Incoterms 2010 and International Business - 101
International Business: Environments and Operations, 15e (Daniels et al.)
Chapter 20 International Human Resource Management
Chapter 20 International Human Resource Management
International Business: Environments and Operations, 15e (Daniels et al.)
Chapter 20 International Human Resource Management
1) Why is management of international human resources more difficult than directing human resources at the domestic level?
A) the complications that arise from political, cultural, legal, and economic differences between countries
B) the challenge posed by managers in other countries that aim to achieve global objectives for the company no matter the costs imposed on national objectives
C) the greater similarity among foreign subsidiaries than among domestic subsidiaries in terms of dependence on headquarters for resources
D) the complications posed by dealing with competing agendas from different labor unions in different countries
Answer: A
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
2) HRM refers to the range of activities that a company, whether solely domestic or thoroughly global, undertakes to ________.
A) direct its strategy
B) staff its operations
C) improve its responsiveness
D) integrate business functions
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
3) ________ refers to the activities that an organization carries out to put the right person into the right job in the right place at the right time for the right salary.
A) Work force analysis
B) Staff development
C) Human resource management
D) Leadership planning
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
4) Generally, HRM is more difficult for international companies for all of the following reasons EXCEPT which one?
A) Dual career and family obligations make it tough to convince executives to leave the home office to join a foreign subsidiary.
B) Leadership styles and management practices are so similar from country to country that it is difficult to create a culture of innovation.
C) Complications arise due to enduring political, cultural, legal, and economic differences between countries.
D) Labor markets are dramatically different in the mix of workers, costs, and productivity.
Answer: B
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
5) The Human Capital Index, based on a comprehensive global study of more than 2,000 companies, found that superior human capital practices were ________ correlated with a firm's financial returns and were a(n) ________ indicator of increased shareholder value.
A) negatively; lagging
B) positively; leading
C) insignificantly; timely
D) weakly; accurate
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
6) There is growing consensus that human resource managers must hire, develop, reward, and retain people whose performance explicitly improves the ________.
A) productivity of the firm's core competencies
B) fit between the firm's practices and industry standards
C) firm's engagement of political authorities
D) firm's responsiveness to customer complaints
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
7) Which of the following is LEAST connected to superior HR management at an MNE?
A) increased productivity
B) competitive advantage
C) foreign regulations
D) value creation
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
8) Mona, a native of India, is employed by IBM in the firm's facility in New Delhi. Mona is best described as a(n) ________.
A) expatriate
B) local
C) third-country national
D) home-country national
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
9) Home-country nationals are ________.
A) used a great deal abroad by polycentric companies
B) citizens of the countries in which they are working
C) citizens of the country where the company is headquartered
D) noncitizens of the countries in which they are working
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
10) An example of a third-country national is a ________.
A) dual citizen (Canadian and U.S. citizenship) working for a Mexican company in Mexico
B) Canadian citizen working for a U.S. company in Canada
C) U.S. citizen working for a U.S. company in Canada
D) Canadian citizen working for a U.S. company in Mexico
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
11) Jeanette Thompson, a native Texan, is being sent by her company, Samsung of South Korea, to head up a new facility in Hong Kong. Jeanette would be considered a(n) ________.
A) inpatriate
B) host-country citizen
C) third-country national
D) local executive
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
12) Growing demand for expatriates stems from which of the following trends?
A) the emergence of developing countries as high-growth markets
B) the resurgence of developed countries as high-growth markets
C) the reduced need for localized expatriate assignments
D) the longer-term assignments created in response to the global credit crisis
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Dynamics of the global economy
13) Today, most expatriate assignments are for ________.
A) less than one year
B) one to three years
C) three to five years
D) five to ten years
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
14) Traditionally, expatriates were ________; today, HRM increasingly considers ________.
A) men; women
B) women; men
C) midlevel and midcareer executives; older employees and younger employees
D) older employees and younger employees; midlevel and midcareer executives
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
15) A company that decides to "localize" expatriate assignments will offer an expatriate the option of ________.
A) serving a shorter assignment in the host country
B) becoming a naturalized citizen of the host country
C) moving to an emerging market closer to the home country
D) retaining a foreign assignment provided he or she accepts the status of a local hire
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
16) Monica, a Brazilian citizen, earned an MBA from Stanford University and has been working at the New York branch of Goldman Sachs for one year. Monica is being transferred to Goldman Sachs' office in Brazil where she will best be characterized as a(n) ________.
A) local
B) expatriate
C) reverse expatriate
D) third-country national
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
17) Apex Enterprises, an MNE based in the U.S., is spending too much money on expatriate assignments. Which of the following methods would LEAST likely help Apex reduce expatriate costs?
A) offering cross-border commuter assignments
B) designing more short-term projects
C) establishing a localization policy
D) expanding core competencies
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
18) Which of the following most accurately describes the current state of HRM efforts to staff international operations?
A) Fewer women are accepting international assignments.
B) The length of permanent assignments is rising among middle managers.
C) There are historic shortages of executive talent for international assignments.
D) Third-country nationals are quickly being replaced by localized expatriates.
Answer: C
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Reflective thinking
19) The three types of interpretative frameworks in international businesses are ________.
A) ethnocentric, polycentric, and geocentric
B) ethnocentric, intercentric, and monocentric
C) monocentric, neocentric, and polycentric
D) intracentric, geocentric, and neocentric
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
20) Dixon Manufacturing, a British MNE, believes that its business practices are superior, so it does not make any policy changes in foreign markets. Dixon Manufacturing most likely takes a(n) ________ approach to staffing.
