Cross cultural recruiting and training management essay

MGT 4481Dr. Henry FindleyName: Chunsun He

Cross-Cultural Recruiting and Training: China as an Example

Abstract

With globalization in full swing, cross-cultural recruiting and training is a necessity in the modern day world. The aspect of diverse culture in the business environment ought to be taken as a serious issue. Inability to understand and contain diverse culture in a business environment is critical as it can result into a diminishing business environment. Qualified decisions must be made as to the best cross-cultural training and recruiting programs that an organization should adopt. There is no adequate research on this. This research study aims at establishing the adequacy of cross-cultural training in outside institutions such as universities in Chinese business environment. To get the results, a comprehensive literature review was conducted. It was found that cross-cultural training offered in institutions in Chinese business environment is common. This is due to the fact that China has unique cultures, in-house recruiting and training on culture does not present sufficient opportunities for success and with the development of the company, organizations need talents from different cultures in order to meet this fast-growing time period. This study is essential as it serves to provide information to businesses not only in China but in other parts of the world regarding the best way to offer cross-cultural training to reap the benefits of the presence of diverse cultures in a business environment.

Introduction

Cross-cultural is known to bring about diversity in business organizations. This is why most HR managers in Chinese organizations rely on and appreciate the need to staff their firms through cross-cultural recruiting. There are a number of benefits, such as more respect and cooperation among the employees and promotion of equality and inclusion, which these organizations obtain from cross-cultural recruiting (DuBrin, 2011). China is one of the countries in the world whose organizations are well known for cross-cultural recruiting. The HR policies and practices of the Chinese organizations are formulated in such a way that they allow their HR managers to successfully recruit employees from diverse cultural backgrounds (Loroche & Rutherford, 2007). Cross-cultural training is a phrase commonly used to define a form of training that is offered with an aim of highlighting the difficulties and problems faced in working in a cross-cultural context. In addition, cross-cultural training teaches both skills and methodologies necessary to overcome such difficulties. With globalization in full effect, cross-cultural training in businesses is indispensable, especially in developing countries such as China. Since globalization took effect, the traditional modes of business operation and communication in businesses has been obsoleted. Indeed, in the modern day world, it has become exceedingly common for staff in a particular country to regularly deal with clients, colleagues, or even suppliers in another country over such communication mediums as email, telephones or even video conferencing. While people from different regions in the world may work for one organization, possess same knowledge and skills, or even work in the same industry, the manner in which each individual works, interacts, and does business may be characterized by vast differences.

Cross-Cultural Recruiting Part

The journey to cross-cultural recruiting begins by advertising job vacancies in a wide variety of places. The Chinese organizations avoid advertising job vacancies through regular channels or contacting potential candidates as the two means are not effective in bringing new employees with diverse talents into the firms (Loroche & Rutherford, 2007). Instead, the organizations advertise job positions in a wide range of places, such as employment service centers, community boards, cultural community groups, community and local ethnic newspapers, local community centers, and other forms of media that can reach local institutions and the ethnic communities in the area. The organizations ensure that all the job advertisements they make go beyond sector specific media to enable them to attract employees of different cultures (DuBrin, 2011). The management personnel of these organizations also attract workers of diverse cultural backgrounds by promoting them as the best places to work at. Workers tend to avoid working in companies that portray themselves as non-profit organizations as they are not exposed to as many challenges as they would want to (DuBrin, 2011). The Chinese companies attract potential workers by organizing job fairs and other networking events through which their HR managers are able to meet potential workers of different cultures. Consequently, the networking events enable these organizations to increase their chances of drawing potential workers from different communities (Loroche & Rutherford, 2007). Another way through which the Chinese organizations achieve a high-quality cross-cultural recruitment is by building relationships with associations and cultural groups that work with varied communities. Most of the organizations contact local immigrant agencies based in China to advise their clients on the kinds of employment opportunities that they offer (Loroche & Rutherford, 2007). This has been effective in improving the organizations’ profiles among Chinese citizens from different locations. In some occasions, these organizations make good use of programs such as the post-graduation work permits offered to international students and the temporary foreign worker schemes. These programs enable the organizations to recruit employees beyond the country’s boundaries (DuBrin, 2011). The Chinese organizations maintain a workforce consisting of employees of diverse cultures through effective operating procedures and efficient organizational structures. The organizations have systems that ensure equality in visibility, responsibility and voice. The organizations have a decision-making system in which all employees are given a chance to make a contribution. Every employee, despite his or her cultural background, is involved in all meetings that are organized by the companies. The organizations also have policies and programs that help them fight any kind of intolerance such as sexism, racism, and ethnicity (Loroche & Rutherford, 2007). It is evident that Chinese organizations are performing extremely well in global and cross-cultural recruiting. Almost all the companies based in China have a workforce that comprises individuals of different cultural backgrounds. For instance, the Chinese research and development organizations now lead worldwide in recruiting employees from diverse cultural backgrounds (see Chart 1). It is also predicted that in the next a half a decade, Chinese companies will be the leading organizations that nurture talents and skills of employees drawn from varied ethnicities. The factor that leads to the good performance of Chinese companies in cross-cultural recruiting is the competition for talent recruitment as well as the nurturing and retention practices that are currently undertaken in China (New Asia Innovation, 2012).

