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Summary
The research here is based on the idea of understanding through identification the training
practices adopted by MNCs based in Asia. The nature, expenditure of training programs is also
of concern in this research. The hypothesis of this study is not what benefit can be procured of
employee training but rather if training employees are viewed as an integral part of
organiational development deriving from the fact that how much MNCs in Asia actually invest
in such operations. This !esearch is primarily based on a range of five hypotheses. !esearch in
this topic earlier seems to produce primarily information on the fact that training investments are
emphasied on expatriates and international management. !esearches focusing on training
programs of locals wor"ing in MNCs subsidiary operations are too vague to be noticed.
!esearchers have gathered information stating that non#Asian owned MNCs spent more on
training their staff then Asian MNCs. And these local MNCs have the tendency to poach these
trained employees form their competing foreign counterparts. !esearchers have considered the
idea of a globally converged approach to $!M practices in MNCs but concluded them to be
unrealistic and difficult to accommodate because of institutional constraints. %xperts have also
ac"nowledged the fact that the diversity of international wor"force and their different attitudes
toward wor" and hierarchical authority would create constraints in adopting a globally uniform
approach $!M. Training practices differ from Asian to non#Asian MNCs. &t is noted that non#
Asians are expected to spend more on training practice than their counterparts. &n Asia education
level becomes a prominent factor in employee training. &n some cases it has been noted that
education and training has a negative relationship whereas others have a strong positive
relationship. Nonetheless it concludes down to the fact that employees in a managerial level
with greater learning ability gets more training then a clerical level wor"er. &t has also been noted
that the type industry plays a prominent role when it comes to training. &t is stated that people in
the manufacturing sector ac'uire less training than of service sector personnel. (ith wor" place
innovation as a prominent driving tool of training and service organiations having a compelling
need to adapt to wor" place changes we can conclude that service organiation do spend more on
training than its relative sector. &t is a common idea that larger firms would be able to spend more
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on training initiatives than smaller ones bringing in the aspect that firm sie does matter when it
comes to training development. Another notable fact would be that firms that are involved in
international trade are more li"ely to spend heavily on human capital development. This mean
that Asian owned MNCs that are reluctant to spend more on staff development will comply
when it competes internationally. )o, the extent to which a firm exports is lin"ed to the extent it
is involved in training. The higher portion of export a MNC has the more the need to provide
training. Along with the rapid economic growth in the Asian region more prominence is given on
human resource development to ensure successful cross border operations of MNCs. *revious
researches only focused on expatriate trainings for parent country nationals in MNCs+ with this
paper concerned researchers intend to answer 'uestions relating to type of training offered, sum
of expenditure incurred, people involved etc. in MNCs in the Asian region.
Findings:
The first hypothesis can be verified with the info that non#Asian owned MNCs spent
significantly higher on employee per annum in contrast to their Asian counterparts. Although
some Asian MNCs have spent more on training similar to that of non#Asian MNCs suggesting
that they are starting to ac"nowledge the benefits of adapting to global $! standards.
&nformation gathered have also showed that difference between the two is not that significant.
)o, hypothesis 1is partially agreeable. Hypothesis 2is confirmed by the fact that the number of
people wor"ing in managerial positions are rather limited compared to those of other wor" levels
and eventually got more training programs. &t was also noted that in Asian MNCs there is also a
shortage of s"illed labor. Hypothesis 3is maybe supported by the fact that studies showed that
service related MNCs do spend more on training then their manufacturing counterparts.
Although the support may be proven partial by the fact that the larger manufacturing MNCs are
more prone to training and are li"ely to provide to their production levels, which further states
that differences in sector may not be of maor relevance when it comes to training levels.
%xamination have also noted that firm sie does play a role as larger firms tend to spend more on
training than smaller ones comparatively which is the proving point for hypothesis 4. -astly
hypothesis 5is proved contradictory because mostly the Asian head'uartered MNCs tend to
export more in the region and mostly these are manufacturing MNCs. And the number of service
firms in the sample sie was significant. These services MNCs are more into serving local
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customers then exporting their offerings which ma"es compliance with the given hypothesis
rather complicated.
