Deck 14: International Human Resources Management

Question 1

Third-country nationals are employees who move from country to country for work.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

An ethnocentric staffing policy is one in which all key management positions are filled by parent-country nationals.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The balance sheet approach ensures that there are equal numbers of parent-country and host-country managers.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

A polycentric staffing policy can minimise the dangers of cultural myopia.

Question 5

With four types of international strategy to choose from, the one that is most compatible with a polycentric staffing policy is the localisation strategy.

Question 6

According to the results of a study by RL Tung, the most consistent reason cited by European expatriates for expatriate failure among their group was the additional challenges present when working in emerging economies.

Question 7

One response of organised labour to the increased bargaining power of multinational corporations has been to lobby for national legislation.

Question 8

One reason a firm might choose to pursue a polycentric staffing policy is a perceived lack of qualified individuals to fill senior management positions where the firm has its operations.

Question 9

The development of internet technologies is having a significant impact on the ability to reach and manage the administration of global expatriates.

Question 10

When Pacific Brands decided in early 2009 to close its manufacturing plants in Australia and New Zealand and relocate them to China, the only power remaining to the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union representing the 1800 employees who faced losing their jobs was to:

A) put all of the employees on employment contracts.
B) question the quality of products made overseas.
C) threaten strike action.
D) to use moral persuasion by appealing to the public and government.

Question 11

Seventy-three per cent of companies use the __________________ approach when setting expatriates' pay. An alternative approach is the _________________ approach.

A) local-plus; local
B) home-based; transnational
C) balance sheet; host-based
D) international; national

Question 12

Superior HRM can be a sustained source of ______________ and ________________ in the global economy.

A) organisational architecture; advantage.
B) strategic importance; core competency.
C) strategic advantage; infrastructure
D) high productivity; competitive advantage

Question 13

Human resource management by and large tends to include all of the following activities: recruitment and selection, training and management development, and:

A) operational performance scheduling.
B) counselling.
C) compensation and conditions of employment.
D) industrial relations.

Question 14

Mendenhall and Oddou identified four dimensions that seem to predict success in a foreign posting:

A) cultural ability, leadership skills, flexibility and technical skills.
B) self-orientation, others-orientation, perceptual ability and cultural toughness.
C) cross-cultural communication skills, family suitability, adaptability and previous international experience.
D) leadership skills, interpersonal skills, flexibility and cultural awareness.

Question 15

The business case for increasing the participation of women in senior management is compelling. Research suggests four key benefits: improved decision-making and company performance, better corporate governance, greater responsiveness to the market, and:

A) access to the widest talent pool.
B) superior leadership skills.
C) effective communication skills.
D) more open to change and innovation.

Question 16

A number or arguments have been put forward to explain why female managers are less likely to be selected for foreign assignments. The three most common arguments are: prejudices of host-country nationals against women, lack of interest by female managers in going abroad, and:

A) lack of places suitable for women to work in.
B) lack of housing suitable for women.
C) lack of culturally aware women.
D) lack of suitably qualified women in the recruitment pool.

Question 17

Compensation practices varying from country to country, labour laws prohibiting union organisation, and the strong pursuit of equal employment opportunity legislation are all complexities of:

A) customer orientation.
B) external stakeholders.
C) human resources.
D) supplier confidence.

Question 18

________________ managers are a subset of expatriate managers who are citizens of a foreign country working in the home country of their multinational employer.

A) Inpatriate
B) Transpatriate
C) Crosspatriate
D) Ethnopatriate

Question 19

A large and expanding body of academic research suggests that a strong fit between ______________________________ is required for high profitability.

A) corporate culture and products
B) marketing practices and industrial relations
C) corporate culture and ethics practices
D) human resources practices and strategy

Question 20

Corporate culture refers to an organisation's:

A) policies and HR systems.
B) norms and value systems.
C) beliefs and operating systems.
D) 'way of doing things' and induction systems.

Question 21

Broadly speaking, an ethnocentric approach to staffing policy is compatible with _______________ strategy.

A) an international
B) a localisation
C) a global standardisation
D) a transnational

Question 22

A firm's success requires HRM policies to be congruent with the firm's strategy and with its _________ and ________ structure and controls.

