دانلود رایگان مقاله انگلیسی چالش های انتقال مدیریت منابع انسانی در شرکت های چند ملیتی - امرالد 2017

Abstract

Purpose – The paper aims to trace the challenges that multinational companies (MNCs) face as they grow out of their national borders into foreign countries and how they attempt to transfer human resource management (HRM) policies and practices across their subsidiaries for a best-fit HRM model. Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses the dilemma theory (involving two opposing values which doing one without the other creates a disadvantage but both cannot be done together) as the main analytical tool and reviews scholarly literature on MNCs’ HRM transfers for the assessment of the transfer challenges. Findings – It is found that MNCs face a dilemma as to how to find best-fit between home-country HRM requirements and host-country demands. In the face of this dilemma, MNCs attempt to build synergy between home-country requirements and host-country demands for a best-fit HRM that is beneficial to both the parent company and their foreign subsidiaries. Despite the best-fit HRM practices to diffuse the tension, parent company has greater influence in the final synergy product which is the trade-off between home-country HRM label and host-country contextual demands, thereby advancing the dominant HRM option of the dilemma. Practical implications – MNCs should be aware of the possible challenges as they internationalise and should equally be aware that though they may build a synergy (a blend of workable headquarters and subsidiary HRM), the final product will continue to favour headquarters’ HRM policies and practices. Originality/value – The paper generates theoretical implications into the issues and challenges that arise with HRM transfers within multinational firms by examining how the dilemma theory sheds light on the transfer process and challenges from the dominant-contextual tension till the fight for best-fit HRM. It also contributes to the development of cycle of cross-border HRM dilemma, cross-border HRM transfer framework and Synergy-Dominant theory.

6. Conclusion

The dilemma theory as a theoretical underpinning of the study has been explained, and the resultant dominant label and contextual label have been identified and the tension they create as subsidiary and head office attempt to stick to their ends of the continuum have also been explored. As a firm establishes its subsidiaries in the international market and the dilemma becomes a reality, the two options (local responsiveness and global integration) present themselves for possible choice. The MNC finds itself in a fix because it becomes costly to forgo one of the options and the expatriates who are key actors in the transfer process are rarely HR professionals and lack expertise in HR (Chang and Smale, 2013). This brings to the fore the HRM challenges that emerge as MNCs manage their cross-border subsidiaries. Some of these challenges have been identified and discussed, highlighting how they manifest at various stages and attempts by MNCs to defuse the tension resulting from the dilemma. The path followed by MNCs in building the HRM synergy between dominant headquarters HRM practices and contextual subsidiary HRM practices is not a smooth one – it involves tough decisions and sacrifices. These decisions and sacrifices constitute the identified challenges which also trace the path to the cross-border HRM synergy building for a “best-fit” HRM.