Chart 1: Percentages of Research & Development Organizations with Cross-Cultural Employees

The Chinese companies are equally effective and they work hard to drive innovation within and without the country. The companies create strong local leadership strategies that ensure that cross-cultural stakeholders and leaders are attracted and retained within the organizations. The companies that excel in attracting and retaining cross-cultural customers and leaders enjoy greater returns on their investments. The companies bring in customers and workers from different countries to ensure that their workforces are made of individuals of different cultures and races (see Chart 2). This shows that the management personnel of most Chinese companies are skilled enough and capable of effectively supporting national and international employees and customers (New Asia Innovation, 2012).

Chart 2: Percentages Internal & External Customers of Chinese Companies

Cross-Cultural Training Part

When working in a multicultural context, having the appropriate professional skills and understanding personnel and colleagues’ cultural make-up is indispensable as it helps avoid business failure and misunderstandings given rise by inadequate cultural sensitivity and competence. In the East Asia, especially China, businesses have increasingly realized the need for cross-cultural training. This follows from research that identified doing business in the East Asia presents formidable cultural challenges. Therefore, businesses in the region engage themselves rigorously in this aspect to ensure that they operate efficiently. Many businesses in China tend to use outside institutions such as universities to conduct such training. Therefore, this paper aims at establishing the extent to which Chinese businesses use outside institutions for cross-cultural training.

