Unifying Human Resource Management for Jackson and Schuler - Term Paper Example

Unifying Human Resource Management Human Resource Management is now a wide-ranging issue not only in regional level and national level but also in international level as well. Human Resource Management (HRM) can be both the issue of the academe and in the business sector. HRM is also related in the realisation or comprehension of the human side of a company and the importance of its rules and regulation in relation to human resources. The unusual and deteriorating change in the economy together with the arising of globalisation, increasing product-market struggle and the changing customer-firm needs and wants, has become norm or a natural phenomena that everyone notice in an organisations. And to address these phenomena corporations should continually improve their performances in all level of the market, like enhancing and improving quality, efficiency and rate of their market in order for them to be competitive. And in creating and supporting a strong corporation and in gaining competitive advantage, understanding the role of human resource decisions is a big help for a corporation to prosper. Human Resource Management (HRM) decisions are likely to have an important role and it serve as influential entity in the performance of one company. HRM for Jackson and Schuler is a wide term that covers specific human resource practices such as staffing, selecting, and evaluation. There are policies towards managing human resources, which express and to some extent hold back the development of definite practices. There are also philosophical approaches, which designate the values that enlighten an organisation's policies and performances. In an ideal world, these encompass a system that invites, enhances, motivates, and keep the workmen who ensure the effective performance and endurance of the organisation and its members. Human Resource Management is more on the side of the business sectors and companies around the world which invites, develops and motivates both the corporation’s workmen and management side so that firm’s objectives can be attain and the company can maximize its profit. There should be a single line of authority and decisions towards the relationship of administrative strategy in managing its human resources and the central mission/vision of the company in order to ensure an essential and central control. Because of the importance of human resources for one company to succeed, developing strategies that will improve a company is where multi-national companies focusing now. The adaptation of unified cross national HRM strategies, policies and practices is an emerging issues that multi-national corporation consider in improving their performances.   Nature of HRM in multi-national corporations: Human Resource Management in international level or multi-national corporations focuses on the effective management of human resources from different places with the different cultures that affects it, the management of individuals with different expertise, the comparison of human resource management practices in different countries and how to put this differences in harmony so that a company will be successful in achieving its objectives. For any corporation, unique strategy is an essential thing to acquire. HRM in international level have the responsibility in the attracting, recruiting and selecting qualified personnel, training and developing workmen, appreciation of job well done and other entities related to benefits and labor . With the increase of global corporations and the spreading notion of this in different nations, the functions of HRM are becoming more important for the success of large corporations. Multi-national corporations used strategies to reduce barriers between national corporations and encourage a closer and unified human resource management decisions. The nature of HRM in multi-national corporations increases the interdependence or interconnection of regional and national HRM strategies, policies and practices and tries to create a unified one. In international level we can see the overflowing transnational human resources, increasing demand of good and services and the flow of technology that leads to the eradication of economic and trade barriers that will then give way to the extent of free trade and economic forces which is what multi-companies wants to happen in order to for them to dominate and manipulate the market system. Human resource management strategies should interact with the business strategies and there should be a clear relation between this two to create a uniform strategy in mobilizing resources inside the company. This two strategies should intertwine and help each other regarding to human resource policies and practices in a multi-national company. They should equally address the interactions that happened both within and outside this multi-national company which is characterised by national culture, different human resource systems, laws, norms, rules and other things that can affect or related to HRM. Multi-national companies try to adopt strategies from different nation in order for them to come up with more effective strategies that will make them a competitive and superior one. Because HRM strategies has a direct relation to economic success these multi-national companies are competing in formulate the best human resource management strategy. If they will have an effective HRM it will help them, these multi- national corporations to obtain competitive advantage in the market sector. Like what Schuler and Macmillan (1984, p.242) point out that effective management of human resources will in turn give more benefits and a more abundant profit. Companies that engage in strategic and systematic formulation of strategies in how human resources will manage better and how they develop a process that is competitive in the long run is a company that prospers and perform better in long term. Strategies that lead to effective management of human resources can influence and result to economic success of a company, which then also lead to the success of the entire nation. National and Regional models of HRM There are factors that affect HRM, it is the internal and external environments of a company . Technology, structural