Pj Dowling

An integrative framework of strategic international human resource management

The globalization of business is making it more important than ever to understand how multinational enterprises (MNEs) can operate more effectively. A major component of this understanding appears to be the field of human resource management and, in particular, the field of international human resource management (Brewster, 1991; Hendry, 1992; Desatnick and Bennett, 1978; Dowling, 1986; Dowling and Schuler, 1990; Evans, 1986; Evans, 1989; Laurent, 1986; Tung, 1984). The trend over the past few years has been to identify the linkage of human resource management with strategy and offer an understanding of how single country or domestic human resource management can facilitate organizational understanding and effectiveness (Wright and McMahan, 1992). In this article we attempt to extend this line of work into the international arena. We do this by offering a framework of strategic international human resource management (SIHRM). Anchoring SIHRM in the strategic components of MNEs, namely their interunit link...

A problematic transition to a strategic role: human resource management in industrial enterprises in China

The Chinese government has launched extensive reforms to encourage integration with the global economy. Our research investigates the implications for human resource management practices of the changing business environment in China, ownership of organizations, organizational strategies and strategic integration of the HR function. We conducted two surveys in major Chinese cities in 1994/5 and 2001/2, with managers of state-owned, privately owned, collectively owned and foreign-invested enterprises. Regression analyses showed that organizational strategy and organizational ownership, in contrast with earlier research, were not found to be strong predictors of HRM practices. The changing business environment in China and participation by the HR function in strategic decision-making were the strongest predictors of HRM practices. Overall, a strategic role for the HR function and implementation of ‘Western’ HRM practices are becoming more prevalent in China, although the legacy of traditional practices endures and new challenges are emerging.

Catching the wave : workplace reform in Australia

Part 1 A new workplace culture: competing models of productive efficiency teamwork and the new workplace culture sociotechnical organizational change. Part 2 Workplace reform in Australia: cellular manufacturing team-based, client-centred service cells quality assurance through process intent network organization negotiated technological change team-based performance pay and gainsharing people, technology and organizational change. Part 3: industrial relations and organizational innovation organizational learning and innovation.

Completing the Puzzle: Issues in the Development of the Field of International Human Resource Management

The aim of this paper is to examine developments in the field of IHRM. Three issues are examined: first, the various approaches which have been taken to the study of IHRM; second, the variables which moderate differences between domestic and international HRM; and third, recent work which examines the topic of strategic human resource management in multinational enterprises (MNEs).

The Australian HR Professional: A 1995 Profile

The new human resources (HR) function represents a move away from an administrative, reactionary role towards a more strategic, proactive, planning position. The current research surveyed members o...

Support for an HR Approach in Australia: The Perspective of Senior HR Managers

Results from a national survey of membership of the professional body the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) provide clear support that senior HR managers have internalized key features of an HR approach and have largely moved away from the personnel mindset. Results also indicate that recent HR policy initiatives have focused on recruitment and selection, train ing and development and performance appraisal. These policy areas are com plementary, central to strategic HRM and reflect an attempt to develop key HR capabilities. Further HR policy areas that are discussed at the senior manage ment committee level reinforce policy initiatives being taken by HR managers. There is also adequate opportunity for this group of senior HR managers to communicate their ideas directly with the CEO. These findings raise important questions about how this perceived move towards an HR approach will be received and supported elsewhere in the organization. Sector and ownersbip were also taken into account. HR manage...

The impact of changes to the human resources function in Australia

Results from a national survey of membership of the professional body, the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI), provide clear support that senior HR managers perceive that HR needs to be linked much more closely to organizational strategy and there should be consistency between HR policy areas. This is coupled with an expectation that HR must significantly add value and make an improved contribution to organizational effectiveness. There is also evidence of movement towards a framework that supports a unitarist approach to employee relations. Within an environment which expects high levels of employee performance and commitment the HR function has the potential to make a valuable contribution. In aligning itself with management, however, it may also risk distancing itself from a workforce that may not be able or willing to make the same transition.

Managing People during Economic Transition: The Development of HR Practices in China

This paper reviews the development of human resource practices in the industrial sector in China since the commencement of economic reforms in the late 1970s. It highlights the changes in the categorisation of human resources and emergence of human resource management (HRM) in China. The develop ment of HRM in Chinese industrial enterprises is discussed in terms of the five major HRM activities: staffing policies and practices, performance appraisal, compensation and welfare, training and development, and labour relations. The paper concludes with the implications of HRM development in China for human resource professionals and practitioners.

The role of human resource management in international joint ventures: a study of Australian-Indian joint ventures

Little has been reported to date on human resource aspects of international joint ventures (IJVs) between Australia and India. On the basis of nine case studies, this paper examines the influence of HR practices on selecting the IJV as an entry strategy to invest in India and the role of efficient HR management in ensuring IJV success. The case findings suggest that there is a very moderate HR-related influence on the entry mode decision, whereas HR management plays a significant role in IJV success. The paper also identifies several HR issues in relation to Australian-Indian joint ventures which emerged during the study.

The Reform of Employee Compensation in China's Industrial Enterprises

Although employee compensation reform in the Chinese industrial sector has been discussed in the literature, the real changes in compensation systems and pay practices have received insufficient attention and warrant further examination.