INTERNATIONAL

HUMAN
RESOURCES

International Staffing

2022/23
Lecture Objectives
1. Discuss issues relating to staffing foreign operations
2. Review the reasons for using international assignments
3. Discuss the various types of international assignments
including non-standard arrangements
4. Discuss the role of expatriates and non-expatriates in
supporting international business activities
5. Explain what determines the Return On Investment of
international assignments
6. Discuss the role of the corporate HR function in MNEs

2
 The International
Staffing Function

Aligning the Staffing Function with the MNC business and long-term strategy.
Process of Sourcing, Recruitment and Selection

Sourcing Talent
Recruiting and selecting talent
 One Theory of International
Staffing
Work of Edstrom and Galbraith (1977).
– Three reasons to go for international staffing.
– REASON 1 - Position fillers when no suitable and qualified
(HCNs) available.
– REASON 2 - Means of management development,
particularly to develop the competency of the individual
staff.
– REASON 3 - Develop and create knowledge base within the
MNC to modify and sustain organisational structure and
decision making process, ‘Knowledge Transfer’.
Determinants of staffing choices

5
 Sourcing and Recruiting in IHRM
• Sourcing – quality and quantity issues, the
determinant issue therefore have an influence
on this. We are talking about do me have PCN,
HCN and TCN who are qualified for the job.
• So we are considering acquiring employees
who are ready , capable and or trainable for
international assignments.
 ISSUE - The Staffing Policy
Making choices - SOURCING
Perlmutter & [Heenan] EP[R]G
Model, 1979
(Perlmutter & [Heenan] EP[R]G Model - 1979

GEOCENTRIC

REGIOCENTRIC

POLYCENTRIC

ETHNOCENTRIC
 Ethnocentric Approach
• Strategic decisions are made at
headquarters;
• Limited subsidiary autonomy;
• Key positions in domestic and foreign
operations are held by headquarters’
personnel;
• PCNs manage subsidiaries.
 Polycentric Approach
• Each subsidiary is a distinct national
entity with some decision-making
autonomy;
• HCNs manage subsidiaries who are
seldom promoted to HQ positions;
• PCNs rarely transferred to subsidiary
positions.
 Regiocentric Approach
• Reflects a regional strategy and structure;
• Regional autonomy in decision making;
• Staff move within the designated region,
rather than globally; TCN?
• Staff transfers between regions are rare.
 Geocentric Approach
• A global approach - worldwide integration;
• View that each part of the organization makes a
unique contribution;
• Nationality is ignored in favor of ability:
– Best person for the job;
– Color of passport does not matter when it comes to
rewards, promotion and development.
• PCN/HCN/TCN
 ADVANTAGES AND
DISADVANTAGES OF EACH
APPROACH
Why and when do organizations use
these approaches?
 Ethnocentric Approach
Advantages: Disadvantages:
v To ensure new Limits the promotion opportunities
subsidiary complies with of HCNs, leading to reduced
overall corporate productivity and increased turnover
objectives and policies among the HCNs
v The subsidiaries have Longer time for PCNs to adapt to
the required level of host countries, leading to errors and
competence poor decisions being made
v Assignments as control High cost
Considerable income gap, high
authority, and increased standard of
living may relate to lack of
sensitivity
 Polycentric Approach