set-up, size, estimate life span of the organisation and the company’s strategic approach towards various problems inside the company are the factors that affect the internal activities of a company. While external factors are the social and political sides of the society, legal environments, partisanship, the present condition of labor market and lastly the national culture of one country that shape the human resources a lot. Notion of the competitive advantage of nations entail that the success of international companies can be rooted from the behavior of their national resource in the nation where this international companies originally arises. Differences in human resource management of nations, their way of implementation and practices of human resources are treated like goods that should satisfy the consumer. National differences towards HRM therefore have to do with the economic performance of that nation. National cultural differences in human resources management are reflected in the policies and laws one nation implemented. In which through these policies and laws national values of a nation reflects, national culture can be perceived. It is no surprise therefore to find that one nation has moderately less lawmaking control over the treatment to human resource relationship than is found in other nation. These differences in HRM of nations are influenced and determined by state administration and regulations to their policies. Like in the requirements on that job, the requirements on pay, and health and safety measurements inside the company. They also consider the environment in the working area and hours of work. There should be a clear contract between the employee and employer in order for the employee to know where he should place his /her self in the company and also to ensure a harmonious relationship between the two. They should put it in a black and white or documentation to guarantee that both are willing to cooperate and coordinate for the good of the company. These national strategies of HRM are manifested also in regional groupings. Countries maintain diplomatic relations, cooperation with their neighbor countries that in turn developed a regional point of view. Few countries united by some geographic, cultural or historical associations, or by economic and financial ties, or by some combination of all of these which lead for these countries to have a unified regional values and culture. The purpose for regionalizing is to pool together the resources of member-countries to maintain the peace, put-up a common defense, accomplish some specific task in the economic and/or political realm, pursue a new self-image and identity, or a mix of all of these. For integration among countries to grow some conditions should met, such conditions should be met, such as mutual relevance to each other of those engaged in the process, compatibility of values, a sense of shared identity and loyalty, and experienced or perceived mutual advantage in the venture. Nations in same region therefore sometimes adopt same HRM strategies, such as the countries in the Southeast Asian region. Regional grouping has two types “open” and “close”. The “open” regionalism involves a flexible membership and in economic sphere it entails the gradual elimination of trade barriers intra-regionally. The “close” regionalism in the other hand means that while a member opens up its markets to other members of the regional group, it withholds the same privilege to non-members. “Inclusive” versus “exclusive” regionalism is another dichotomy proposed. Inclusive accommodate states that are commonly accepted as difficult to integrate for various reason, like overt geographical and cultural differences. In contrast exclusive regionalism tends to be rigid in selecting its members. The relation between these two regional groupings was associated with economic closure and international conflict. In relation to HRM, regionalism described the integrations of companies for the primary purpose of promoting human resource decisions among themselves. Furthermore, as the International human resource management system becomes more globalised, companies tend to move away from dependence only on a single powerful partner for economic purposes. They now turn to multi-national corporations and create plurilateral relations that lead to globalisation. Importance of National Culture in Relation to HRM Organisational culture is tangled or bound seriously to human resource management and therefore not significant if we separated this two. A number of generalisations emerge from such studies. They provide accurate and substantive support for the view that important determinant of one company’s characteristic is the nationality of the owner of this company. Strategies, implementation, policies and practices towards labor system, rule on wage, collective deal, recognition of union, safety and developmental policies of a company can be rooted in national culture where in there is centralised and organised management of human resources. The way people are encourage and motivated to work hard with optimistic behavior using their skills, talents and knowledge are differing from country to country. Individual attitude has a direct relation with their national culture. Like for example, the method use in motivating individuals in western countries would not work well in non-western countries. This is due to the fact that these nations have different cultures; like in western culture they used to be individualistic and instrumentalist while in non-western cultures they tend to be collectivistic and humanistic. While organisations working inside the boundaries of a single nation have the benefit of being able to approach towards human management within the cultural framework of just one nation, those operating internationally will have the multifaceted task of studying and adopting the appropriate cross-cultural approach to manage people coming from various cultural backgrounds. Thus, success of multinational corporations, business firm and transnational companies would depend greatly on the efficiency of managing individual across different cultures. Balancing and putting together the individual’s differing values and culture into harmonious culture and in an attitude towards a unity in work will help in achieving