Managing Expatriates In China: Cross Cultural Training, Performance Management, And Total Rewards Program

International Human Resource Management and Competitive Advantage

Discuss about the International Human Resource Management for Selection.

Human Resource Management is indicative of organizational activities that can help in directing the human resources so that the organization can reach its goals. International Human Resource Management (IHRM) can help an organization in achieving competitive advantage at the national along with the international level (Wilson 2014). IHRM is inclusive of different functions like recruitment, selection, training and performance appraisal. This report discusses about the plan of DAK that can help it in opening factories within China. It also elaborates on the reward along with performance management system for the managers.

The aligning of training and development with the business strategy of an organization in the international context can prove to be quite complex. The international firms have to face many hurdles like multiculturalism along with geographic dispersion. The strategy chosen in an organisation should be congruent with the external environment that can help an organization to be successful in the international context (Pinnington, Debrah and Rees 2015). DAK has to prepare the managers within China and the training and development should be aligned with the transnational strategy in between the headquarters and the subsidiary. Cross-cultural training can help the expats in determining the appropriate cultural behaviour that can help the employees in performing the necessary task within the host country. The expatriates have to face cultural shock and it may cause anxiety, helplessness and irritability for the expatriates (Konopaske and Werner 2005).

Cross-cultural skills should be taught to the employees that can help the mangers in facilitating interaction within the foreign culture. The managers in China can be prepared with the help of experiential training that is inclusive of the workshops along with simulations. Look-see trips can be organized for the managers that can help them in gaining real experience about China. It can provide the managers of DAK with the opportunity of meeting people in China so that they can get idea about the new environment. It can help in providing the expatriates with a positive view of the host country and the pre-departure programs can have a great effect on the managers. The experiential programs can prepare the managers in the direct manner and it can help in building the intellectual experience of the expatriates (Cascio 2018). The training can prove to be effective as it emphasizes on the aspect of learning by taking recourse to some action and the practical experiences can prove to be of great help for the expatriate managers.

Challenges in Aligning Training and Development with Business Strategy

Diversity along with language training can help the employees in working effectively within a diverse workforce and it can prove to be useful for people in working within a multicultural workplace. The emergence of a standard company language can prove to be of great help for the expatriate managers. In the event of the expat speaking the language of the host country he will have easier experiences (Sung and Choi 20140. The individualized tailored programmes can help the expatriate in addressing the specific needs. The experienced expats can work with the new expat that can help the managers in adjusting to the new environment of China. The immersion programmes can prove to be greatly helpful for the managers of DAK who have to settle in China as it can help them in gaining extensive understanding in relation to the local culture. Global meetings can also be made use of for the expatriate managers so that they can adjust successfully in the new environment of China. The intercultural training provided to the managers can help them in adjusting to the cultural differences and this can help in ensuring that the expatriate managers get a positive experience when they are working in the foreign country (Asfaw, Argaw and Bayiss 2015). It is important that the managers are aware about their mind set and expectations that can help them understanding the areas where the cultural gaps exist. The participative training can prove to be of much help for the expatriates in adjusting to the new environment of China. The training should inform the managers about the challenges that they might face on the foreign land. The E-learning platform can be made use of by the organization in order to prepare the expatriates so that they can adjust successfully in the new environment of China. Language can prove to be the roadmap pertaining to culture. The expatriate managers should be provided with training in relation to the language of the foreign country that can help them in adjusting to the foreign culture. The expatriate training can support the employee in relation to upcoming assignment. The training can help integration to that of the future role and it can help in providing the expatriates with the knowledge regarding delegation, leadership and motivation.

It has been found that the expatriates feel cut off from that of the headquarters that can have an impact on their organisational performance. The strategy of the organisation should change and it should be revised so that the organization can prove to be successful in the international arena. The mission of the organization does not change and hence it is important to introduce rewards in the performance management system that can help the expatriate managers in adjusting to the new cultural milieu. Modern workforce comprises of techno-savvy employees and the employees should be aware about the market realities that can help the expatriates in adjusting to the new situation. In the event of the wealth being valued by the organization, appropriate rewards should be provided to the employees. The rewards can provide encouragement to the managers that can help them in adjusting to the new environment of China (Mellahi and Collings 2010). The balance sheet approach can help in equalising the purchasing power of the employees at that of the comparable position level. The incentives provided to the expatriate managers can help in offsetting the qualitative differences in between the assignment locations. The basic objective of the performance management system is to ensure that the expat managers can maintain the home-country living standard and they can get the financial inducement that can help them in maintaining their lifestyle in the foreign country (McDonnell et al. 2010).

