International human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International human resource management - Essay Example The questions about how people are managed , are the substance of "human resource management" and key to organizational success. Management theorists have long argued that there is a 'right' way of managing people that can be implemented by management consultants throughout the world. The development of HRM theories in the US tended to reply on the examples of a small number of large private sector firms was based on a culturally typical US typical US independent , individualistic ,suffered from a poorly thought out approach to rigorous theory, failed to link theory to general practise and relied heavily on selected aspects of what was thought to be "Japanese" practice. Because of the hedgemony of the USA in management thinking ,their visions of HRM have tended to be the touchstone for HRM in other countries. However ,the US theories with their implications of virtually autonomous organizations , sit uncomfortably with the European reality. So,is the American vision of HRM a universal one that will apply anywhere in the world or is it a US-bounded one Organisational behaviour is influenced by social processes beyond the organisation's boundaries. Thus firms are located in settings not only of legislation but also of culture and social norms to which they have to react. Culture provides meaning and purpose , rules and norms. Each nation constitutes a unique institutional setting that skews firm behaviour in particular ways. American notions of HRM may have limited relevance to nations which do not possess identical or similar cultures. And there are clear differences , in Europe , HRM is less dependent , companies have less autonomy and freedom of action , trade unionism is more important , the social partners have more influence ,legal regulations are more important and there is a stronger tradition of employee involvement.Are European firms moving towards a North American HRM approach to managing their personnel Or is it that owing to the ongoing economic and political integration of European Union countries , a convergence towards a distinctly European practise is underway For this, w e have the convergence and divergence arguments. There are two distinct versions of the convergence thesis , the free market US model and the institutional European model. There is an underlying similarity to these theses. They all view firms' latitude in regard to selecting and developing personnel management strategies as being shaped , governed and given impetus by a mix of factors which may be broadly defined as either technological ,economic or institutional. The Market Force or US Convergence Model: This theory argues that the differences in management systems