How Human Resource Management Can Be Made Effective in the Organizations of Multicultural Environment - Essay Example

Exercise 1. What is your research question Write this out as a short sentence in the form of a question. Topic: How HRM can be made more effective in the modern organizations with multicultural environment 2. Write a synopsis of the central research problem you intend to address in your dissertation. Discuss a) why this problem was chosen; b) why it is a problem suitable for research at Master's level; and c) what are the academic issues which underpin your research question The global economy has made it almost mandatory for international corporations that an effective strategy is adopted for managing the diversity. Companies are moving towards flatter organizational structures, and the global economy is allowing the movement of the workforce across national boundaries, effective interaction amongst diverse workers becomes more critical for the smooth organizational functioning. In fact now a debate has started whether the concept of 'managing diversity; forms an alternative to 'equal opportunities' based on gender bias. In the UK, human resource practitioners and academics alike are becoming more aware of the emergence of managing diversity. There is now a view that, after twenty years of the ' stick' of legal compliance (which has achieved little), the 'carrot' of underpinning the business case for equal opportunities will perhaps achieve more (Dickens 1994). Thomas1 (2000) argues that, with the growing number of mergers and acquisitions, workforce diversity will become more of a priority for organizations and, therefore, in the future, people will become clearer on what diversity is and how to manage it. The business case for managing diversity therefore offers a way to operate equal opportunities as a strategic issue, a core value linked to organizational competitiveness (Dickens 1994). Diversity not only comes in the form of culture and values, but it also consists of several other visible and non-visible factors, which include personal characteristics such as sex, race, age, background, culture, disability, personality and work-style. Harnessing these differences is bound to create a productive environment in which everybody feels valued, their talents are fully utilized and organizational goals are met. Considering these factors, the underlying philosophy of managing diversity tends to imply that an organization can gain massive competitive advantage, resulting in enhanced performance with the help of a satisfied human capital. It rests on the premise that the organization will be able to serve increasingly diverse customers, meet increasingly complex business and management problems by actively seeking and managing a diverse workforce (Stephenson and Lewis 1996; Cox 1991). In the era of globalization, when MNCs prefer to take advantage of multi-location facilities, lower costs of production, expertise from the world over, diversity is bound to be there at the workplace. It is for the organization to manage the diversity by recognizing, appreciating, valuing, encouraging and utilizing the unique talents and contributions of individuals from across a wider spectrum of society. But circumstances sometimes create peculiar conditions which brings to the fore the inherent weaknesses prevalent in our society. There are rules and regulations which provide broad guidelines for keeping a delicate balance in dealing with such matters so that mutual harmony is maintained amongst the workforce. The world is a rich and diverse place, full of interesting cultures and people who should be treated with respect. Skirmishes arising out of 'discriminatory' behavior often result in tensions amongst colleagues. Though there are federal laws in place, but it is the human character and nature which has to do the implementation part. In coming years this problem is bound to come out with many more challenging situations for MNCs. These corporations are supposed to foresee some such circumstances and then come out with suitable strategies to handle the issues. Therefore, the topic appears quite appropriate to study at master's level. During the study, we'll try to analyze some of the organizations which practically handle the cultural diversity. The main intention of the study is to develop a better understanding of the concepts of Human Resources Management in general and how the established theories and principles are applied under a multicultural environment. During the study some companies will be analyzed to seek answers to the following key objectives. To analyze the competition and HR scenario in the industry. How employing diverse people make these companies more adaptable to new situations Prerequisite to a decent work culture is about respecting individuals and treating everyone, customers and colleagues, with dignity. How these companies have been able to adopt a balancing approach towards motivating the workforce. Diversity in general reaches far beyond compliance with legislation. An effort will be made to investigate the legal position prevailing in respect of some countries and effective such laws have been. Effective HR policies also imply that while multi-culture and diverse workforce needs to be maintained for being politically 'correct'. An effort will be made to study how the HR policies of some companies have been able to ensure the quality of individual service that it provides to the individual customers. Answers to Exercise-8 1) What research techniques do you intend to use in your dissertation (remember that you can use