Eunmi Chang

Control in Multinational Corporations (MNCs): The Case of Korean Manufacturing Subsidiaries:

Using both agency theory and comparative national culture frameworks, this study investigated factors determining the degree and type of control used by American and Japanese MNCs on their Korean subsidiaries. Two characteristics of MNCs affected the control they exerted—the degree of MNCs’ ownership, which affected the amount of control, and the nationality of the MNC’s headquarters, which affected the type of control exerted. As predicted, the size of the subsidiary relative to the MNC, moderated the relationship between the degree of ownership and amount of output control the MNC exerted. Overall, the study supported the usefulness of agency theory in explaining the degree of management control exerted, while national culture accounted for the type of control exerted.

Employees’ overall perception of HRM effectiveness

Although the effects of a company’s overall human resources (HR) practices, or HR bundle, have been extensively examined, the effects of employees’ overall perception of HR effectiveness have rarely been studied. The current research examines whether a company’s commitment HR bundle measured at the company level is associated with an employee’s overall perception measured at the individual level, and whether the overall perception influences his/her perceived procedural justice and organizational commitment. Using data collected from 37 companies and 959 employees in Korea, the results show that the company’s HR bundle affects the overall perception of the employees, and that the overall perception predicts organizational commitment, which is partially mediated by procedural justice perception. Discussions and implications of the results are included.

Motivational effects of pay for performance: a multilevel analysis of a Korean case

Individual pay for performance is regarded as a major motivational practice, but direct empirical examinations of its effects on employee motivation are rare. Such research is especially rare in collectivistic societies in which stable seniority-based practices have prevailed. The current research examines the effects of pay for performance on employee motivation. With two individual-level moderators of monetary value and perception of the practice, the current research uses a multilevel frame to examine the issue. Data were collected from 604 individuals from 30 companies in Korea, and Hierarchical Linear Modeling analyses were used. The results show that after controlling the effects of their perceptions of pay risk and intrinsic work value, monetary work value did not significantly moderate the motivational effect of the compensation practice, but the moderating effect of perception of the practice remained significant. Discussion of the results is provided.