International Human Resource Management

This book is about 'International Human Resource Management (IHRM)'. That is, it is about human resource management in the international environment. IHRM is an important enough topic to warrant its own text because the conduct of business is increasingly international in scope and managing human resources is critical to the successful conduct of global business. The majority of this book discusses the IHRM issues faced by multinational enterprises (MNEs), primarily from the perspective of the parent company or headquarters. A concerted effort has been made to internationalize this presentation to make it apply to most MNEs. That is, the information is presented from the perspectives of as many different MNEs, from as many different countries, as possible, although much of the reported research and writing has come from an American perspective. The focus is placed on IHRM problems created in an MNE performing business in more than one country, rather than those posed by working for a foreign firm at home or by employing foreign employees in the local firm. These latter two foci, however, will be addressed as they become important for particular IHRM policies and practices.