Introduction
ur chosen article was on /Training practices of Multinational Companies in Asia. The article
contains five hypothesis and findings of hypothesis according to Asia pacific context. )elected
Asian country was &ndonesia, Malaysia, *hilippines, )ingapore, Thailand and Taiwan which are
highly culturally diversified, culture oriented.The fact is that people from different countries act
or behave differently, some of these countries are cultural responsive, some are highly localresponsive. )o the outcome of training and development results differently also. Non#Asian
MN%s effort behind providing training to Asian host country will not be fruitful until non MNCs
get to understand which approach is best to apply on which country, are the non#Asian MN%s
needed to integrate their $!M practice to Asian MNCs practice or is it wise "eep local
responsiveness.
&t is 'uite difficult to decide or ma"e a standard for all MNCs whether it is Asian or non#Asian
MN%s. 0ecause different MN%s follow different approaches li"e ethnocentric, polycentric, and
geocentric. 1ocusing on this approach it is difficult to get desired output from non#Asian MN%s.
Many researchers suggest that to get good outcome company needs to universalie some
practices which are necessary to be similar all around world. )ome also argued that same types
of practices are not going to affect same way on different countries, on local culture responsive
people. 0oth convergence and divergence have advantages and wea"ness, they have few limiting
facts whichs May result alternative or unexpected result. &t is hard to put a solution of which
theory is the best for both *CNs and $CNs.
2iving importance on these facts it seems that it is a challenge for non#Asian MN%s to balance
local responsiveness and global integration. 1ocusing on training practice issue of non#Asian
MN% in Asian countries we have chosen our critical 'uestion that is3 $ow to overcome the
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Challenge of balancing the conflicting needs of global integration and local responsiveness or
divergence.
Critical Analysis
HR !ractice Issue in Asia:
&n Asia *acific region there have been significant economic and political developments in recent
times. *olitical and economic difficulties in several countries in the Asia *acific region provide
examples of the influence of externals factors on various aspects of management at national and
global levels. %very Asian#*acific country has its own identity and culture, each presenting its
own set of opportunities and challenges. 1or human resources professionals tas"ed with
maximiing competitive advantage through the management of human and intellectual resources,
this means coming to terms with individual local $! practices. 0ut MNCs especially from
%uropean and other (estern countries are designing more relevant and better 'uality training
programs to the employees wor"ing in Asia located companies. $ere the conflict starts. This
conflict is all about convergent and divergence. 0ecause MNCs are shaped by institutions
existing in their country of origin and the attempt to introduce these parent#country#based $!M
practices in their foreign subsidiaries. 0efore balancing these two factors of between $!M and
&$!M we have to understand meaning of /Convergent and /4ivergent in terms of &$!M.
Con"ergence in terms o# domestic HR and international HR:
Convergence is the act of oining two different things together as one thing. &n terms of &$!M
we can say it globaliing the practices which are proved best or practicing the standard. &n term
of convergence theory it is believed that all countries are subect to these forces, with similar
governmental roles in providing the wor"force, infrastructure and competition for the same
international investment. Convergence of $!M across national borders is, clearly, not a foregone
conclusion. 2lobaliation and international trade and finance may place substantial pressure on
firms to standardie practices and policies. -ocal customs, institutions, and labor forces do,
however, provide serious constraints on the degree of convergence and may well lead to
increasing levels of divergence. 5sually it is easier for organiations to have convergent policies
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or a universalistic approach as it helps maintain uniformity 6 does away with the cost 6 effort of
designing place specific policies. &t may also be easier to implement integration, but much more
difficult to internalie, certain $!M practices li"e training and development. Therefore, even if
there are /best practices, they may not bring positive effects until people fully accept and
approve them. Thus, /&t is easier to change the $! policies than it is to change the behavior of
employees.
