Define the Main Approaches to International Staffing

Essay by lumsdencafeUniversity, Master'sB+, April 2010

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Define the main approaches to international staffing

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This difficult task of recruiting international employees will be carried out by deployment of human resource capabilities within an international framework. Companies have immense resources that they can use when faced with employee decisions.

It is the personnel that a company employs that make the difference. Making the right selection and approach together with the most efficient use of them will provide the competitive advantage needed by today's organisation.

The first approach is the ethnocentric approach. It is based on the occupation of a key position by employees from headquarters (i.e. expatriates or parent country nationals PCN). It is thought that subsidiaries can be managed more resourcefully by expatriates. This is because expatriates are more informed of the company's goals and objectives, strategies and "know how" compared to local managers. This method is used when expanding globally and there is need of good communication, cooperation and control of activities.

Subsequently, PCN's are assigned to top management positions who implement strategic decisions from headquarters. Hence, the choice of expatriates will depend on the technical knowledge required or the type of international expansion a company is scheduling.

The ethnocentric approach provides the parent company with more control which is critical when expanding to a new country. Therefore, expatriates are seen as more proficient than host country nationals. At the recruitment process the MNC must decide whether the appointment is going to be external or internal, the importance of technological qualifications in regards to other selection factors. Research has shown that most MNCs depend mostly on internal recruitment for overseas management posts and those jobs tended to be senior management roles (Scullion, 1994).

Developing successful expatriate recruitment practices is crucial due to the complexity of this position but also due to 'expat failure' and...