A) formal; informal
B) technical; operational
C) manufacturing; production.
D) organisational; operational

Question 23

It is advisable to arrange for an expatriate to take a familiarisation trip to the host country, prior to transfer, as a form of:

A) practical training.
B) language training.
C) cultural training.
D) political training.

Question 24

Staffing policy can be a tool for developing and promoting:

A) employees.
B) training.
C) women.
D) corporate culture.

Question 25

Training can lower the probability of expatriate failure. Training should be provided to both the expatriate manager and their spouse, and should include:

A) cognitive, cultural and practical training.
B) practical, language and cultural training.
C) technical, language and religious training.
D) cultural, practical and safety training.

Question 26

Management development is often used as a strategic tool to build a strong unifying _________ and ___________ management network, both of which support transnational and global standardisation strategies.

A) work ethic; formal
B) workforce; strategic
C) culture; informal
D) vision; personal

Question 27

Firms pursuing ________________ need a strong unifying corporate culture and informal management networks to assist in coordination and control.

A) a localisation strategy
B) an ethnocentric strategy
C) a transnational strategy

Question 28

The balance sheet approach aims to maintain the ______________ and _____________ of the employee while on their foreign assignment to levels equivalent to those they would have enjoyed had they stayed at home.

A) comfort level; social standing
B) purchasing power; living standard
C) living standard; superannuation benefits
D) working conditions; living standard

Question 29

Host-nations managers' appraisals of expatriate managers may be biased by:

A) their own cultural frames of reference and expectations.
B) lack of understanding about what is involved in the role.
C) jealousy and lack of any relationship with the expatriate manager.
D) their own lack of experience of working abroad.

Question 30

To reduce bias in performance evaluations, many expatriates think that more weight should be given to _____________ manager's appraisal than to _____________ manager's appraisal.

A) a functional; a human resource
B) a human resource; a functional
C) an off-site; an on-site
D) an on-site; an off-site

Question 31

With regard to expatriate pay, the ___________________ equalises purchasing power across countries, so employees can enjoy the same living standard in their foreign posting as they enjoyed at home.

A) balance sheet approach.
B) standard of living approach.
C) merit approach.
D) correspondence approach.

Question 32

Four types of allowances are often included in an expatriate's compensation package: housing, cost-of-living, education and:

A) mobility.
B) transport.
C) hardship.
D) entertainment.

Question 33

What type of allowance is paid to expatriates who are sent to difficult locations?

A) A hardship allowance
B) A base salary allowance
C) A cost-of-living allowance
D) An education allowance

Question 34

Which function of an international business is typically responsible for managing international labour relations?

A) Trade and international business
B) Operations management
C) Finance and accounting
D) Human resource management

Question 35

Through collective bargaining with management, labour unions generally try to obtain better pay, greater job security and:

A) better management.
B) better working conditions.
C) greater statutory rights.
D) participation rates.

Question 36

The workforce of McDonald's in the US is not unionised, and a similar practice has been adopted by McDonald's in Australia, as elsewhere in the world. Which of the following concerns does this situation demonstrate?

A) That international companies will force employees to join unions against their will
B) That companies will counter their bargaining power with the power to move production to another country
C) That international businesses will keep highly skilled tasks in their home country and farm out low-skilled tasks for foreign plants
D) That international businesses attempt to import employment practices and contractual agreements from a home country

Question 37

A foreign service or ____________ premium is extra pay that an expatriate receives for working outside his or her country of origin. It is offered as ________________ to motivate and reward international service.

A) service; a benefit
B) expatriate; an acknowledgement
C) mobility; an incentive
D) international; an enticement

Question 38

The international trade secretariats (ITSs) were first established in the 1960s by:

A) a transnational trade association.
B) OECD countries.
C) organised labour.
D) the United Nations.

Question 39

The long-term goal of establishing the international trade secretariats (ITSs) was to be able to bargain ___________ with ______________ firms.

A) competitively; negotiating
B) transnationally; multinational
C) aggressively; uncooperative
D) successfully; international