Reasons #or Increasing Similarity:
Convergence or globaliation is the only method to practice the best things across organiation to
achieve the goal by removing barriers and confusions among managers and wor"ers. &t is the best
practice to improve the cultural, societal, personal and economical value of an organiation as
well as of a country. A "ey concern for organiations is how they manage the individual units.
The extent to which each units management can be consistent across different countries and
cultures depends on where on the continuum between global and multidomestic industries the
organiation lies. This is a maor differentiator of domestic and international $!M. Although the
term /management is present all over the world, its meaning can be somewhat different from
one country to the next, in order to understand it in each country, one must first have an
understanding of the culture, history, processes, philosophies and problems in that society. This
means that to assume management practices are the same all around the world, would be utterly
foolish+ careful analysis of particular countries in 'uestion first need to be underta"en before
such assumptions can be ustified.
$i"ergence in terms o# domestic HR and international HR
4ivergence is a variation that deviates from the standard or norm or we can say it difference. As
we have mentioned earlier that the main difference between domestic $!M and international
$!M is, the complexities of operating in different countries and employing different national
categories of wor"ers. That is, practicing $!M internationally is more complicated than
practicing domestically. Many organiations tend to use traditional tools to manage human
capital on global scenarios, based on the mere transfer of $!M solutions from the home country
to the international mar"ets. This choice often leads the firm to face several problems that may
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affect its economic results in the foreign mar"et. Cultural determinants still have a deep influence
on the Chinese society, and by means of shaping individuals behavior and their ways of thin"ing
and acting, they also affect business and organiational relationships.
!ro%lems &ith Con"ergence:
1rom the above we can distinguish two polar views 7with a variety within them8 that attempt to
explain national $!M systems. (hile many expect $!M practices to universalie and converge
over time, others would argue that practices are varied and specific, and they expect them to
remain so or even to diverge. &ndeed, even convergence at the global level in terms of economic
forces and technologies may result in divergence at the national and intra#national level, as these
forces are mediated by different institutions with their own traditions and cultures. verall, for a
number of reasons the prospects for convergence would appear to be low. These
9-imiters9 are3
7:8 Countries are at different stages of industrial and economic development,
7;8 4istinctive political#economic framewor"s,
7
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practices and assessing the underlying power dynamics .The dual need refers to the need for inter
unit lin"ages 7integration8 and the challenges faced by each affiliate in order to operate
effectively in its local environment 7responsiveness or differentiation8, sometimes referred to as
the internal and external fit of a MNC. &n one of the most recent )&$!M models, Taylor and
colleagues9 7:?8 have identified three different )&$!M orientations in MNCs3 i8 Adaptive, ii8
%xportive and iii8 &ntegrative. These orientations determine the company9s overall approach to
managing the tension between integration or the pressure for internal consistency and
differentiation or the pressure for external consistency.
Adapti"e:An adaptive )&$!M orientation is one in which the affiliates9 $!M systems reflect
the different local environments. 4ifferentiation is being emphasied with almost no transfer of
$!M philosophy, policies or practices either from the parent firm to its international affiliates or
between international affiliates. !esearchers propose that this orientation is more li"ely to be
adopted by MNCs who follow a multidomestic strategy, or if top management perceives that
$!M competence is context specific.
*+porti"e:An exportive )&$!M orientation is one in which the parent firm9s $!M system is
being transferred to its different affiliates. &ntegration is being emphasied with high internal
consistency among all units and reflects as previous literature described an ethnocentric
approach.
Integrati"e:An integrative )&$!M orientation attempts to ta"e 9the best9 approaches and uses
them throughout the organiation in the creation of a worldwide system The focus here is on
substantial global integration with an allowance for some local differentiation.
!esearchers propose that both an exportive and integrative orientation is more li"ely to be
adopted by MNCs who follow a global strategy, or if top management perceives that $!M
competence is context generalied.
