Comprehensive Report on Global Staffing Strategies

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Introduction

Staffing for a multinational company is a complex task made even more so by the more diverse environment present in host countries comprised of business, economic, political, legal, as well as by cultural implications and the parent company's need for control. These factors influence the suitability, efficiency and management of human resources. Global mergers and acquisitions are often the impetus for change in a company's HR strategies. Organizations that acquire another company abroad need to change their HR policies as these are often not applicable to the acquired company (Kottolli, 2006).

To be successful, multinational HR systems must become localized to languages as well as relevant laws, rules and regulations. A compensation system, for example, must be localized to the extremely complex systems of employment, accounting, and taxation regulations that have developed over decades of business practice in host countries (Lermusi, 2003).

The challenges facing us here at Sell Computer Company, United States' leading retailer of custom built computers, as we expand our business into India through the purchase of a local subsidiary, Jodhpur Computers, reflect the complexity of the above challenges. These challenges include the cultural and regulatory issues as well as staffing, and recruitment strategies employed by Sell including the recruitment and selection process of our business managers. We must adapt our organizational structure to local conditions as we expand into the India market and conduct a strategic audit of our human resources at Jodhpur Computers which shows the strategic alternatives and choices for the future.

Industry and Country Identification

I have used a fictitious company here that I call "Sell" but it loosely based on Dell. If your professor requires a real company you may consider doing additional research on Dell or Gateway.

Market forecasts indicate that during this century economic and political world power will shift toward China, Japan and India. These countries are expected to challenge the centuries-old dominance of Europe and America. The worldwide PC industry may be one of the first industries to feel the pressures of these rivalries. The challenges that will no doubt occur in other industries will likely be felt first through the PC industry as the expanding Asian PC market provides an early and substantial threat to European and American companies (Farrell et al, 2005).

In both manufacturing and consumption, Asia/Pacific represents the most dynamic region of the worldwide PC industry. The U.S. market remains robust, but its growth will slow down considerably as it gets closer to saturation. Asia/Pacific, Japan, and Latin America, on the other hand, are emerging as the short-term, high-growth regions. On the manufacturing side, U.S. PC companies depend on Asian suppliers. The Asian foundry has enabled U.S. companies to gain and maintain substantial market share on the world market, however tested and confident Asian manufacturers are now gearing up for expansion across the Asia/Pacific and into the United States. Soon U.S. PC suppliers will be competing with aggressive Asian companies in both regions (Farrell et al, 2005).

Asian companies, primarily Japanese and Korean corporations, are not new to the U.S. market. Toshiba has been a perennial leader in the laptop market while NEC has seen only mixed results. Many such others tried to compete in the United States in the late 1980s as IBM clone suppliers. Although that initial venture was short lived and largely unsuccessful, a second, better-planned, foray is imminent. The new waves of Asian suppliers are not merely scrambling for low-end market share. Instead, these manufacturers are looking for strong, early entries into the market for providing the next-generation personal computing devices that represent a sizeable opportunity especially in the consumer market (Farrell et al, 2005).
In addition a ranking of 155 countries by ease of doing business in 2006, the World Bank and its affiliate, the International Finance Corporation, list India at 116, two places below Iraq, 56 below Pakistan and 25 below China (Economist, 2006). These statistics reflect on India's diversity, and the differences between the regions within India and the way they are governed.

HR Challenges and Organizational Effectiveness

Our company philosophy here at Sell Computer Company is rooted in the belief that our continued success will require teamwork and continuous learning on the part of every team member and now this will apply across the board to those at home and those at Jodhpur Computers. To develop and grow our newly acquired subsidiary in India we must focus on feeding our already established pipeline of talented, diversified individuals who are capable of meeting our current and future staffing needs and who are also capable of becoming our leaders of tomorrow. We must base our recruiting strategy on attracting top candidates with the skill sets we need by engaging in early recruitment and full utilization of our existing training program. This strategy has supported our strategic goals admirably thus far, but we will also need to adjust it to local conditions at Jodhpur Computers if we are to successfully gain our desired market share in India. To that end we must also adjust Sell's mission statement to read as follows. Sell will be the most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in the markets we serve and providing special service and ...