis of the local cultures of the nations.  The cultural dimensions are taken in to consideration so as to find out the basic understanding of the created values. Attitudes and behaviours of the people working within a particular organisation that belongs to a country venturing its business in another one depends on the internal as well as external factors. Having said this factor, it can be judged that the basic difference has to be directed with the concept building process. Since the former structures of the companies has to be to be set within the frame of the national culture there are different sets of conflicts that are foreseen by the MNCs while venturing their new businesses.

Understanding Hofstede’s Theory:

While studying the cultural differences and its effect upon international human resource practices, the theory of Cultural Dimension proposed by Geert Hofstede can be taken in to consideration. According to Geert Hofstede, a manager is helped to navigate different business practices during the conceptualisation of national cultural dimensions. Hofstede has identified six different types of dimensions. These are:

i) Power Distance

ii) Individualism conflicting with Collectivism

iii) Masculinity conflicting with Feminity

iv) Uncertainty Avoidance

v) Long Term verses Short terms Orientation

As a matter of fact, it needs to be taken in to certain consideration with the effective understanding of the issues.  As a matter of fact, there are different witnesses with the help of its entire cases. Hofstede has studied that in China the state holds the power to determine how the human resource management would be practised within the organisations. The work of Hofstede has found out that the organisations in China are highly influenced by cultural characteristics with the help of its entire policies. As a matter of fact, there is a clear understanding pertaining to the entire effort of the cases with the effective understanding of the new one.  With the concept of power and collectivism within the Chinese organisations Hofstede has clearly stated that face plays an important role in understanding of Chinese culture. O the other hand, Singaporean culture has its distinct nature. In terms of making the things done, it would not focus on a singular case of the issue. Since the Chinese culture has typical small sized family oriented practices and the employees are considered to be more family oriented than to be individuals.  According to Fisher and Shaw, human resource management practices in the Asian countries are not associated with the concept of staff appraisal. Hence dedication to the culture and consideration of values related to it is highly emphasized.

The Chinese process is much more oriented with autocratic managerial styles, paternalistic leadership qualities, and nepotistic process of succession.  As a matter of fact, there are different segments within the organisations that directly create a linkage between the workers and the cultural interventions.

Value vs Power and Organisational Behaviour vs Social Behaviour:

This is one of the major discussions as it deals with the conflicts underlying with the human resource practices in a particular country. There has always been a conflict and linkage between the organisational culture and social culture. The Asian countries have been found to have been linking the organisational culture with the social culture. For instance, in Singapore the leader is not questioned upon the wrong deeds or statements as this practice is considered to be unethical. An organisational leader in China and Singapore is respected and awed whereas, in the United States the scenario poles apart.  In the US organisations there are different acceptability of the organisational leaders.  They are much more open and resistant than the Chinese and Singaporean ones (Chiang, Lema?ski and Birtch 2017).

Value and Human Resource Practices and the Acceptance of Information:

There are many countries with massive cultural diversity. Countries like the United States, Canada and Australia have significant amount overseas workers thus creating a platform of cohesive working culture. Due to such cohesive culture, these countries have been creating a positive cultural base and allowing the overseas workers to fit with the newly adopted cultures. The cultural diversity in the organisations in the United States has been increasing rapidly thus giving way to the entire concept of how the basic understanding has to be taken care of.  This diversity has led to effective consideration of human resource practices through the acceptance of non-native workers. In the US organisations the cultural acceptance is practiced in a spontaneous manner. That means the workers are set to an environment where they can learn and adopt the new culture without any external driving force. With the effective understanding of the value of the workers coming from different countries the organisations provide them with an environment where there has been a positive understanding of how it deals with the effective chances.   Here the individual cultural aspect is linked with the organisational cultural aspect of an employee.

Host Country Specific Factors:

While studying the country specific host factors, the concept of isomorphism can be taken in to consideration. Isomorphism, though a concept of mathematics can be related to the consideration human resource management.  As per the biological definition of isomorphism, it is the similarity in form of the organisms belonging to different ancestry. Since the host countries always tend to expect that the visitors would be pleased and impressed with the cultural structure of it, it starts moulding the visitor in such a way that the country specific culture becomes dominant in the psychological strata of the individual. It does not only creates a greater platform the host countries to validate the power and the dominance of its own culture but it also tries to drive the visiting individual in to acceptance o such culture as his or her own.  It has been studied that the basic understanding of the entire issue has been directed with the help of the behavioural pattern of the host countries. With the expansion through subsidiaries the behavioural pattern of the local management bodies need to be checked. IT has been observed that existence of the local management has been disrupting the work provision of the transferred overseas workers.  It does segregate the entire workforce with the concept of locals and the outsiders. The third world economy has been indulging this very concept over the years. As a matter of fact, the basic difference lies in the fact of institutional environment and local isomorphism. The factors are nothing but the acceptance of local culture by the outsiders and vice versa (Harzing and Mirza 2014).