more than one) Undertaking a comprehensive literature review is of course an integral part of this study. How this study will be used to fulfill the aims and objectives of the research depends upon a number of other factors as well. Huges and Sharrock (1997) state that investigating the 'mental reality' requires quite different methods than the use of natural sciences. It is stated that while recognizing the actions, events and artifact from within the human life, such a method needs to be philosophically justified as well. Since my subject area relates more to the human nature and behaviors, the research can be conducted within three distinct frameworks: Interpretive research: In this approach the actions, behaviors, experiences of the research participant are interpreted in a broader perspective. Such interpretation could be carried out by observing the research participants in their working environment, interacting with their colleagues and managers. Robson (1993), points towards a major difference in the interpretive approach that the theories and concepts tend to arise from the enquiry. Such theories build up after data collection. For this reason, the interpretive approach is also termed as 'hypothesis generating' approach. It is also contended that in interpretive approach, collection and analysis of data are not necessarily divided into separate blocks. Data collected in the preliminary stage can be analyzed before going further. This analysis can be used subsequently in other stages. Positivist research: The goal of such an approach is not only to describe but to do thee prediction and explanation as well. This approach has therefore some scientific connotations as well. Such a study can be both qualitative as well as quantitative in nature, depending upon how the research is conducted. Auguste Comte has been credited for coining of the term 'positivism'. Comte suggested that for social reorganization human mind must adopt a positivist approach i.e. it must function at its best (Crotty, 1998). Twelve varieties of positivism have been distinguished by some authors. For social reorganization Comte suggested a scientific method which emanates from positivism. It is a flexible method that succeeds in remaining homogenous in a multitude of context. Critical research: Such a research is generally carried out if the researcher is already having some prior input about a subject. With the help of a critical study, the hypothesis can be either established or demolished. Critically analyzing a subject is more important if we wish to understand its strengths as well as its weaknesses. For the research to be credible and relevant a critical approach becomes a prerequisite. For this particular research, we will be using a mix of interpretive and Positivist approach with a critical review of the findings and analysis. For this some of the best suitable research techniques could be; i. By observing the workers within their working environment. In this case we need to collect the profile of workers beforehand from the concerned HR managers, who may not be readily willing to divulge those details. But my efforts will be to have some basic details like, 'for how long the person is working in the company'; 'what is his/her educational background'; 'how many promotions he has got during all these years'; 'something about his social and cultural background'; 'the kind of money/ incentives he is entitled to'. For this an undertaking will be given to the company that this information is purely for academic purposes and it will not be used for any other purpose under any circumstances. Once I have the information about the workforce, I can observe their professional conduct and operational behavior within their organization to know how motivated, biased, helpful are they within their organization. ii. Since we intend to collect some information from the research participants, therefore we'll be using the Questionnaire approach for carrying out this research. Again, in case this questionnaire is to be used inside the company then it will be a prerequisite that the management of the company knows about it and approves it. Otherwise also, if we intend to get the questionnaire filled up by the concerned persons outside the premises of the company, a sincere effort will be made to make the company aware about the research study being conducted as part of good ethical practice. 2) Why have you chosen to use these techniques The basic aim of a literature review is of course to find out what is already known about the subject, and what is available in the public domain. As for the techniques like interpretive, positivist and a critical approach, we have chosen these techniques for the following reasons; i. This research is meant for fulfilling my aim of being more informed about the industry and the modern techniques of managing the human resources. Being a student of HR, this will surely help me understanding some practical information and strategies. The interpretive technique will help me in sharpening my skills for observing and analyzing the happenings in and around me. The predictions that I could make using the positivist approach will prove to be a reference point for me to keep an eye on happenings in future. This will not only help in testing the relevance of the study undertaken by me, but it will also help me in keeping in touch with the subject and understanding the subject in a better manner in future as well. ii. This research is not meant for any commercial/ critical purpose. Whatever interpretations, conclusions are drawn from the study will be meant to