st. joseph’s college of commerce (autonomous)
END SEMESTER EXAMINATION – MARCH/APRIL 2015
M.I.B. –IV semester
P211404: INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Duration: 3 Hours                                                                                             Max. Marks: 100
SECTION – A
I)	Answer any SEVEN questions.  Each carries 5 marks.                                    (7×5=35)
	1.	“Expatriate selection calls for thorough evaluation to ensure the success of the selected candidates.” Explain the various factors/features involved in the expatriate selection.
	2.	“Evaluation work of individuals or subsidiaries has to be done taking care of the constraints of business environment.” Explain the five types of constraints.
	3.	Define IHRM. Explain the basic model of IHRM.
	4.	Explain Hard Goal and Soft Goals. Briefly outline a few points that you consider essential when setting a goal.
	5.	What is the difference between HRM & IHRM?
	6.	Write a short note on NAFTA.
	7.	Explain the stages involved in international adjustments.
	8.	Highlight the advantages and disadvantages of PCNs
	9.	What are Trade Unions ? Why people want to associate themselves with the Trade Unions.?
	10.	Explain the factors which influence the Global Work Environment.
SECTION – B
II)	Answer any THREE questions.  Each carries 15 marks.                                (3×15=45)
	11.	What do you mean by Repatriation? Explain the repatriation process. Give the reasons for Repatriation.
	12.	Highlight the meaning and objectives of Industrial Relations. Explain the three main ACTORS involved in the Industrial Relations.
	13.	“The area of Virtual Organizations as a main component of the new discipline of Collaborative Networks has been the focus of research globally.” Highlight the meaning, need merits  and  demerits of this type of an organization.
	14.	Give the meaning and components of Remuneration/Compensation. Explain the Balance Sheet approach and the Going rate approach in designing the pay package of an international employee.
	15.	“Grievances give way to Industrial Disputes and its essential to solve the dispute at the earliest”. Give the meaning and reasons for Industrial Disputes. Also explain the Grievance redressal machinery.
SECTION – C
III)	Case Study                                                                                                              (1×20=20)
	16.	Imagine that you are Paul Stacy, marketing manager in a large inter-national company in London, United Kingdom. You are married to a financial analyst who works in a bank located in the same city. You are blessed with two children—a boy aged 10, and a girl, aged 8. You and your family are actively engaged in a variety of volunteer activities sponsored by your church, which include environmental activities and providing food for the needy. You and your spouse enjoy sports activities together—you jog, play tennis, and golf on regular basis. You also enjoy cultural events together, such as concerts and plays. You have just received the following letter from your employer. Dear Paul, We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected as a candidate for an overseas position in our subsidiary in Kenya. Please contact M. Santerre, our international human resources manager, as soon as possible to discuss this opportunity further. Best regards Graham White, International Marketing.   Questions:   a)       Individually, consider this situation and how you would react to it. b)     Identify your major concerns as well as reasons why you would want to accept or decline such an offer.

 

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International Human Resource Management

MIB- IV Semester

ANSWER KEY

1. Features/factors – technical suitability, cross-cultural adjustments, family adjustments, host country expectations, languages, organizational requirements. (Brief explanation about these points.).
2. Constraints –

 appraisal criteria of units and sub-units

differences on markets

changing international environment

time and distance factors

variable maturity levels.

 

1. IHRM – meaning and the model by PV Morgan.
2. Hard / soft

Some goals are either satisfied or not satisfied — there is no in-between.

Other goals (probably the vast majority) cannot be completely satisfied, but only satisfied to a degree; these are called soft goals.

Soft goals can be said to be satisficed (rhymes with “iced”) rather than satisfied (a word due to Herb Simon in 1956).  A soft goal is satisficed if it is achieved to a degree that is acceptable, with the understanding that this may cover a wide range of relative achievement, and that complete achievement is not possible.  If a soft goal is not satisficed, then it is denied.

briefly outline a few points that you consider essential when setting a goal.

 

1. The goal must be measurable.To simply say that in x amount of time “I want to look like” is a subjective goal. You cannot measure “look like”, and if you cannot measure it, you will never truly know when you have reached it. Real goals are measurable. Physique goals are measurable in terms of pounds on a scale, inches on a tape measure, or weight or reps in a gym.
2. Set the goal in stone.This simply means that the goal is fixed and doesn’t change as we approach it. Many people set physique goals for instance only to revise the goal as they approach it. We may decide that whatever we initially wanted isn’t big enough, or little enough, lean enough, strong enough, and on and on. This is not only unfair to ourselves, but also sets us up for immediate failure as we try to reach a moving target. Allow yourself to not only set a goal, but to reach it.
3. Real goals are reasonable.A goal must present a challenge, but it must also be reasonably obtainable. Setting the bar too high may inspire for a little while, but this approach usually ends in frustration. Be fair to yourself by setting reasonable goals.
4. Goals should be progressive.This simply means that if you have a very ambitious goal, there should be several smaller goals that progress toward the ultimate goal. If for instance I am a beginning runner, it would make more sense for me to set a goal to run a 5k prior to running a marathon.
5. Goals should lead you in a positive direction.Goals that are pursued for selfish reasons are often unfulfilling when reached. Do not become so obsessed in the pursuit of a goal that your family or friends suffer as a result. The cost of what is missed in terms of time with family can never be calculated. If you are a parent and preparing for a physique competition, try to make it a family event. Trophies are sources of pride for awhile, but eventually gather dust on forgotten shelves. I literally have boxes of trophies that I would gladly trade for a few more moments with people who are now gone. Maintaining balance in your life will lead to fewer regrets.

