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GLOBAL STAFFING1
David G Collings2 and Hugh Scullion
Both at:
Department of Management,
J.E. Cairnes School of Business & Economics,
National University of Ireland Galway,
Galway
Ireland
1 We are extremely grateful to the large number of reviewers who contributed to this special issue though
their reviews.
2 Corresponding author: Department of Management, J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economic,
National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland. Tel 0035391495385 email.
David.collings@nuigalway.ie
Research on international human resource management (HRM) has been dominated by the topic
of expatriation for many years. Much of this research has focused on parent country nationals
(PCNs) as expatriates and particular aspects of the expatriate cycle such as recruitment, pre-
departure training, repatriation and the like. Indeed topics surrounding the management of PCN
expatriates remain central to research in international human resource management. We however
conceptualise the topic of global staffing more broadly than solely concerning issues around PCN
expatriates and define the field as: “the critical issues faced by multinational corporations with
regard to the employment of home, host and third country nationals to fill key positions in their
headquarter and subsidiary operations” (Scullion and Collings, 2006: 3). Thus, this special issue
will explore issues surrounding a wide range of topics in global staffing.
Strategic and operational aspects of global staffing are considered in the contributions to
the special issue and a common theme of the papers is the recognition that global staffing
is a key aspect of the management of human resource management in the MNE. Similarly
it is recognised that global staffing is one of the primary HR practices used by MNCs to
control and coordinate their spatially dispersed global operations, as managers
increasingly realise the importance of HR practices in ensuring the profitability and
viability of their international business operations (Dowling and Welch, 1988; Dowling et
al, 2008 ). The leading edge contributions in this special issue provide both a
comprehensive overview of the area and consider emerging topics which will shape the
area of global staffing research over the next decade. Therefore the special issue aims to
provide a platform for how we develop our understanding and knowledge of important
issues in global staffing in the future.
The area of global staffing has grown considerably in the last decade reflecting the rapid
transformation in the field of international HRM research more generally (Dowling et al.,
2008; Scullion, Collings and Gunnigle, 2007). While growing in size the topic of global
staffing has also expanded in scope shifting from an early focus on the topic areas of top
management attitudes and staffing decisions in MNEs (Perlmutter, 1969; Heenan and
Perlmutter, 1979; Edstrom and Galbraith, 1977) and expatriate performance to a much
wider range of issues where staffing issues are increasingly linked to the organizational
strategy of the MNE (Taylor et al, 1996). Drawing on the emerging body of strategic
International HRM literature which builds on developments in strategy and
organizational research (e.g. Schuler et al, 1993) scholars have recently developed
comprehensive models of factors influencing the staffing policies and practices in MNEs
(e.g. Tarique, Schuler and Gong 2006; Gong 2003).
However, a note of caution about the limitations of the special issue is also necessary at
this point. The study of global staffing is still a relatively new area of research and as the
emergence of new topics suggests, it is a dynamic and continually evolving area. The
articles in this special issue offer access to leading edge research on global staffing and
new theoretical approaches in this area. However, perhaps the main contribution of the
special issue will not be to provide definite answers to the questions raised but rather to
open up a more comprehensive research agenda in global staffing which guides future
research directions in the area.
We now briefly introduce the papers which make up the special issue:
The introductory paper by Collings, Scullion and Dowling sets the context for the special
issue and seeks to provide a state of the art literature review of the area. The key role
played by global staffing in strategic international HRM is examined with a particular
focus on innovation, organizational learning and corporate integration. The evolution of
research on global staffing is considered and then an agenda for future research in the
area is suggested.
Our second paper by Makela, Bjorkman and Ehrnrooth examines the interaction between
human and social capital and different archetypes of subsidiary staffing, and how this influences
the management of knowledge stocks and flows within the MNC. Four subsidiary staffing
archetypes are identified and it is suggested that each of them can be used for different knowledge
related purposes within the organization.
Colakoglu, Tarique and Caliguiri’s contribution draws on resource based theory to develop a
conceptual framework for helping to better understand the relationship between subsidiary
staffing and subsidiary performance. The model explains the links between different strategies for
staffing key management positions in host country subsidiaries and the performance of those
subsidiaries in their host markets and within MNE networks.