Literature Review

In a review of 228 multinational companies in China, Forster (2000) found out that all the companies had well-designed cross-cultural programs for expatriates, which individuals were administered not only before but also after left their home countries, if they wanted their expatriates to perform successively oversees. In addition to this, Forster (2000) established that out of the 228 multinational companies studied in China, 167 offered cross-cultural training to their expatriates through expatriates. Most of the companies studied used outside institutions such as higher-educational facilities where professors, especially those specializing in business fields, offered cross-cultural training to the expatriates of the respective companies (Paquin, Roch & Sanchez-Ku, 2007). In his study, Selmer (2010) identified that cultural differences in East Asia are essential to be ignored. The use of outside institutions by businesses with an aim of helping employees learn about different cultures is essential (Tung, 2002). They further contend that higher-education facility educators, who in most cases, have a high level of knowledge and skills in handling cultures owing to their education levels and experiences. Indeed, facilitation and diffusion of cultural synergies is considered to be an essential and a critical economic success factor. Forster (2000) supports this by indicating that employing the use of higher-education faculties in a business organization’s cross-cultural program is essential as it serves to assist business expatriates to adapt to living, as well as working conditions in their host countries. In their study, Brewster and Suutari (2001) sampled a total of 24 multinational companies in China. In the sample, 12 of those companies exercised cross-cultural training on their own while 12 of them employed the use outside institutions such as university professors to facilitate cross-cultural training. The researcher found that the multinational companies that conducted cultural training on their own were insufficient, incomplete or simply non-existent. On the other hand, those that utilized the services of outside institutions were better placed in terms of business success since such aspects as misunderstandings within the business had been eliminated thus resulting in an improved performance. A substantial body of research has signified that those companies that fail to provide cross-cultural training in their businesses through outside institutions often do so since they have no international experience. In addition, such businesses may think that offering such training through such institutions is a waste of business’ financial resources and not a necessity. Such businesses may not to offer cross-cultural training on their own without employing the use of other people with adequate knowledge and experience on the field. This is indeed suicidal for a business since in-house training is too often inadequate to serve the needs of effective cross-cultural training, considering that it is a very broad issue thus requires professionals to offer training on it (Paquin et al., 2007). Chinese culture is unique among the world’s different cultures. For a business to be a success in the Chinese business environment, it is important that a business first understands the customs and the context of the Chinese business. The requirement for this is adequate knowledge of the business culture in China. The Chinese Higher-education Board has introduced a system where the curriculum addresses the diverse needs of cultures in China. This means that the educators who offer education on cultures who are well with cultural knowledge, skills, and experience. In Chinese educational facilities, students come from Different cultural backgrounds within China. To ensure that there is no conflicting nature of education, they offer students education on the best way to live and study as a unit irrespective of the cultural differences. The business environment in China is no different from educational facilities. Therefore, since higher-education facility professors are good at knowledge, skills and experiences on cultural differences and Coupled with their levels of education, they are the best people to offer cultural education in the business environment. In her study, Tung (2002) suggested that the best and the most effective cross-cultural training in the Chinese business environment needs to be specific and one that puts a stern focus on a particular population and situation. Institutions can outside offered. The researcher further indicated that it is for this reason that it is logical that multinational companies, as well as, organizations in China provide their employees with specific cross-cultural training, which deals in important details about the Chinese population, as well as project management issues by employing the services of outside cross-cultural training facilitators. Cross-cultural programs offered by outside institutions tend to put an exclusive focus on the specific culture, and religion, as well as, on the manner in which laws, leadership and ethics. The reviewed literature in the literature review section highlights the practice of cross-cultural training in Chinese businesses. The common characteristic of the reviewed literature is that they endorse the essentialness and the need for outside facilitated cross-cultural training in Chinese businesses. However, the literature has served to reveal the inconsistency attributable to approaches adopted by prior researchers to access the extent to which businesses in China use outside organizations in offering cross-cultural training to employees. This section aims at presenting the essential logic of utilizing outside institutions in offering cross-cultural training in Chinese business environment with an aim of permitting empirical research with accord to stable criteria. The presence of diverse cultures can exist to affect the manner in which employees perform in a company owing to the difficulties evident in attempting to adjust to the new business environment. Indeed, this affects them both psychologically and emotionally. The presence of diversified cultures in a business environment especially in China, whose cultures are unique, can surface conflicts between employees. As a result, employee performance worsens and ultimately, the business underperforms. The strategic observation that cross-cultural training should be offered by outside institutions is well informed. As it is affirmed in the reviewed literature, incorporating the use of training services from outside sources promotes the formulation of customized strategies necessary to help in responding to the challenge emanating from the presence of diverse cultures in business environments. The Chinese business environment is perceived to be a complex one and this implies that calculative strategies, mostly offered by outside institutions, are necessary if at all there is a need for employees to become empowered. The development placed on employees to enable them thrive in contrasting cultural setting in a business environment is necessary considering the dynamics of the modern-day world. Simply put, while the current wave of globalization is on an increase, diverse cultures persist. This affirms the need for employees to have multicultural knowledge. This is not a matter of simply cross-cultural training but one offered by outside institutions, which are better versed with the cultural developments. Organizations in cultural diverse environments such as China cannot manage to distance themselves from this aspect. Therefore, it is necessary to incorporate such form of training into its management strategy.

Recommendations

The following recommendations are advanced by the paper as a way of increasing the management’s role of providing cross-cultural recruiting and training in China. Make cross-cultural training a priority. The management should ensure that it cultivates the culture of multi-cultural training, whether offered by outside institutions or not. This will empower the employees and give them knowledge regarding how to be successful in inter-cultural business environments. Liaise with higher education facilities offering business related courses and arrange for a session where the employees of the company can go and learn on cross-cultural recruiting and training. Ensure that outside institutions cross-cultural recruiting facilitators are fully supported by the company. A company ought to give support to the facilitator by way of allocating adequate staff, financial and time resources in order to ensure that the program is run successfully. In addition, all the required materials for training should be availed.

Discussion

This paper reported a pattern of cross-cultural recruiting and training in Chinese business environment and attempted to address the pattern from the managerial perspective. In the process of doing so, the bodies of science of cross-cultural recruiting and training’s concept were reviewed. The objective was to provide a coherent view of the extent to which the outside institutions are better placed to offer cross-cultural recruiting and training to employees in the Chinese business environment. In conclusion, it is evident that Chinese organizations perform excellently in global environment and cross-cultural recruiting. The organizations’ human resource managers attract, recruit, and retain cross-cultural workers by advertising their job opportunities via many forms of media, promoting the organizations as the best places to in, and by building relationships with cultural groups that work with the varied communities within and out of the country. Cross-cultural recruiting helps these organizations to hire and retain a performance-oriented workforce. Going into the future, adequate research on cross-cultural recruiting and training by outside institutions should be conducted to enable businesses in diverse cultural business settings establish the best practice when it comes to cross-cultural training. This might be perceived as an unnecessary task. However, given the current wave of globalization, such research is necessary for the survival of businesses. These research studies ought to further examine the models used in cross-cultural recruiting and training in relation to the habits of an individual when introduced to foreign business environments. If this is done, knowledge of effective strategies for cross-cultural recruiting and training would lead to an increased business performance.