– See more at: http://liftforlife.com/content/Motivation/softgoals.html#sthash.5zibCMUK.dpuf

 

 

1. More HR activities

The need for a broader perspective

More involvement in employees’ personal lives

Changes in emphasis as the workforce mix of expatriates and locals varies

Risk exposure

Broader external influences

(Any FIVE points of differences should be mentioned.)

1. NAFTA – north American free trade agreement. What the treaty covers and also explanation of the term Social Dumping.
2. Honeymoon stage – lasts upto 2 to 3 months

Culture shock stage

Adjustment stage

Mastery stage

1. Advantages

Control and co-ordination by HQ is maintained.

Promising managers get international experience.

PCNs may be the best people for the job.

Assurance that the subsidiary will comply with company objectives  policies  etc.

DISADVANTAGES

HCNs promotion opportunities are limited.

Adaptation to host country may take a long time.

PCNs may impose an inappropriate HQ style.

Compensation differences between PCNs and HCNs may cause problems.

1. The Trade Union Act 1926  – “combination, whether temporary or permanent, formed primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen and employers or between workmen and workmen, or between employers and employers, or for imposing restrictive condition on the conduct of any trade or business, and includes any federation of two or more trade unions.

Reasons for joining TU

• Greater Bargaining Power
• Minimize Discrimination
• Sense of Security
• Sense of Participation
• Sense of Belongingness
• Platform for self expression
• Betterment of relationships

 

1. Factors –

Global competition

Growth in mergers, acquisitions and alliances

Organization restructuring

Advances in technology and telecommunication .

 

SECTION B

 

 

1. REPATRIATION – The activity of bringing the expat back to the home country. Can cause re-entry shock or reverse cultural shock.

Process  –

Preparation

Physical relocation

Transition

Readjustment

Reasons – due to completion of period of posting, family compulsions, move to other assignments, inability to adjust, failure to do a good job.).

 

1. Industrial relations is a multidisciplinary field that studies the employment relationship.

OBJECTIVES –

• To safeguard the interest of labor and management by securing the highest level of mutual understanding and good-will among all those sections in the industry which participate in the process of production.
• To avoid industrial conflict or strife and develop harmonious relations, which are an essential factor in the productivity of workers and the industrial progress of a country.
• To raise productivity to a higher level in an era of full employment by lessening the tendency to high turnover and frequency absenteeism.
• To eliminate or minimize the number of strikes, lockouts and gheraos by providing reasonable wages, improved living and working conditions, said fringe benefits.
• To improve the economic conditions of workers in the existing state of industrial managements and political government.
• Socialization of industries by making the state itself a major employer.

ACTORS –

Employers: Employers possess certain rights vis-à-vis labors. They have the right to hire and fire them. Management can also affect workers’ interests by exercising their right to relocate, close or merge the factory or to introduce technological changes.

Employees: Workers seek to improve the terms and conditions of their employment. They exchange views with management and voice their grievances. They also want to share decision making powers of management. Workers generally unite to form unions against the management and get support from these unions.

Government: The central and state government influences and regulates industrial relations through laws, rules, agreements, awards of court ad the like. It also includes third parties and labor and tribunal courts.

 

 

1. Virtual organization – Virtual companies take advantage of technology by using the Internet for distance communication, employee and business collaboration, and to gather pertinent information to enhance its competitive advantage within its industry. Virtual human resources management can enhance its service capabilities increasing flexibility and speed in the hiring process while reducing costs to the organization by moving to a paperless organization.

One of the ‘pros’, the advantages, of the evolution of the virtual organization is the reduction in operating expenses that can result from shifting to this business model. A company can outsource much work to freelancers who are connected electronically to their enterprise. Therefore, they do not have to accommodate these workers through having office space and paying rent on significant square footage.

Another advantage of virtual organizations is the way they can quickly tap into the expertise of a host of freelancers around the world. Before the advent of the Internet and on-line virtual offices, it was more time-consuming and expensive to find, connect to, and communicate rapidly with qualified individuals globally. Today, a business enterprise can locate and work immediately, virtually speaking, with talented people who can add value to their company immediately.

One ‘con’ or disadvantage of the virtual organization is the lack of human social face-to-face interaction that takes place. Unlike an office environment of diverse personalities, the virtual worker typically works from a home office alone. Some people find this works just fine and they are very productive under this paradigm. Others find the lack of socail interaction in the workplace stifling and this can hinder their productivity. Some virtual workers end up migrating back to a bricks and mortar so-to-speak office environment where they interact each day face-to-face with their co-workers.

14. Basic salary

Allowances – cost of living, housing, home leave allowance, relocation allowances, education allowance, miscellaneous allowance like club membership etc.

Benefits – social security, paid vacations, rest and rehabilitation leave, etc.

Premium (hardship)

Taxes –

• Tax equalization
• Tax protection.

• GOING RATE APPROACH – Based on local market rates
• Relies on survey comparisons
  • Local nationals
  • Expats of same nationality
  • Expats of all nationalities.
• Compensation based on selected survey comparison.

Base pay and benefits may be supplemented by additional payments for low-pay countries

• BALANCESHEET APPROACH – Provides a compensation package that equates purchasing power.
• Home country is the standard for all payments.
• Based on the premise that employees on overseas assignments should have the same spending power as they would in their home country. (to ensure that expats neither gain nor loose financially,ensures cost effective mobility of people to global assignments).

 

15.Reasons for ID – economic and non-economic reasond.

Grievance redressal machinery –

Mediation

Conciliator

Voluntary Arbitration

Adjudication

 

Case study  – should be addressed based on the justifications given by the students for supporting their answers.

 

 

 

 

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