MN7181-The Global Context for HRM-Blog 10

Definition to Global HRM

In relation to HRM, globalisation is presented as a force that even if not yet leading to convergence in HR practice is certainly leading to a challenge to national mindsets (Sparrow and Hiltrop, 1997).

The preliminary function of global Human Resource Management is that the organization carries a local appeal in the host country despite maintaining an international feel. This has increased the workforce diversity and cultural sensitivities have emerged like never before. All this led to the development of Global Human Resource Management.

(Video 1: HRM in global perspective)

The objectives of global 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.

The Impact of Technology on Global HRM

Technical development is closely linked to the development of service center models. As a result, an increasing number of service center services can now be incorporated online to create an ethical approach for employee self-service or self-reliance. The behind-the-scenes operations of providing this service can be internally managed or can be outsourced to companies with the technological know-how to offer such services at low cost but with the ability to answer employee questions on behalf of the hiring organization(Ulrich, 2000).

(Figure 1: Global HRM)

Four important integration activities that the corporate HR center can make a unique

• Operational integration through standardized technology. - e-enablement of HR on a global scale. Portals can provide a common front to employees and help integrate the HR function around common processes. This is a form of information-based integration within the HR function.
• Intellectual integration through the creation of a shared knowledge base. -  By focusing on creating, sharing and exchanging knowledge both within and beyond the HR community, corporate HR functions can ensure that the intellectual capital of the function is rapidly codified and shared across constituent HR functions.
• Social integration through the creation of collective bonds of performance. This is where the function develops a clear sense of what it wants to achieve and how it wants to achieve this goal. The shift within global HR towards working through global networks is an example of new patterns of social integration.
• Emotional integration through a sense of shared identity and meaning. This concerns the mobilization of hearts and minds behind change processes. Examine the need for international HR professionals to act as guardians of national culture as they negotiate a new balance between the application of global rule-sets to HR processes and the need for local responsiveness to cultural imperatives.

References

• Sparrow, P. R. & Hiltrop, J. M. (1997) ‘Redefining the field of European human resource management: A battle between national mindsets and forces of business transition’, Human Resource Management, Vol. 36 (2), pp. 1-19.

• Ulrich, D. (2000) ‘From eBusiness to her’, Human Resource Planning, Vol. 20(3), pp. 12–21.

• Figure 1: Global HRM, (2017) 6 Trends That Changed HR Over the Past Decade, [Online] Available at: https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/0817/pages/6-trends-that-changed-hr-over-the-past-decade.aspx [Accessed 26 September 2019].
• Video 1: HRM in global perspective. [Online] Available at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBBLWqt3qVI [Accessed 26 September 2019].