Advantages: Disadvantages:
• Could be difficult to bridge gap
• Employment of Host between HNCs and Parent or
Country Nationals Country Nationals.
eliminates language
barriers and is usually less • HNCs may have limited
expensive opportunities to gain experience
outside their countries
• Provides promotional
opportunities and could
reduce turnover.
 Regiocentric Approach
• Advantages: • Disadvantages:
Allow interaction between Produce federalism at a
executives transferred to regional rather than a
regional headquarters from country basis and
subsidiaries in the region constrain the firm from
and PCNs posted to the taking a global stance
regional headquarters
Provide some sensitivity to Staff’s career
advancement still limited
local conditions to regional headquarters,
Help the firm to move from not the parent country
a purely ethnocentric or headquarters
polycentric approach to a
geocentric approach
 Geocentric Approach
Advantages: Disadvantage:
v Ability of the firm to Host government may use
develop an immigration controls in
international order to increase HCNs
executive team employment
v Overcomes the Expensive to implement due
federation drawback to increased training and
of the polycentric relocation costs
approach Large numbers of PCNs,
v Support cooperation HCNs, and TCNs need to be
and resource sharing sent across borders
across units Reduced independence of
subsidiary management
 Summary
• The suitability of the type of Edstrom and Galbraith (1977).
staffing policy adopted by MNEs Three reasons to go for international
depends on the strategy used by staffing.
the company. – REASON 1 - Position fillers
– REASON 2 - develop the
competency of the individual
Determinants of Staffing Choices
staff.
4 x Specificities and IHRM Practices =
Context/ Company / Local Unit – REASON 3 ‘Knowledge Transfer’.
+ IHRM practices
Recruiting, Testing and Selecting
in International HRM
 IHRM RECRUITMENT
GOALS
1. To attract appropriate numbers of highly
qualified, interested, culturally literate and
potential high performing individuals.

2. Fill vacancies quickly at minimum costs.

3. Build and maintain a Positive Corporate image.

 Recruit and Selection in
International HM
• Selection refers to the process by which a company chooses people to fill a
vacant position.
• Recruiting and selection affected by cultural practices.
– critical differences pertains to more collectivist countries.
• collectivist cultural norms
– Value trustworthiness, reliability, and loyalty over performance-related
background characteristics.
– Personal traits such as loyalty to the company, loyalty to the boss, and
trustworthiness are the traits that family members can provide. As such, in
smaller companies, preference is given to family members.
Recruitment decisions influenced
by...
Constraints of the
host government

Staffing Policies

Cultural Toughness

Ability to attract
& Source

Recruiting Decision

INFLUENCED – Constraints/ modifers

INTERNAL SOURCES E.G. EXTERNAL SOURCES – E.G. PCN,
HCN TCN & OTHER
HQ, SUBSIDIARIES
– Advertising
• Employees – Employment Agencies
Referrals/Recommend e.g. Executive recruitment services
ations (Expats)

– School, Colleges and

• “Coffee Machine” Universities
• Succession Planning: – Professional
– transfers/promotions Organizations
• Job Posting – Unsolicited Applicants
e.g. walk-ins
• HRIS
– Referrals
• Friends and family – in – Internet sources
some countries – Outsourcing
 EMPLOYMENT in
Practice
The Coffee-Machine system of
expatriate selection –
Harris and Brewster (1999)
 What makes IHRM Recruitment
more complex than Domestic
HRM?
• Labour market is wider
• Cultural differences
• National management practices
• Difficulties in authenticating documents
• Cost
• HRM executives need greater skills
• Legal requirements (gratuity, contracts, staffing
ceilings)
 Factors in Expatriate Selection

5/29/23
INTERNATIONAL EMPLOYEE TESTING & SELECTION

Employee testing is the process of administering a

series of procedures to applicants for a job position
in order to determine the applicant suitability for
appointment to the post within the organization.
Employee Selection is the process of analyzing the data
derived from the tests and predicting relatively
accurately the future performance levels of each
applicant
 TESTING AND SELECTION
• The testing and selection process like other
IHRM functions must be linked to the
organizations strategic plan. Misaligned
testing and selection procedures will result in
negligent hiring issues which cost the
organization in human, financial and other
resources.
 EMPLOYMENT TESTS

ASSESSMENT CENTRES Critical to IHRM

selection) and may include any or all of the
following
– Leaderless group discussions
– Psychometric testing
– Group problem solving
– Presentations
– In-basket exercises
– Case studies
– Interviews
 Issues in International
Assignments
• Reasons Multinationals use International
Assignments
• Types of assignments
• Roles of expatriates / Non- expatriates /
Inpatriate
• Expatriate Failure
• Dual career couples
• Female expatriates
Solutions to the Dual-career Challenge