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$egree o# local $i##erence
,he cultural component:
0esides the dual need for global integration and local responsiveness, another crucial factor,
mentioned in almost all )&$!M models, is the cultural context of $D and the different affiliates.
The cultural component of &$!M is the main reason that the same $!M policies will not
produce the same effects in different subsidiaries. *ractices with respect to selection,
socialiation, training, performance appraisal, reward systems and career development are all
being influenced by differences in cultural assumptions, beliefs and values. (ho to trainE (hat
"ind of training practices is acceptableE $ow to improve practices of training 'ualityE $ow
important is individual versus team effort and resultE All these 'uestions are very li"ely to be
answered differently in individualistic than in collectivistic cultures. 4ifferences in cultural
values reflect different assumptions about the nature of the relationship between employers and
employees and therefore lead to different interpretations and employees9 experiences of what
9good9 $!M practices are.
Conse'uently, cultural differences are main drivers in deciding which $!M practices can be
globally used and which $!M practices need to be locally adusted. 5nderstanding the cultural
embedded ness and appropriateness of $!M practices is therefore a first vital step in avoiding
the possible alienation or low morale which comes from imposing $! policies that are ill#suited
to the local culture.
,he political component
0esides culture as a critical factor in deciding the degree of local differentiation, the discussion
of the need for local responsiveness is li"ely to hide a political subtext. )ince each party wants to
reserve the power and autonomy to do things as they see fit, cultural differences may be used as
an excuse, a pretext for retaining local control. )uch underlying power dynamics will especially
drive the discussion if power relationships between the parties are changing. Conse'uently,
important s"ills for international $! managers are to assess not only the cultural implications of
$! practices but also the underlying political concerns.
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,he Implementation o# Integration IHR
&n any organiation, the primary obective of the human resource management 7$!M8 function
is to ensure that the most effective use is made of its human resources. To achieve this, $!
professionals underta"e a range of activities around sourcing, training, development, reward andperformance management, $! planning, employee involvement and communications. &f the
organiation has a strategic $! function, these activities will support and inform organiational
strategy. $! professionals are also used extensively in organiational change and development
initiatives. 1or international organiations, these $! activities need to be co#coordinated across
both the home country and different national subsidiaries and to ta"e into account the needs of
both parent country nationals 7*CNs8, host country nationals 7$CNs8 and third country nationals
7TCNs8. Now it is 'uestions that how do managers decide on appropriate &$!M policy choicesE
A critical challenge for all international organiations is the need to achieve best fit in relation to
the competing demands of global integration and co#ordination versus local responsiveness, the
Fglobal versus localG debate. 1rom a business perspective, forces for global integration include
operational re'uirements, strategic co#ordination and multinational customers. &n contrast, forces
for local responsiveness include highly diverse consumer re'uirements, tailored distribution
channels and broader social and political constraints to mar"et entry. 1rom an $! perspective,
there are many factors constraining the use of standardied $! practices including differing
national business systems, labor laws, national $! practice, education systems and national
cultural norms. rganiations may, however, still want to implement standardied $! systems
globally. Their choice depends to a great degree on their stage of internationaliation and
international mindset.
odels o# Cultural Synergy
ne way of experimenting with creative variations as a way to achieve a balance between global
integration and local adaptation may be grounded in models of cultural synergy. According to
Adler 7:@, p. :HB83 Iculturally synergistic organiations reflect the best aspects of all members9
cultures in their strategy, structure and process without violating the norms of any single culture.I
)ynergies are the benefits resulting from a decision that integrates differences and creates a
resolution that has more value than would be produced by a compromise solution. Managers in
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synergistic organiations do not ignore cultural differences nor do they approach culture as a
problem to be solved. &nstead, they use the cultural diversity as a "ey source in solving problems
or achieving outcomes. &mplementing an integrated &$!M approach according to the philosophy
of cultural synergy may therefore be a useful way to achieve an &$!M system that supports the
organiational strategy as well as is acceptable to all affiliates.
