Competencies for International HR - Essay Example

Referring to Stroh and Caligiuri (1998), one of the most critical factors for the success of a company is its management of the human assets. The most important issue for HR in global organisations to decide at present is to decide whether they should depend on convergence or divergence. Convergence refers to developing the same basic rules and regulations for all locations, and divergence refers to allowing diversity according to local requirements. As Amstrong (2006) points out, the decision to make a company centralised or decentralised is dependent on a number of factors.

These factors are: the extent to which there are well-defined local norms, the degree to which a unit is embedded in the local environment, the flow of resources from parent company to the subsidiary, and the nature of the industry (ibid). Admittedly, one thing becomes evident from this description: HR has an important role to play in this situation. A study in Malcrum(Alexander et al , 2009) with the support of HSBC looked into the role of internal and external communication in the present day international HR.

It is found that the purposes in enhancing internal communication for businesses are creating understanding of the company strategy and direction, supporting organisational change, keeping people informed of company news, building company pride, and helping people to live values (ibid). Thus, it becomes evident that the purposes all are linked to HR. The main purpose of internal communication is employee engagement. Then, the study looked into how this internal communication is linked to external communication.

In the present day business world, companies undergo rigorous scrutiny from the part of media and governments. That means companies will have to ensure that they practice what they preach. As Alexander et al (2009) states, if a company makes a public statement, it should make sure that the employees are aware of the same, and vice versa. When this point is discussed, it becomes necessary to point out how a lack of relationships with external media, governments and local communities can be destructive at times.

An example is the crisis faced by Shell Oil in Nigeria. To illustrate, it was during 1990s that Shell Petroleum came under heavy fire from the part of international press and local media for alleged environmental pollution of the delta. Noted public figures like Saro-Wiwa raised their concern against the company, and mass agitation began in no time. The company realised that it had little chance for improving its image or to bounce back to its previous glory as it had not cared to keep relationships with international media or the local community.

In order to improve its image, the company took the following public relation initiatives. Firstly, it started balancing its business with active citizenship/working in partnership with communities. Secondly, the company decided to position itself as a company that respects human rights and environment. Thirdly, the company started publicising itself as a law-abiding, non-sectarian company. As Turk and Scanlan (1999) reflect, the company decided to propagate what it did for community and environment.

Thus, one thing becomes very evident. International HR needs to be able to keep both internal and external