the company’s objectives. Conceptualizing and designing strategic approach is the best way to achieve a unified objective towards HRM. Giving enough concern for the communal interest of the locality, taking consideration the approach to human resource management and those people at work, awareness in the local level, and the socio-cultural factors in general that affect the day to day activity of the local unit with its unique culture is also in help. Multi-national companies continue to be rooted in their countries of origin. The national system towards HRM of different countries which multi-national companies adopt and imitate operates and influence a lot the economic performances these transnational companies. The performance of implementing strategies in managing human resources can be applied internationally or globally in a multi-national company but the implication of practicing this strategy may be differ inside the boarder of one nation to another due to different factors that affect the decision-making of one nation, like influence of the firm’s culture and policies implemented by the business sectors. On the other hand, managers in the various national contributors in the multi-national company may tend to function a similar culture of performance management even where no official system exists. National culture and the country of origin have an effect in multinational companies. A significant body of proofs exists to suggest that multi-national companies of different national origins perform in extensively different traditions, specifically in respect of the cross-national management of human resource management issues. The issue of convergence and divergence of HRM systems The very aim of the convergence of HRM systems both in the West and East regions of the world is to sustain its growth. In the East, mainly Asian countries, the roots of their converging are rapid industrialization and globalization and financial crisis. Rapid industrialization developments start from less developed agricultural sectors, to the more modernized industrial sector, and then towards the more sophisticated services sector. Our main focus is the Human Resource sector, which shifted away from low- skilled laborers to a more advanced and complex ones. Many of the new IR and HRM techniques they use are borrowed from Western countries or from Japan. Thus the question of converging of the Asian systems to that of the Western systems should or should not be tolerated (homogeneity) and of divergence because of the distinct Asian backgrounds, becomes explicit (heterogeneity). Globalization and liberalization are the results of the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and the potentiality of the Western industrialized countries, mainly Europe's MNCs (Multinational Companies), to implant their systems in to their Asian subsidiaries. What are being globalised here are the economies of these countries which include the work/labor force. Thus, the possibility of the convergence of the Western and Eastern systems of HRM can be easily seen here. The 1997 Asian financial crisis has brought economic recession and high unemployment to many of the Asian economies. Amongst those economies most heavily affected are South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. Many of these countries are already recovering from this tremendous breakdown, yet some are still in deep drought which some scholars argue that the fundamental structures that these countries attend to needed to be given attention in order to recover fully. And so, by virtue of the IR and HRM systems that are being presented to them by the West or some of the improved Eastern countries is a way to converge existing HRM systems. Between Western countries, namely Europe and non - European states most notably the United States, the root of their converging is dependent on the notion of competitive isomorphism (although currently they are diverging from one another). As firms are faced with similar crisis, they will adopt similar and efficient management practices. For example, in Europe, over all employee relations are being replaced by HRM management systems designed to establish a direct and non - personal relationship between organization and employee. The trend here is attributed   the influence of a model of HRM derived from the practices in the United States. As we have stated earlier, globalisation plays a part in the convergence and divergence issue. It is the process of reducing barriers between countries and encouraging closer economic, political and social interaction. It is the opening of large measures of market by virtue of the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), which lowers the investment and transcends barriers in all countries. It is the liberalization of trade and because of the deregulation of financial markets. The governments of the countries concerned have little control over the flow of capital. They move towards less governmental intervention in employment relation, greater union autonomy, more layoffs and less job security. It also observes the increase in transactional flows of resources, goods and services, and technology to the extent that the globe is becoming a `single space'. We can deduce from here the free flow of exchange or the free play of market forces. As the government gains lesser and lesser control over these trading people or country, markets for the lease, the lesser the restrictions that will prohibit these entities to exchange their perspectives or systems (HRM or trading systems) and easily adapt to them. Power may be an issue here but we will leave it for now. It is a means towards a greater interdependence and interconnection among people, government and the social institutions of the world. Convergence comes to play when there emerges a crisis in the trade industry making it a solution for an arising problem in their midst or for the betterment of the ongoing trade or employment or basically to earn more, to be more profitable. In mainland China, Western types of labor contracts, performance-related rewards systems and contributory social insurance programs are now being introduced into their personnel policies. Also by liberalization, China's economies transformed from a Communist to a Socialist society and towards socialist