The idea of cultural synergy can be found in the wor" of both Adler 7:@8 and $oec"lin 7:>8.
(hile Adler ta"es a problem#solving approach to cultural synergy, $oec"lin adopts a value#
added perspective on culture. Adler9s synergistic approach to problem solving involves three
fundamental steps3 cross-cultural situation description. cultural interpretation. and cultural
creati"ity/ 2lobal managers #irst define the problem or describe the situation from the
perspectives of all cultures involved. Second, they culturally interpret the situation by analying
and explaining the patterns that ma"e each culture9s behavior logical from within its own
perspective. ,hird, they develop new culturally creative solutions that foster the organiation9s
effectiveness and productivity without violating the norms of any culture involved. Another
researcher $oec"lin argues that managers from each culture must ointly wor" through the
following steps3 10 agreeing on the specific outcomes that are desired from the interaction+ 20
understanding each culture9s way of doing things in trying to achieve the outcome+ 30agreeing to
an approach or create new alternatives, blending approaches which will lead to achieving the
desired outcomes+ 40 implementing the solution and reviewing the impact from a oint
perspective+ and 50refining the solution based on multicultural feedbac".
(hile the two models differ from each other in terms of starting the synergy process with a
problem to be solved or a desired outcome, their overall philosophy seems very similar. 0oth
authors stress the creative potential of cultural differences leading to new solutions and
approaches that transcend the existing differences. &mportant in this process of developing
culturally synergistic solutions are the assumptions of e'uifinality and cultural contingency.
%mployees and managers using synergistic approaches believe that 9there are many culturally
distinct ways of reaching a same goal 7e'uifinality8, but neither is inherently superior to the other
7cultural contingency8. They believe that creative combinations of all different ways produce the
best approaches to organiing and wor"ing. )o, only in those cases in which organiation
members explicitly recognie the concept of culture can the response to cultural diversity be
synergistic. 1urthermore, finding creative combinations that transcend differences re'uires
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flexibility and open mindedness. &t is through a flexible mind that one has the ability to benefit
from local thin"ing and to reemploy these ideas in other parts of the world, adapting them to new
circumstances. &mplementing such a synergistic approach is a systematic process at an
operational level. An organiation might address cultural differences at a strategic level by ta"ing
decisions that signal the importance of culture. %xamples of such strategic decisions are
internationaliing the management team, selecting expatriates from all over the company instead
of only from head'uarters, or setting up cooperation between affiliates. )uch strategic
interventions are important and valid steps since they encourage the meeting of two or more
cultures. 0ut companies are advised to move beyond such type of tolerance and cooperation and
to begin to build cultural synergies at an operational level. (hile operational, this process of a
synergistic approach is not a 'uic" fix, but instead a systematic process.
&n introducing culturally synergistic problem solving or value adding to an organiation for the
first time, the process must be addressed explicitly and formally through wor"shops, seminars
and structured meetings. The process should also be seen as a continuing, evolving process rather
than an isolated event to solve a particular problem. -ater, such synergistic processes will
become more implicit, more informal, and considerably less time#consuming since the learning
ac'uired during initial sessions will become part of the organiation9s increasingly global
perspective and cross cultural competence.
2oing bac" to the three different &$!M orientations of an exportive, adaptive and integrative
approach, it is only an integrative approach that may have the potential of a culturally synergistic
approach to $!M. The two other approaches, an exportive and an adaptive orientation, seem to
ignore the possibility of cultural learning.
