Diversity of various types in a global company suggests that HRM practices have to be tailor-made to suit the local conditions. Such practices can be seen in the context of different HRM functions. Recruitment and Selection A global company has the following alternative approaches to recruitment and selection of employees: Ethnocentric-all key positions, in headquarters as well as subsidiaries, are staffed by parent-country nationals. Polycentric-key positions in subsidiaries staffed by host-country nationals and those in headquarters staffed by parent-country nationals. Regiocentric-key positions staffed by host-country nationals within particular geographical regions (such as continent-wise). Geocentric-key positions in headquarters as well as subsidiaries staffed by people based on merit, irrespective of their nationality. Different MNCs adopt different approaches for recruitment. For example, a survey of recruitment practices adopted by MNCs reveals that 50 per cent MNCs believe in geocentric approach while 35 per cent MNCs believe in ethnocentric approach and key functionaries Continue reading
HRM Concepts
Features of a Sound Employee Disciplinary System
Discipline is an inevitable correlate of organization. To be organized means to be disciplined and vice-versa. The behavior of an employee is at the root of all discipline in an organization. Some of the key features of a sound employee disciplinary system are: 1. Knowledge of Rules The employee must be informed clearly about what constitutes good behavior and the rewards that may emanate from it. All instructions should be clear and understandable. It is common sense that an employee will obey an instruction more readily if he understands it. The supervisor himself must know all the rules. He cannot effectively communicate with his workers if his own knowledge about rules is half baked. In fact, he needs to know more than the barest minimum that he wants his workers to know. This reserve of knowledge is essential in order to be able to answer several unexpected question from workers. Continue reading
Managing Cultural Diversity in the Workplace
Cultural differences are usually created by race-ethnicity, gender, function, and tenure among the organization factors. Difference in culture may result to the rise of conflicts among team members. This usually results to disrupted communication within the organization and eventually negative outcomes. Therefore, it is the role of every organization and entire management to come up with various ways of managing and reducing negative effects of cultural differences. Management in various organizations should ensure that they are able to detect and avoid such cases from arising. Political backgrounds and experience are other major factors that contribute to cultural differences. Multicultural teams and differences in most occasions generate dilemmas in the organization management. Cultural differences usually create considerable obstacles to efficient teamwork. Recognizing various underlying cultural causes of conflicts is the main challenge in managing multicultural teams by organizations’ management. It is also a great challenge for management to get teams back Continue reading
Wage Differentials – Definition, Causes and Types
Wage differentials have a great economic and social significance; they are directly related to the allocation of the economic resources of a country, including manpower growth of the national income, and the pace of economic development. Social welfare activity depends, in a large measure, on such wage differentials as will: Cause labor to be allocated among different occupations, industries and, geographical areas in the economy in such a manner as to maximize the national product. Enable full employment of the resources of the economy to be attained; and Facilitate the most desirable rate of economic progress. Wage differentials reflect difference in the physical and mental abilities of workers, differences in productivity, in the efficiency of management and in consumer preferences, and act as sign posts for labor mobility. By providing an important incentive for labour mobility, they bring about a re-allocation of the labor force under changing circumstances. Under competitive Continue reading
Impacts of Rewards on Employee Turnover Intentions
Employee Turnover Intentions can be defined as a measurement of whether a business or organisation’s employees plan to leave their positions or whether that organisation plans to remove employees from positions. The pay level has an enormous impact on turnover intentions considering that people start seeking new job opportunities with higher salaries to satisfy their life needs. The pay level is more influential for employees than pay raises. Therefore, those workers content with their salary amount are less likely to search for a new workplace. When the payment decreases, the turnover intention increases vice-versa. As for the financial incentives, they are crucial for employees of the young age groups more than for older staff. Therefore, it is vital to cater to workers needs in the incentives scheme according to their age groups as this factor is not the most influential for the turnover intentions. As stated previously, the turnover rates rise Continue reading
Difference between Coordination and Cooperation
Co-ordination and co-operation — the two should not be confused because the two terms denote quite different meanings. Co-operation refers to the collective efforts of people who associate voluntarily to achieve specified objectives. It indicates merely the willingness of individuals to help each other. It is the result of a voluntary attitude of a group of people. Co-ordination is much more inclusive, requiring more than the desire and willingness to co-operate of the participants. It involves a deliberate and conscious effort to bring together the activities of the various individuals in order to provide unity of action. It requires concurrence of purpose, harmony of effort and concerted action. It is much more than mere reconciliation of differences or avoidance of friction. Co-operation provides the foundation for co-ordination by enlisting voluntary efforts which facilitate co-ordination, but by itself it cannot guarantee co-ordination. Co-ordination does Continue reading