markets. Yet, apart or in relation to all of these we cannot neglect the role of Multinational Companies or MNC. Multinational companies (MNCs) have become of particular importance to this thesis. They are often seen as an important vessel for the transmission of management practices from one country to another particularly from the US to Europe and from here to the East. The transferability of management practices from one national context to another is of practical importance for managers in MNCs. The economic importance of large MNCs and their border spanning nature means that their activities have particular salience to legislators and regulators. They are becoming stateless players, being detached from their individual countries. And so they should be neutral for the free flow of exchange for the reason that they are playing in-between different nations as channels. Contrary to this, MNC's exhibit their national characteristics. What happens is that the systems that are being transmitted are their nation's system and that is applied or being implemented to the host nation, even their beliefs and traditions are spilled to these nations particularly indigenous nations.  And to these, the `spilled nations' conform. For the case of those being spilled up, they loose their nation's identity and Conclusion To answer the question ‘Will multi – national companies ever be able to adopt unified cross – national HRM strategies, policies and practices?’ we will refer to the premises and to the underlying premises presented above.   Each culture or each nation has their own tradition, history, system and beliefs. In particular cases, they differ in who they see as “God”, in the way they treat people, divination, astrology and a lot more. They differ as to how they look at the world or at reality. They have different conceptions of what is ‘real’ and they differ as to what passes to them as knowledge. These nations decide as to what policies or regulations or systems that they will be following. Thus, they will have a common sense conception of the world. Common sense in the sense that they have a common or a similarity in their views, what approves to them as the truth. From these they base their judgments and punishments. In fact, when one culture says that one culture is wrong, is it really wrong? What standards can one base its accusations as to whether a culture is wrong in its belief? That is their belief, which is what is true to them, that is what is being handed to them through generations. So, is it wrong? From these roots is where everything about that society comes from and what makes up that society as such. This is where the richness of a culture or a nation arises.   We argue for Diversity.   Unity or convergence is impossible, it may be possible but the results of it only conform to the self – interest of a specific culture. As presented above, there is no culture or nation above the others, in short, there is No Ethnocentricity. Each culture is equal there’s no culture superior over the other.   We agree that a system may be adopted just to help that nation to recover from whatever misfortunes it has suffered or is suffering. But, not to the extent that the ‘helping’ nation will change everything of what that nation has. They are only trespassing and is just using the resources of that nation, it is not their own, for in return they are also being helped by their host nation (that’s so abusive).   As for the issue of Globalization, which states that there should be one nation, one culture, but whose culture? In a sense, there is this unity by virtue of this set – up: The free exchange, share of resources, a sense of connectedness to the world… yes we agree to that because all of us are in one world with one goal and that is to live. We can live with our own conceptions, with our own culture, of the world because we are a part of it and we think it unnecessary for ‘one culture’. We can live with our cultures.   Multi – national Companies can or shall adopt various HRM policies and strategies for they venture into different nations or societies, yet they will not be able to find a ‘unified’ HRM strategies, policies, etc., for the reasons presented above.   One example that we can give is the Philippines in which we are in. The Philippines is a country which is rich in natural resources and has a rich yet destructive history. Our country is colonized by the Spaniards and so, the religion, belief and some conducts of these westerns are imposed unto us and is still running up to our time. Although we can say that there are still those natives or indigenous people that cherish our original culture, but the majority or the most explicit culture, the one which dominate us, western culture. Our systems are being run by western ideologies or western culture and there is only a little part of Filipino culture in our systems. Noontime shows are so famous in our country yet Romanticist culture is its composition. A revealing of the dominance of a culture over us: The West.   Many Filipinos dread to be brown. They wanted to be fair in color for they see it as beauty, they see it as power, they see it as dominance because that is what these colonizers has given us. In these times, that is what Multi – national Companies implant into our minds, that is what they implant ot their host nations. Yet they cannot escape it for that is our culture that is what comprises a Southeastern man, brown in color.   This should not be the case for the reason that we are an independent country and we have our own systems that we can follow.     Sources: Lee, Joseph S., IIRA Tokyo (2000), Raporter's Report Track 5, ``Asia in the 21st century: Challenges and opportunities in World and Labor'', [Online]. Available: http://www.jil.go.jp/test/bulletin/year/2001/vol40-02/05.htm. [5 August 2006]. Management Reveu, (2000). `Diffusion of HRM to Europe and the Role of US Multinationals. Available: http://globaledge.msu.edu/academy/callforpapers/february2004-MR.asp. [5 August 2006] Brewster, C. and Olga T., `` Converging or Diverging? A comparative analysis of trends in contingent employment practice in Europe over a decade. [Online]. Available:. http://www.palgrave-journals.com/jibs/journal/v37/n1/full/8400174a.html. [5 August 2006]. 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