Part B:

Employees have always been considered as the mist significant resource of an organization. The fact being they influence not only the performance and production of an organization, but also formation of the solitary basis of the organization in distinguishing itself from the others. HRM practices vary from one corporate situation to another or even one country to that of another. The corporate atmosphere is ever more implementing the globalization as a result of which, it has become significant for the companies that seeks success in the global stage. The modifications range from the emerging laws or restructuring, to the social trends. Companies need to act promptly for their survival, while preserving the significance and competitiveness. The human resource management of an organization is the department that has the ability in foreseeing the changes and facilitating the same, thus making it a decisive company benefit (Caligiuri 2014). Every country has certain political structure, economy and the approach of the organizations in doing business. It becomes essential for multinational companies to alter their own HRM practices to appropriately contain the natural culture that is being activated within the workforce. There is evidence of certain factors that works well in countries like America, but not well lodged in China or Singapore.

China

Analysis of transfer of HRM practices in China:

The US is stated to be a small power distance country, whose employees do not tend to recognize the privileges of the administrative concept, the lower intensity thinking they are the same as superior. As per Chiang, Lema?ski and Birtch (2017), the existing relationship between the managers and the employees are stated to be more equivalent and more pleasant, with the staff generally been good at learning, progressive in nature and comprehending the personal values within the United States. However, China is a country having bigger power expanse where status symbol is imperative. It is generally taken for granted that superior is having opportunity, greatly helping to the functioning of power from the superior to subordinate. These would be taking in the features that are against the harmonious relationship between the managers and the employees within the enterprise. Thus, the multinational companies of USA working in China would be adopting the humanistic policies, including the assembling the pleasant relationship between the managers and staffs, offering the prospect to learn for the employees within work proceedings and keeping them developed (Harzing, Pudelko and Sebastian Reiche 2016). It would be necessary for the managers in reducing the distance between the internal power of the enterprise in practice, promoting the attainment of management objectives in best possible way.

The United States comprises of a society having low degree of uncertainty avoidance, the similar policies of HRM does not work well for the United States organizations, like the ‘overall quality management’ executes goods in China, however with no effect in United States. China belongs to the society of high uncertainty avoidance which would be appropriate and efficient in implementation of the participation of employees in management. It also augments the constancy of the professional humanistic policies in China. A society having low degree of uncertainty avoidance, people generally accepts inherent indecision of life, having the ability of accepting more opinions, the subordinate’s approval from the superior is executed in more systematic manner with the employees showing intent towards independent management and work. In China with high degree of uncertainty avoidance, the superior tends to act in a strict way and clear instructions to their subordinates. The American firm would be bringing in  more freedom for the Chinese employees to enjoy their work and suggest things that was not possible before.

United States is stated to be a country which is having strong male degree where significant decisions within an organization are usually been made by the top management, the staff generally lacks sense of identity to the organization due to the transformation of frequent work, staffs not actively participating in the process of management. In case of China, it is mainly a female degree society, paying enough attention to the pleasant and honest ethics, promoting the spirit of active participation in the affairs of the state.

Adapting to the Chinese institutional and cultural factors:

For adapting to the Chinese cultural and institutional factors, the American IT firm would be making a transfer of the human resource practices to their subsidiary company that would be operating within the boundaries of China. The American It firm’s global human resource management mode takes into account the planning of human resource, employment and allocation, training expansion, evaluation of the performance, salary welfare and employee relationship management. Back in America, the main strategy of human resource has been retaining talent and developing of the same, along with recruiting the best possible human resources.  For the development of talent, the IT firm would be establishing long-run mechanisms of training, paying attention in learning and sense of responsibility and the internal promotion system (Slocum, Lei and Buller 2014). Recruitment of talent takes place with the US IT firm selecting personnel from both internal and external sources for the enrichment of the human reserves of the branch.