A Culturally Synergistic Approach to an Integrated IHR
The purpose of this approach is to offer &$! managers guidelines of how to implement
a process through which an integrated &$!M system may be realied. )ince the implementation
of a culturally synergistic approach to &$!M will ta"e place at the operational level by
wor"shops and meetings, the studies on international teams will help in identifying the
conditions of how to ensure a meaningful participation among the different $! managers. The
principles relevant for a fair global strategic decision ma"ing process will offer us additional
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insights in how to set up a fair decision ma"ing process. The culturally synergistic &$!M model
distinguishes two basic cycles of activity # one that occurs prior to any decision or action, and
one that occurs after a decision to act has been ta"en. ,he #irst cycleconsists of five stages3 :8
felt need for an integrated &$!M practice, ;8 4eveloping an super ordinate goal, 8
decision ma"ing by consensus. ,he second cyclethen involves ?8 ta"ing action steps, and @8
evaluation of the outcomes of the action steps. &n each stage there are common traps. Awareness
of these traps can help &$! managers to focus on conditions and interventions that overcome
these traps and that stimulate constructive wor"ing relationships leading to creative combinations
of $!M practices.
Conclusion
An integrated &$!M approach is confronted with the challenges of finding a balance between
global integration and local responsiveness, understanding the cultural embedded ness of $!M
practices, and correctly assessing the political concerns of the affiliate units. The underlying
logic of the culturally synergistic approach as well as the suggested interventions when trying to
implement this approach seem to provide a possible way of dealing with these three challenges.
Most scholars in &$!M tend to lin" the global#local duality to the discussion of $!M
competences and practices that are context generaliable or context specific. (hen $!M
practices are generaliable, affiliate practices can be transferred to the parent company and vice
versa. (hen $!M practices seem to be context specific, no transfer can occur. 1ollowing this
logic, an integrated approach of &$!M combines both characteristics of the parent company9s
$!M system with those of its affiliates. &n contrast, a cultural learning model stresses the
possibility of mutual dialogue leading to creative variations of $!M practices. &nstead of simply
transferring practices, a culturally synergistic approach to &$!M can create new practices by
recogniing and transcending the individual cultures. &$! managers may find a balance between
global integration and local responsiveness when they explore best practices of different cultures,
try to understand how these practices lead to the desired outcome and then try to create new
alternatives by blending and combining practices. )o, the challenges of the dual global#local
need and the cultural embedded ness of $!M practices can be dealt with exactly by utiliing and
valuing cultural differences instead of approaching these cultural differences as a problem to be
solved.
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Additional !art
As the verdict of the article states that 1oreign owned MNCs do indeed have the financial
bac"ing to emphasie more on training and development of the human resource.
&n relevance to that "nowledge lets loo" at the first $J*T$%)&), which states the assumption
that concludes the above verdict. (e have companies li"e 5niliver and Telenor present along
with many others. 1or obvious standards, these companies do have more financial bac"ing to
train their employees. Then again, another factor may have some relevance to the findings
concerned. The fact that these companies are coming from developed first world countries.
0ased on their standard of living and the stage they are in, according to their economic
development, these companies will be more obliged to emphasie on $!M development. (here
as in 0angladesh our organiation still dont consider $! systems with that much prominence.
This is where the second $J*T$%)&) comes in which states managerial and professional level
staffs get more training then clerical level staff. Again as a third world country we have a surplus
of the clerical and production level wor"er and the organiations here that has a surplus of such
wor"er are the garments industry which consist a maority of our export nowadays. )o we can
conclude that is accordance to the maority wor"ing population in our country we do have morewor"ers in the labor class. &n reference to some local companies they are relactant to spend much
on training that class of wor"er but more on the managerial level.
ne of the "ey findings came from $J*T$%)&)
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Re#erences:
CN%!2%NC% AN4 4&%!2%NC% &N A)&AN $5MAN !%)5!C%
MANA2%M%NT 0JChris Rowley and John Benson
A C5-T5!A--J )JN%!2&)T&C A**!AC$ T &NT%!NAT&NA- $5MAN
!%)5!C%
MANA2%M%NT3 &M*-%M%NT&N2 AN &NT%2!AT%4 A**!AC$By M.
JANSSENS
&nternational $uman !esource Management3 Asia *acific Challenges By Helen De Cieri