The question of whether global firms measure expatriate return on investment (ROI) is a
key theme of two of the papers (Mc Nulty, DeCieri and Hutchings and Welch, Steen and
Tahvanainen), an important issue given the substantial costs associated with global
staffing practices. McNulty et al seek to extend understanding of ROI in global firms.
The study explains why expatriate ROI is difficult to measure and also extends the focus
of expatriate ROI for long term assignments beyond individual practices to a system of
HR practices that can more fully explain changes in expatriate ROI in the firm. Building
on this theme, Welch and colleagues’ contribution reframes how international
assignments are considered in this respect and suggests that the concept of intellectual
capital best captures the true value of international assignments.
Harvey, McIntyre, Thompson Heames and Moeller highlight the importance of mentoring
for developing female global managers and suggest that mentoring could be used to create
competitive advantage in creating an effective support system for female global managers. More
generally, it is argued that mentoring can become a strategic tool in the organizational knowledge
creation and transfer process. This paper is an important contribution in the context of the
relatively limited attention on female international managers in the literature heretofore.
The organizational determinants of voluntary turnover in MNEs is examined by
Sebastian Reiche in his contribution. Using an inductive case study approach the paper
develops a theoretical framework for better understanding the organizational
determinants of voluntary turnover of local staff in MNC subsidiaries. The study derives
two turnover determinants related to organizational structure and three turnover
determinants related to organizational practices and explores how these organizational-
level factors may translate into individual turnover decisions.
Thomas Hippler tackles another key question in global staffing – what are the motives for
employees seeking or accepting international assignments? Hippler critiques the extant
research on this topic and argues that it lacks exploratory, empirical groundwork into the
motives of expatriates to accept international assignments and the paper draws on an
empirical study to develop an empirically grounded set of motives for the decision to
seek or accept an international assignment.
Vo’s paper examines global staffing in developing countries through a study of US and Japanese
companies in Vietnam. The paper identifies both home and host countries as significant
moderating factors on MNC’s global staffing policies. The inclusion of a study in the context of
developing countries, an under researched area, represents an important contribution to the
special issue.
Howell’s contribution focuses on the role of the family and related issues associated with
alternative forms of international assignments. The paper uses a discourse analysis
approach to better understand these issues and highlights the importance of family issues
despite the physical absence of the family\spouse on short term assignments. However
while these papers add to our knowledge in the area it also highlights that we have a
far from comprehensive understanding of the nature and operation of the organization
and individual challenges associated with these alternative forms of international
assignments.
Our final contribution by Meyskens, Von Glinow, Werther and Clarke continues the
theme of alternative forms of international assignments and specifically engages with the
factors which help to explain the trend toward alternative forms of international
assignments such as the shortage of managers willing to accept long-term international
positions, the high costs of expatriation, the growing concerns regarding the balance
between work and personal life among potential expatriate employees. They also argue
that alternative forms of international assignments provide more flexibility to MNCs in
terms of global staffing, and emphasizes in particular the importance of international
recruitment and selection .
The preceding summary suggests a number of themes which emerge across a number of
the contributions- particularly the area of alternative forms of international assignments.
This stands in contrast to much of the extant literature in the area, over the last two
decades, which has been on traditional long term international assignments. However
recent evidence suggests the growing importance of alternative types of international
assignment (Collings et aI, 2007). These alternative or non-traditional assignments
include short-term assignments (between three months and a year), international
commuter assignments, frequent flyer assignments, contractual assignments and virtual
assignments. The growth of these alternative forms of assignment suggest the emergence
of a portfolio of international assignment options for MNEs. (Collings et al, 2007; Welch
et al, 2006).
Furthermore the contributions suggest that global staffing represents a key aspect of
international HRM practice in the multinational firm. Several of the contributions help to
chart the changing topography of global staffing and engage with key trends in the area.
The papers which comprise the special issue suggest that global staffing issues will grow
in importance in the coming years due to a range of factors, including: a growing
awareness of the significance of staffing issues in ensuring the success of the global
enterprise; the emergence of global talent management as key issue for MNCs; the
emergence of new forms of international assignments ; the continued growth of trade in a
growing range of developing countries and regions, including China, India and Eastern
Europe; and the internationalization of a growing number of small and medium
enterprises.
References
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