enrich the course I am presently pursuing. Undertaking research for a commercial purpose requires many more dimensions and improvised tools, which are beyond my scope of study. iii. I did not use the critical approach of research in an exclusive manner because in general such researches are carried out by experts and mutual interest groups like trade unions, NGOs etc. While carrying out such researches the NGOs etc. are in possession of explicit information about some acts and omissions of the company/ companies, which they need to establish or discard with the help of such research, so that they can take up the matter with the management of the company or with the government authorities to take appropriate remedial measures for redressing the grievance etc. iv. To collect the information, I will be relying more on questionnaire approach and less on observational approach because of two reasons. First, to observe the research participants it requires lot of time, effort and manpower. Secondly, companies may not like the idea of their working environment being observed by a research student for long hours. 3) What are the strengths and limitations of the techniques you have chosen Strengths: Using the questionnaire to collect data from various sources, I can get variety of information from different sources. I will have plenty of time at my disposal to study the research findings, correlate and analyze the findings and subsequently to draw appropriate conclusions. While leaving couple of open ended questions for the research participants to answer, I'll be able to have some data information which I might not be having any idea about. This way I'll get to know newer things. During the study, I'll have to be in liaison with a number of industry people, which will help me in gaining a first hand experience in dealing with such persons. Who knows, in the process I am able to impress them with my professional conduct and get associated with such companies in future as well. Limitations: Considering the nature of the subject of the dissertation, it will not be possible to make it an elaborate study as that would require more time and resources especially in determining the sample size and in data collection. Moreover, sample respondents might be hostile in answering the questionnaires especially when the objective of the study is not very clear to them. In the course of the collection of the data required by this study, the time constraints might make it difficult to follow through other possible investigations which may lead to a more in depth analysis. The analysis and interpretation also might prove to be time-consuming in itself, because some of the information though requested, might not be forthcoming on account of the sensitive nature of the information. 4) What literature on research methods has led you to believe that this/these would be the best approach for your dissertation As with any research project, determining the best methodology to gather data when conducting research is of paramount importance. The reading material that has been provided to us helped a great deal in deciding to go for the type of research approach that we have adopted here. In particular the material provided by Student Learning Centre (Leicester University) (2006) in 'Planning and conducting a Dissertation Research Project', has been a big influence in deciding the course of this research. 5) How do you propose to analyze the data you have collected Once the data has been truthfully collected, we need to translate it into a meaningful outcome, which calls for analyzing the data. There are many ways in which the analysis can take place; some require dividing the data in groups, while some others call for statistical analysis. To some extent the nature of outcome and the resulting statement also depends upon the method that we adopt for analyzing the data, but the choice of such a method depends upon the parameters that we've set for our study and the kind of data that we collected during the research process. Since our purpose is basically to enrich the learning process, so for this process I'll be relying mainly on the Microsoft office data analysis tools in general and the MS-Excel tools in particular. This could be in the form of pie charts, Column charts, Bar Charts, scatter diagrams etc References: 1. Crotty, M (1998). 'Positivism: The March of Science', in The Foundations of Social Research: Meaning and Perspective in the Research Process', Pp 18-41. London, Sage (From the Reading material) 2. Dickens, L. (1994). 'The business case for women's equality: is the carrot better than the stick Employee Relations 16 (8). 3. Huges, J.A and Sharrock, W.W. (1997), 'The interpretative Alternative', in The Philosophy of Social Research, (3rd Edn). London Longman (From the study material) 4. Mavin, Sharon and Girling, Gill (2000). What is managing diversity and why does it matter Human Resource Development International; Dec2000, Vol. 3 Issue 4, 5. Robson, C. (1993). 'Developing a Proposal', in Real World Research: A Resource for Social Scientists and Practitioner-Researchers, pp-18-35. Oxford: Blackwell. (From the Reading Material) pp R1264-4. 6. Stephenson, K. and Lewis, D. (1996). 'Managing Workforce diversity, macro and micro level HR implications of network analyses'. International Journal of Manpower 17 (4). 7. Student Learning Centre - Leister University (2006), 'Planning and Conducting a Dissertation Research Project'. Leicester: University of Leicester. 8. Thomas, R. Jr. (2000). 'Profiles of managing diversity', American Institute of Managing Diversity. Read More