In the improvement and execution of training, the IT firm would be attaching bigger significance to the training of the human resources along with the process of continuity, using the experience training and cross training (Ahlvik and Björkman 2015). For the purpose of assessment and performance, the American IT firm would be establishing a set of ideal presentation evaluation flow chart. In the American IT firm, salary welfare is generally resolute by the knowledge of the employees, their ability in resolving problems and the requirements of the responsibility and level of market salary.  

Implementation Process:

a. Wage system favouring achievement-making employees:

The main reason for the Chinese organizations in being more attracted towards the western firms is the work treatment attracts in playing a role in boosting the employee motivation and morale. Chinese workers are mainly responsive to financial conditions. Performance-based reward system is one of the integral parts of the American firms. The American IT firm needs to design an attuned wage table having a steeper wage camber facilitating the employees in benefitting from the hikes in wages commiserating with the achievements (Edwards et al. 2016). American firms indulge themselves into the Chinese territory in quest for cheap labour with a deep rooted notion that the personnel cost should be restricted. Using the Chinese employees as the main workforce would make it mandatory for the American IT firm to provide bigger rewards to the competent employees for attainment of excellent results.

b. System of evaluation should satisfy employees and offer growth targets:

Chinese workers are stated to be sensitive to ratings, tending to strictly appraise others and interpreting their ratings in comparison to the ratings of the others. Moreover, the Chinese people are not hesitant in disclosing the amount of wages to each other along with resisting the unfair treatment.

American managers who are more habituated to the equal rating along with treatment might be facing difficulty in the evaluation of the local employees and bluntly amplifying the ratings to them. In China, it is stated that indistinct explanations are generally intolerable. The American managers need to take care of their Japanese employees sincerely.

The preparation of the appraisal items not only advances the impartiality of the evaluation process but also allowing employees in knowing the ways of gaining elevated rating along with enhanced treatment (Edwards et al. 2016). This might work as a booster for the career-frenzied Chinese employees. The probable evaluation process might take in factors like capabilities, attainments and actions. Among these, the actions that the organization hopes to witness from their workforce should be one of the evaluation items. Chinese are not stated to be good co-operators in attainment of the targets or making certain accomplishments within the groups. This weakness can be eradicated through designating the process of teamwork and development of personnel.

c. Recognition system praising employees:

In China, a system of recognition is generally been implemented for praising the employees publicly in making exceptional achievements as expected by the employers contributing towards boosting morale of employees (Schober 2016). Most MNCs have executed several recognition systems taking in the prizes of research and development, developing proposal prizes along with gaining of high scores. American companies do boast of recognition systems where the best performers are praised before a larger consultation.

Developing Core Personnel in managing Chinese Operations:

For survival within the intensified competition in China, American IT firm would be able to exert a pull on excellent workers and drawing out the individual employees’ motivation through the implementation of HRM policies leading employees in feeling that these firms offer. These firms would be offering profuse opportunities for them to expand and understanding themselves. The American firm would be employing Chinese workers for the important posts of management and shifting from the American-led management to the Chinese-led management (Minbaeva et al. 2014). This is generally stated to be the process of localization. Generally, foreigners have complexity in leading operations while making timely, accurate decisions in business within the region of China. The domination of the American representatives in the important management posts would be leading the knowledgeable Chinese workers in feeling that they presumably lives under the glass ceiling, limiting their career expansion.

a. Recruiting people expected to become core personnel:

American firm would be recruiting the appropriate workers for the managerial posts through the recruitment process. With a view of congealing the personnel establishment in the long run, it is mainly enviable to systematically improve employees and selecting the most superior ones for the important posts. One way is appointing the Chinese employees who are being recruited in US to the managerial posts for the operations in China. The Chinese managers who would be appointed through this way would be having certain advantages. They are the person who generally understands the culture of the corporate and the business process of head offices in America. However, as per Brewster et al. (2016), there is existence of smaller number of cases where the Chinese people have failed miserably in taking the roles of the leadership as managers with the employees recruited in China having wage gaps with those having being selected in America. For avoiding such results, the American companies need to appoint them to the posts featuring major roles mitigating higher wages and selecting person with exceptional capabilities.

b. Developing personnel with Leadership:

In America, a number of the companies adopt discerning personnel development systems in bringing up the next-generation leaders. In China too, the American organizations need to initiate systems for the employees of Chinese origin, based on the perspective of long term (Brewster, Mayrhofer and Smale 2016). Such conditions would help in repeating of the process of selection and improvement of the core personnel in reducing the candidate number for the managerial posts. In the Chinese society which is individualism oriented, certain existing groups might find it tricky in drawing the individuals. In China, the administration of the managers and the directors holds key for companies in uniting the employees for producing of the organizational potency.