Cross Cultural Training for Expatriates in China

The total rewards programme can be made use of by DAK and the performance based rewards can include the incentives along with other tactics that can help in achieving the specific result of the organization. The career rewards should be provided to the expatriate managers of DAK that can help in supporting the employees in their international assignment. DAK can allocate the total rewards investment to that of performance based category that can help in the developing of new products along with services. The total rewards would act as employee value proposition for the company. DAK should make use of the adequate reward mix that can help in motivating the employees of DAK. The compensation approach that can be made use of by DAK for the expatriate managers is the global market approach. In the event of global market approach, the assignees are held on equivalent compensation scale irrespective of their home country.

The managers would be ready to accept an international assignment if they can perceive positive value in relation to the assignment. These benefits can have a positive impact on the expatriate managers and they would become more willing to accept a global assignment if they can get positive rewards. The employees working overseas should be provided with travel medical provision along with host-country health coverage. The health care plan for the expatriate should include that of pre-departure planning along with physical examination. The managers of DAK travelling abroad are very concerned about their healthcare and due attention to this factor can help in improving the performance of the employees (Shen 2005).  The healthcare coverage can help in benefitting assignee and it can help in increasing global assignment acceptance of the expatriate manager of DAK.

The temporary living allowances can provide the managers of DAK with additional amount of income that can help them in covering any kind of cost pertaining to living difference between home and that of the host country. Housing allowance should be provided to the expatriate manager of DAK that can help them in maintenance of a standard of living when they are living abroad. The tax can prove to be tremendous expense for the expatriate manager when they are settling down abroad. Tax equalization facility can help the expatriate managers in paying the same income like that of their home country and this can help in providing the expatriate manager of DAK with encouragement that can help in managing the employee performance abroad (Suutari and Tahvanainen 2002). The retaining of the frequent flier miles can help the expatriate manager of DAK in reducing the travel expense by making use of mileage points that is generated by computer. The retaining of the travel miles can help in benefitting the assignee and increase the global assignment acceptance of the expatriate manager. The home leave allowances should be provided to the expatriate managers that can help them in returning home so that they can visit their friends along with their relatives. Rest along with relaxation leave should be provided to the assignees that can help them in taking vacations at the expense of the company.

Conclusion

IHRM can be helpful for an organization in getting competitive advantage at the global level. The expatriate managers of DAK should be provided with cross-cultural training and there should be alignment of transnational strategy between headquarter and subsidiary. Cross-cultural training can help in the determination of the right cultural behaviour that can strengthen the employees to deliver effective performance in the host country. The cultural shock experienced by the expatriates can hinder their performance in host country as it can give rise to anxiety and irritability. Performance Management System can help the expatriate managers of DAK in adjusting to the new cultural situation. Healthcare is a concern for the expatriate managers and paying due attention to this aspect can augment employee performance. The expatriate managers of DAK should be provided with housing allowance that can help them in maintaining their standard of living abroad.

References:

Asfaw, A.M., Argaw, M.D. and Bayissa, L., 2015. The impact of training and development on employee performance and effectiveness: A case study of District Five Administration Office, Bole Sub-City, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Journal of Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 3(04), p.188.

Cascio, W., 2018. Managing human resources. McGraw-Hill Education.

Konopaske, R. and Werner, S., 2005. US managers’ willingness to accept a global assignment: do expatriate benefits and assignment length make a difference?. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 16(7), pp.1159-1175.

McDonnell, A., Lamare, R., Gunnigle, P. and Lavelle, J., 2010. Developing tomorrow’s leaders—Evidence of global talent management in multinational enterprises. Journal of world business, 45(2), pp.150-160.

Mellahi, K. and Collings, D.G., 2010. The barriers to effective global talent management: The example of corporate élites in MNEs. Journal of World Business, 45(2), pp.143-149.

Pinnington, A., Debrah, Y.A. and Rees, C., 2015. Training and Development: Developing Global Leaders and Expatriates. In International human resource management/Ann-Wil Harzing and Ashly H. Pinnington/4th ed.. Sage Publications.

Shen, J., 2005. Effective international performance appraisals: easily said, hard to do. Compensation & Benefits Review, 37(4), pp.70-79.

Sung, S.Y. and Choi, J.N., 2014. Do organizations spend wisely on employees? Effects of training and development investments on learning and innovation in organizations. Journal of organizational behavior, 35(3), pp.393-412.

Suutari, V. and Tahvanainen, M., 2002. The antecedents of performance management among Finnish expatriates. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 13(1), pp.55-75.

Wilson, J.P., 2014. International human resource development: Learning, education and training for individuals and organisations. Development and Learning in Organizations, 28(2).