Module-1

International
Human Resource
Management
 DEFINITION Of IHRM
P Morgan defines :

“IHRM as the interplay among human resource

activities (viz., procure, allocate and utilize),
types of employees (viz., host-country
nationals, parent-country nationals and third-
country nationals) and countries (viz., host
country, home country and others).”

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P.Morgans Model of IHRM

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 OBJECTIVES OF IHRM
• To reduce the risk of international human
resource

• To avoid cultural risks

• To avoid regional disparities

• To manage diversifies human capital

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 WHY IHRM?
Reasons for the emergence of IHRM:

1) Global competition.
2) Mergers and acquisitions.
3) Organization restructuring.
4) Advances in technology.
5) Problems in international operations.
6) To manage multi-cultural workforce.
7) Successful implementation of global strategies.
8) Expatriate failures.

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 What is an Expatriate?
 An employee who is working and temporarily
residing in a foreign country

• Some firms prefer to use the term “international

assignees”

• Expatriates are PCNs from the parent country

operations, TCNs transferred to either HQ or
another subsidiary, and HCNs transferred into the
parent country

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 Reasons for Expatriate Failures
1) Inability of spouse to adjust
2) Manager’s inability to adjust
3) Other family problems
4) Manager’s personal or emotional maturity
5) Inability to cope with larger overseas
responsibility
6) Lack of technical competence
7) Difficulties with new environment

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 APPROACHES TO IHRM
• Ethnocentric: key positions filled by nationals of
parent company

• Polycentric: host country nationals recruited to

manage subsidiary in their own country

• Geocentric: best people recruited, whatever their

nationality

• Regiocentric: best people recruited within region in

which the subsidiary operates (e.g. EU, USA)

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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN IHRM & HRM
 More HR activities.
 The need for broader perspective
 More involvement in employees personal lives
 Changes in emphasis as the workforce mix expatriates
and local varies
 Risk exposure
 Broader external influence
 Broader knowledge foreign country employment law
 Management of differential compensation
 More coordination and travel

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 CHALLENGES OF IHRM
• Managing international assignments
• Deployment – getting the right mix of skills in the
organization regardless of geographical location
• Employee and family adjustment
• Selecting the right person for a foreign assignment
• Culture, communication and gauge
• Language and communication
• Different labour laws
• Different political climate

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Thank You

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