Global Staffing - Research Paper Example

Global Staffing Managers can apply human resource management as a tool to improve their organization's competitiveness at the internal level when the challenges and opportunities facing their firms are of global nature. This paper basically examines the challenges facing expatriate job assignments, levels of international involvement, and the strategies that can make these assignments more effective. It mainly addresses global staffing in relation to expatriate families, global careers, health/safety issues, and repatriation.

In order for an organization to accomplish its goals and dreams, it has to hire experts for specific jobs at specific times and places. Such qualified individuals can be obtained globally through human resource selection, planning, and recruitment. The role of an International Human Resource Manager is to be a decision-maker and strategist in planning business partnerships. Their main aim is to maximize profits and minimize costs of production. They thus need to have a full understanding of the global business system.

One of the ways of achieving global business prosperity is by hiring expatriates. An expatriate is a person working in a sub-branch firm located in a foreign country whose mother firm/headquarters is located in the employee’s country (Hugh, p196). Repatriation Training and Orientation Repatriation is the practice of getting the expatriates home. Training and orientations are essential before repatriation. Repatriation training and orientation is required to prepare the employees and their families for their journey back to their home country’s culture and to organize the expatriates’ supervisors and subordinate prior to their return (Steers & Nardon, p291) The Expatriates’ Families Separation from family members has been established as one of the problems that the expatriates face when they are relocated to other countries.

The current research reports such as SHRM Global Forum, 2003 have indicated that most of the expatriates are married and they are usually accompanied by young children and spouses (Hugh, p197). Their partners and children have dual-career with different family responsibilities and work. Therefore, their adaptability has been used as the predetermining factor of their retention and performance. On certain occasions, the expatriates have returned to their home countries prematurely due to family instability.

The Tung study of 1981 revealed that the spouse's inability to adapt to the new environment was the main cause of the expatriates’ failure in the United States (Hugh, p197). Organizations should focus their attention on the expatriate’s family roles before assigning international duties if they successfully want to select, develop and retain expatriates. And also, the Human Resource Manager should take responsibility to solve the family-related problem in adapting to the new environment.

For prosperity in hiring expatriates, an organization should take into account issues such as involving in the expatriate’s personal life and formulating suitable family-supportive policies (Hugh, p197). Safety and Health Issues Health and safety aspects are essential in any job since employees working in a safe environment are likely to be more productive, thus yielding long-term gains to the organization. This is the reason why development-oriented managers are advocating for the implementation of sufficient health and safety policies.

For example, the United States-based global operations are usually healthier and safer than those of the host country operations (Hugh, p197). Global Careers Business expansions and economic globalization across international borders illustrate the increasingly high demand for human capital development and the global flexibility of human resources (Dickmann & Baruch, p18). In every organization, Human Resource Manager performs a vital role in international staffing and the formulation of culturally sufficient policies so as to improve and sustain global business operations.

For example, a recent international survey carried out by Price Water House Coopers (2002) on 273 companies from 17 countries indicated that the need for expatriates is likely to increase in the future in relation to the growing demand for internationally mobile staff (Dickmann & Baruch, p18). Another case study done by Hewitt Associates (2004) in 500 United States companies indicated that approximately 45 percent of those firms were utilizing a global outsourcing model so as to achieve cost-efficient human resources (Dickmann & Baruch, p18).

International Human Resource Management (IHRM) literature and Cross-cultural surveys have successfully grouped the international expatriates based on their nationalities- host country national (HCNs), third-country nationals (TCNs), and Parent country national. However, IHRM literature is mainly interested in the PCNs as the basis for expatriation since it considers international assignments as one-way processes (Steers & Nardon, p293). Conclusion In conclusion, the global increase in demand for cost-efficient expatriates is due to the need for organizations to expand their businesses beyond their international borders.

Global outsourcing requires the firms to hire and train expatriates to whom they assign international business duties. Before moving out the qualified personnel to their host countries, the organization must organize repatriation training and orientation for the expatriates and their families so as to organize the subordinate staff and the supervisors prior to their coming. Family separation and health/safety issues are some of the factors that should be considered to predetermine the expatriate's selection and retention.

If these factors are taken into account by the organization’s IHRM, then the expatriate’s long-term stay in the organization is guaranteed.