INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE

MANGEMENT
Boxall, P. (1992) defined International Human Resource
Management (IHRM) as 'concerned with the human resource
problems of multinational firms in foreign subsidiaries (such as
expatriate management) or more broadly, with the unfolding
HRM issues that are associated with the various stages of the
internationalisation process.
IHRM is concerned with HRM issues that cross national
boundaries or are conducted in locations other than the home
country headquarters.
IHRM is concerned with the relationships between the HRM
activities of organisations and the foreign environments in which
the organisations operate.
IHRM includes comparative HRM studies; e.g. differences in how
companies in Japan, Thailand, Austria and Switzerland plan for
upgrading of employee skills and so on.

IHRM APPROACHES
ETHNOCENTRIC: key positions filled by nationals of
parent company
POLYCENTRIC: host country nationals recruited to
manage subsidiary in their own country
GEOCENTRIC: best people recruited, whatever their
nationality
REGIOCENTRIC: best people recruited within region in
which the subsidiary operates (e.g. EU, USA).

OBJECTIVES OF INTERNATIONAL HRM

Create a local appeal without compromising upon the global
identity.
Generating awareness of cross cultural sensitivities among
managers globally and hiring of staff across geographic boundaries
Training upon cultures and sensitivities of the host country.
TheSTRATEGIC ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENTin
such a scenario is to ensure that HRM policies are in tandem with
and in support of the firms strategy, structure and controls.
Specifically, when we talk of structures and controls the following
become worth mentioning in the context of Global HRM.
Decision Making:There is a certain degree of centralization of
operating decision making. Compare this to the International
strategy, the core competencies are centralized and the rest are
decentralized
Co-ordination:A high degree of coordination is required in wake

5 MAIN FUNCTIONS OF
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
1.RECRUITMENT
Finding, retaining and developing a superior workforce is one of
the biggest challenges ina global organization. Understanding
cultural differences in the recruitment process, inthe selection
of candidates and in what motivates employees is crucial in the
staffing andrecruitment processes for any international
operations and ultimately to the success ofglobal organizations.
The skills required to operate these businesses need to be
matchedwith the available local talent
.

2. SALARIES AND OTHER REWARDS

While fixing salaries and compensation packages, it is
imperative that adequate care istaken to see that local
standards are met. Overall organizational requirements
should bemet concurrently as well.
Insurance, pension and other benefits need to be
considered inconjunction with the present policies of
the company. Local laws regarding minimumwages,
bonuses, tax compliance services and other employee
benefit services also haveto be structured into the
packages

3. TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

To reduce costs, the possibility of developing in-house
training should be considered. If local facilities for
training and development of staff are not adequate,
sending staff toother countries may need to be
considered. This also helps employees recognize
thatthey work in a multi-cultural environment. The

4. ADMINISTRATION OF PERSONNEL
The administration of HR and related matters need to take into
consideration the varyingworking conditions of each area of
international operations.
A companys strategy willimpact its employees, and it is
necessary to have HR support staff that not onlyunderstand the
global landscape but also have a thorough knowledge of global
businessand what it takes to establish companies in new
geographies.

5. HUMAN RELATIONS
When contemplating global human resource
management, every sphere of internationaloperations
needs to follow specified religious and national festivals
that may requirecertain actions to be taken by the HR
department. Functions of global human
resourcemanagement take on these additional aspects
when a company is globalized.When developing global
HRM strategies, HR teams need to closely ascertain the
businessstrategies the company intends to adopt in the

MAIN CHALLENGES IN IHRM

High failure rates of expatriation and repatriation
Deployment getting the right mix of skills in the
organization regardless of geographical location
Knowledge and innovation dissemination managing
critical knowledge and speed of information flow
Talent identification and development identify
capable people who are able to function effectively
Barriers to women in IHRM International ethics
Language (e.g. spoken, written, body)
Different labor laws
Different political climate
Different stage(s) of technological advancement
Different values and attitudes e.g. time, achievement, risk
taking

IHRM V/S HRM

An IHRM operates beyond national borders while domestic
HRMs operate within the borders
IHRMs have more functions and are subject to more
stringent international rules and are moreexposed to a
wider array of activities as opposed to domestic HRMs.
In an IHRM, theres constant change for a broader set of
perspectives.
In an IHRM, theres more attention given to the associate
or expatriate
employees personal well-being.
There are more risks involved in IHRM than in the
Domestic HR
Domestic HRM is done at national level and IHRM is done

CONTINUE
Domestic HRM is concerned with managing
employees belonging to one nation and IHRM
isconcerned with managing employees belonging to
many nations (Home country, host country andthird
country employees)
Domestic HRM is concerned with managing limited
number of HRM activities at national leveland IHRM
has concerned with managing additional activities
such as expatriate management
Domestic HRM is less complicated due to less
influence from the external environment. IHRM
isvery complicated as it is affected heavily by
external factors such as cultural distance
andinstitutionalfactors.