• Alternative assignment arrangements

– Short-term
– Commuter
– Other (e.g. unaccompanied, business travel,
virtual assignments)
• Family-friendly policies
– Inter-company networking
– Job-hunting assistance
– Intra-company employment
– On-assignment career support
IBUS 618 Dr. Yang
Table
5-3
Barriers to females taking international assignments

32
 Three Reasons for International
Assignments
1. Position filling
– E.g. Skills gap, launch of new endeavor, technology
transfer
2. Management development
– Training and development purposes, assisting in
developing common corporate values
3. Organizational development
– Need for control, transfer of knowledge,
competence, procedures and practices
Types of International Assignments
Assignments

Standard – Vary by time/

different times periods

Non-Standard – Situational
 Types of International Assignments
Assignments
Standard Non-Standard
1. Short term: up to 3 months 1. Commuter assignments
– Troubleshooting 2. Rotational assignments
– Project supervision
3. Contractual assignments
– A stop-gap until a permanent
arrangement is found 4. Virtual assignments
2. Extended: up to 1 year 5. Self-initiated assignments
– May involve similar activities as
short-term assignments
3. Long term – Traditional
Expatriate assignment
Varies from 1 to 5 years (typical 3
years)
 Non-Standard Assignments - Advantage

Some of these non-standard arrangements assist

in overcoming the high cost of international
assignments but are not always effective
substitutes for the traditional expatriate
assignment.
 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TRADITIONAL AND SHORT-TERM
ASSIGNMENTS
Traditional Assignment Short-term Assignment
(STANDARD) (NON Standard)

PURPOSE •Fill position or skills gap •Skills transfer/problem solving

•Management Development •Management Development
•Organizational Development •Management Control

DURATION Typically 12 – 36 months Typically up to 6 or 12 months

FAMILY POSITION Family joins the assignee abroad Assignee is unaccompanied by the family

SELECTION Formal procedures Mostly informal, little bureaucracy

ADVANTAGES •Good relationships with •Flexibility

colleagues •Simplicity
•Constant monitoring •Cost effectiveness

DISADVANTAGES •Dual career considerations •Taxation

•Expensive •Side effects (alcoholism, divorce rate high)
•Less flexibility •Poor relationships with local colleagues
 The roles of an expatriate
1. Agent of direct 4. Agent of
control competence and
2. Agent of knowledge
socialization Transfer
3. Network Builder 5. Language node
6. Boundary
Spanner
The expatriates role is as a conduit between HQ and Subsidiary
 The roles of an expatriate
4. Agent of competence and
knowledge Transfer
5. Language node
6. Boundary Spanner

The expatriates role is as a conduit between HQ and Subsidiary

 The Non-Expatriate
• The non-expatriate are persons who travel
internationally, but are NOT considered
expatriates as they do not relocate to another
country.
OTHER NAMES FOR THE NON-EXPATRIATE
International Business Traveller
Flexpatriates
Frequent Fliers
Globetrotters
Road warriors
Positives for the Non-Expatriate - A Glamorous
Life?

• International business travelers cite

the positives as:
– Excitement and thrills of conducting business
deals in foreign locations

– Life style (top hotels, duty-free shopping,

business class travel)

– General exotic nature

Negatives for the Non-Expatriate - a High Level of
Stress!

• Home and family issues

– Frequent absences
• Work arrangements
– Domestic side of position still has to be attended to
• Travel logistics
– waiting in airports, etc.
• Health concerns
– Poor diet, lack of sleep, etc.
• Host culture issues
– Limited cultural training
Expatriate Success and Failure
 Expatriate failure:
Is it just a myth like a unicorn?
Reasons for early return – Expatriate
failure
1. Family concerns
2. Accepted new position in the company
3. Completed assignment early
4. Security concerns
5. Career concerns

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 Costs Associated with Expatriate
Failure
INDIRECT COSTS (Usually
DIRECT COSTS more expensive)
• Airfares
• Loss of market share

• Relocation expenses
• Difficulties with host-
(associated costs)
government officials

• Salary
• Morale and productivity
reduction
• Training costs
• Repatriation logistics • Family relationships threatened
END