Singapore:

MNCs are crucial to the economy of Singapore in terms of the assistance to the employment of the country, direct exports, transfer of technology and the capital speculation (Chiang, Lema?ski and Birtch 2017). They are generally given a moderately free hand in importing and amending their systems of management. The main question that arises is whether the workforce of Singapore is ready to admit the incursion of fresh ideas and practices. The globalization pressure, change in technology and the restructuring of the economy along with the concentrated competition from USA for the purpose of foreign direct investments. The American firm need to amalgamate its policies with that of the policies existing within that country in successfully operating within the foreign nations. Recruiting local and experienced people is the order for the day for the American firm to understand the market and the probable competitors that lies in the market.

HRM practices to be implemented:

For the precise HRM practices that is being generally been found in the Asian firms, especially the local Singaporean, it is more likely to have performance evaluation and systems of feedback. The IT firm would be using more formal training of the employees along with the methods of technicality in determining the levels of pay. The Singapore firms do not believe in formal training of the employees with minimal usage of the technical applications. The American firm needs to consider while strategising the HRM policies of its subsidiary in Singapore.  

Culture plays a vital role in considering the nature of the practices of HRM, certain other factors might also come into play. The American firm would be stating the practices of human resources, dependable with the contained demands of size, influences of environment and technology (Brewster et al. 2016). Certain political forces like the unions, professional connections and the government determines the practices of the HR. The Government of Singapore has been taking active, domineering advancement to the development of the economy, extending to the realm of the activities of HR.

The American IT firm should consider the wage policies of the government in being the highly thriving progress of the country. The American IT firm should also take into consideration the strong Singapore workforce union that represents not only the membership’s interests but also the cooperative responsibility in assisting the implementation of the government economic policies (Kang and Shen 2017). Singapore has long imitated the performance appraisal systems along with other factors that is stated to be the invasive mindset.

The American IT firm needs to be more sophisticated on the usage of the appraisal data, determining the rates of wages along with using the productive based system of pay. The American IT firm would find it easy in using the extensive procedure for interviews and sample work tasks for the selection purpose. The American firms generally follow this style while recruiting people back in America. Keeping in mind the policies generally taken up by the Singapore firms, the American firm needs to employ more refined methods of determining the system of wage rate, taking into account the organizational based system of incentive (Brewster et al. 2016).

The American firm would also be bringing in the system of job evaluation along with conducting of the wage surveys that would make them understand the market situation currently existing in Singapore and determining the salary based on that fact (Li, et al. 2014). It might be the fact that all the HR practices would not be same in America when compared to that of Singapore. However, to do business in the region, they have to mould their own policies in a way that remains uniform throughout the region. The company would be focusing mainly on the improvement of the productivity, taking in the improvement of skill preparation programs, incentive systems of pay along with the development of the effective performance appraisal systems.

Making an Effective Wage Process:

The US IT industry would be considering the growth of wage process of the recruited employees so as to make a balanced method while maintaining the currencies of both the countries.  It has been found that there is a huge difference in the life style of both the countries.  The company would be taking the newly recruited employees in to certain consideration with the effective salary provision keeping a balance with US economy.

Provision of Training:

    Effective provision of training to the employees pertaining to the cohesive culture of Singapore would be helpful to adopt the cultural differences. Since there is no stringent law in the country pertaining to the core behavioural issues of the expatriates, the employees need to be provided with the training facilities. This would be helping the employees comprehend the HRM practices relevant in the country.

Conclusion:

It can be concluded that the company might be facing certain issues while expanding in regions of Singapore and China. A diversified culture brings in lots of issues along with the challenges that the company would face in its endeavour for growth. It needs to take into account various factors, especially the HRM policies that can work wonders for the organization when it comes in for business operations. China and Singapore is different to what the firm faces in America. It needs to study both the market in the best possible way, taking in the government policies and the ways the other firms operate in both the countries. The company needs to consider the government policies while making of the HRM policies.

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