Global Human Resource Management and Organizational Development

Often one of a company’s most expensive assets is its human capital, the human resources of the organization. The management of your human resources focuses on:

• Recruitment and selection of employees who can succeed at their jobs and who will stay with your organization, and
• Making sure that employee abilities are optimally nurtured and developed so that the company can receive an optimal return on the investment made in these employees.

Considering the globalization of business and its correlated networks, it is essential for organizations to maintain and establish standards and links internationally.

Following are some of the aspects that are frequently discussed when linking Global Human resources to Organisationla Development.

Recruitment and Selection

This is particularly challenging in a global organization where one of your biggest challenges will be finding, retaining and developing a superior global workforce. Successful companies know what the jobs entail and seek to hire those candidates who can be more successful/effective with the lowest amount of support. Well written job descriptions, and competency models that clearly delineate success behaviors make for effective selection and hiring. Understanding cultural differences in the recruitment process, the selection of candidates and what motivates employees in various cultures is crucial to the success of global organizations.

Targeted Interview Techniques

The selection process can be supported using and teaching Behavior Event Interviewing (BEI) or Targeted Interview (TI) techniques. While not difficult to learn, they are far more effective at identifying exactly what capabilities particular candidates could bring to an organization. This is particularly important when recruiting and selecting across cultures.

Assimilating New Employees

In this competitive environment for attracting good global talent, companies need to pay particular attention to the perception of the company on the part of candidates and new hires. A well thought out and extensive assimilation (adaptation) process often makes new employees more likely to stay. This process should start before the offer is made, and many companies have assimilation plans for at least the initial six months on the job. This is especially important in group and relationship cultures as it helps the new employees feel welcomed into the group and gives them time and structure to establish relationships that will be important to the employee as well as anchor their loyalty to the company

Developing Your Employees – Global Workforce Development

Helping employees recognize that they work in a multi-cultural environment or a global environment is an official reminder that there is an expectation that they will attend to cultural differences. General awareness programs are a good start. In addition, specific programs targeted to functional needs (global marketing, or global e-learning development, and/or on culture-specific needs, such as Understanding you Chinese Employees or Presenting to Japanese Audiences.

Localizing Your Employee Handbook and Job Descriptions

The meaning of job titles and job responsibilities vary across cultures. It is important to make them appropriate for various geographies in which these positions are located.

Performance Management

Cultures with a preference for Certainty (prefer to know the structure/rules rather than handle ambiguity) prefer competency based performance systems. Communicating exactly what is expected and defining the levels of behaviors and assessing employees all against the same criteria feels fairer to many employees. Performance systems that depend on manager discretion can be viewed as “favoritism” and “unfair.”  Hence it is necessary to establish criterion for performance management that suits cross cultures, without discrimination.

Global Leadership Selection and Retention

If you know what it is that differentiates successful employees (their competency / behaviors) recruiting (external) and selecting (internal) against these competencies reduces the need for development (as you hire those who already have the needed skills) and benefits employers by recognizing those who already have the skills necessary to succeed.

The global leadership competencies required for success include:

• The flexibility to work and manage across cultures
• The ability to be the voice of the local culture to home office while being the voice of home office to the local employees
• Understanding of and ability to adapt to cultural differences as they impact business practices

Therefore, organizations should work on assisting their global leaders succeed and make arrangements to retain them.

Global Succession Management and Development

Companies demand talent development / succession management to retain top talent and stay competitive. Linking both to a leadership competency model leverages investments, communicates expectations, and rewards (and retains) deserving talent. Organizations should be able to,

• Define Leadership and Management competencies
• Develop Succession processes
• Assess talent
• Identify areas for individual development

Strategic HR

HR professionals must have a thorough knowledge of global business, what it takes to establish companies in new geographies and the needs of the local workers in country. Since a company’s strategy will impact its employees, they need HR support that understands the global landscape, everything from the recruitment and hiring techniques used in other countries, to the establishment of contracts, and compensation and benefits packages.

Globalize the HR Function: HR Staff Development

As companies globalize, their HR departments need to understand the challenges of working in and serving a global organization. It is important for organizations to provide:

• Consulting behind the scenes for HR professionals to support them as they serve the needs of their global organizations
• Web content, HR professionals can use to sell to, train or explain about and be a better global business partner
• Certification for HR professionals in the administration and use of tools and services
• Act as temporary staff to supplement the capabilities of the existing professionals

Change Management

The development of  an organization and, particularly, how it manages change impacts the success of its business. Managing change and growth across cultures and geographies requires specific knowledge of the impact of change and growth needs in particular cultures.

An organization must understand the cultural nuances of change in many cultures and can support its organization in collecting and analyzing data on work culture and employee climate surveys to assure responses are culturally appropriate. The understanding of cross-border change initiatives can greatly reduce the usual issues created by change initiatives and address culturally specific issues relating to such cultural dimensions as Need for Certainty.

Companies that institute either small or large scale change need to attend to the needs of the employees before, during and after this process. Organizations must support the Change process throughout its life cycle. They could:

• Facilitate the charter of change implementation teams
• Provide consulting on employee communications
• Design and deliver cross-cultural training for multi-cultural or virtual implementation teams
• Provide change team leader support and data/information from assessment results
• Provide the organization with data on the impact of the change.

Action Learning- To develop competent Employees.

Imagine selecting “talent to watch” (high potential employees) and assigning them an as yet unsolved business problem. Give them some parameters about expected outcomes, timeframes, and how to collect information – and watch them learn. One learning coach and monthly measuring their learning’s (using the Action Learning Team Process Questionnaire™) insures they:

• learn about cross-functional issues
• meet people from all over the company
• get into” the day to day issues these people face.

Well defined action learning projects can resolve seemingly insurmountable business issues, develop and challenge talent, and cost nowhere near what a month at business school would cost.

• CIMA
• HRM
• Human Resource Management
• Organizational Development