A) ethnocentric
B) polycentric
C) geocentric
D) monocentric
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
21) A(n) ________ staffing policy framework assumes that the practices and procedures that work at headquarters will work in foreign operations; as such, executive slots are filled by home-country nationals.
A) polycentric
B) intercentric
C) ethnocentric
D) geocentric
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
22) Watson Electronics, an MNE based in Canada, tends to follow an ethnocentric staffing model. From which group will it most likely hire for upper-level management positions in its new facility in Germany?
A) home-country nationals
B) third-country nationals
C) host-country nationals
D) local citizens
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
23) What is the primary advantage of an MNE using an ethnocentric framework?
A) minimizing relocation costs
B) developing community support
C) transferring core competencies abroad
D) encouraging innovative business practices
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
24) A(n) ________ manager champions the ways of foreign markets as comparable, if not more enlightened, than the practices of his or her parent company and home nation.
A) ethnocentric
B) geocentric
C) monocentric
D) polycentric
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
25) Ferguson Manufacturing, an American MNE, has facilities in India and Mexico. Ferguson fills management positions at the facility in India with Indians and management positions in Mexico with Mexicans. Ferguson most likely follows a(n) ________ approach to staffing.
A) ethnocentric
B) geocentric
C) polycentric
D) intercentric
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
26) Which of the following is a drawback of the polycentric approach?
A) Host-country nationals become more committed to company headquarters than to their local colleagues.
B) Successful local units may increasingly function independently and pay less attention to headquarters.
C) Local units depend too much on headquarters for resources and innovations, with little incentive to develop their own.
D) Local managers study international business and cultural practices in other markets in preparation for international assignments at the expense of not fully investing in understanding the host country.
Answer: B
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Reflective thinking
27) Advantages of adopting a polycentric approach include which of the following?
A) capitalizing on the availability of qualified local managers
B) helping transfer core competencies from the home nation to local subsidiaries
C) increasing the international career mobility for local managers
D) offsetting tendencies for the company to adapt excessively to the local market
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
28) The staffing policy at Hanover International is to seek the best people for key jobs throughout the organization, regardless of nationality. Hanover most likely follows a(n) ________ staffing approach.
A) geocentric
B) intercentric
C) polycentric
D) ethnocentric
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
29) Which of the following interpretative frameworks does NOT automatically presume that a particular nation provides a solution to every problem or an explanation for every action?
A) ethnocentric
B) geocentric
C) polycentric
D) intercentric
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
30) An advantage of the geocentric outlook to staffing is ________.
A) encouraging workers to appreciate the unique virtues of a particular country
B) giving people a flexible perspective for fitting operations to different countries
C) removing most behavioral barriers to fully adapting to the chosen local market
D) tapping learning opportunities around the world to generate ideas that enhance core competencies
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
31) Microsoft has a tendency to hire home-country nationals for jobs outside the United States. Microsoft's leadership supports a(n) ________ approach to staffing.
A) geocentric
B) ethnocentric
C) adaptive
D) polycentric
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
32) The HRM requirements of a(n) ________ strategy are well matched with an ethnocentric staffing policy.
A) multidomestic
B) transnational
C) international
D) global
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
33) The HRM requirements of a(n) ________ strategy are well matched with a polycentric staffing policy.
A) transnational
B) international
C) multidomestic
D) global
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
34) The HRM requirements of a(n) ________ strategy are well matched with a geocentric staffing policy.
A) multidomestic
B) transnational
C) domestic
D) international
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
35) Firms with global strategies versus those implementing multidomestic strategies are more likely to use ________.
A) expatriate managers
B) host-country nationals in top management positions abroad
C) local managers
D) home-country nationals in corporate positions
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
36) Historically, the most important criterion in selecting individuals for posting to an expatriate slot has been ________.
A) foreign language abilities
B) technical competence
C) leadership skills
D) flexibility
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
37) According to the text, which of the following is the most important competency in the expatriate selection process?
A) flexibility
B) business acumen
C) global mindset
D) geographic knowledge
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
38) Which of the following accurately describes a difference between jobs in the home office versus those in a foreign subsidiary?
A) Cultural empathy is essential for employees in the home office, but is not necessary for employees in a foreign subsidiary.
B) Employees in the home office do not need to be familiar with a second language, but employees in a foreign subsidiary must be proficient in the language of the subsidiary's host country.
C) Expatriate executives in foreign subsidiaries are less expensive for a company to employ than executives in the home office.
D) Employees in foreign subsidiaries typically have broader job responsibilities than employees in the home office.
Answer: D
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
39) Generally, HRM does NOT emphasize which of the following characteristics when evaluating the adaptability of an expatriate candidate?
A) self maintenance
B) technology skills
C) cultural empathy
D) sensitivity to host environments
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
40) Expatriate failure, defined in broad terms, refers to the ________.
A) manager's premature return home due to poor job performance
B) manager's miscues, which give competitors a market advantage
C) unintentional dilution of the company's core competency
D) poor expatriate selection procedures of the MNE
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Reflective thinking
41) Today, which of the following circumstances is LEAST likely to cause expatriate failure?
A) inability of the expatriate's family to adjust
B) resistance from the expatriate's partner
C) inadequate technical expertise
D) inability to adjust
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
42) According to the text, what is the most common concern that expatriates have before they move overseas?
A) reestablishing a social life
B) missing friends and family
C) learning a foreign language
D) adapting to the culture
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
43) Shelly, a sales manager at Best Computers, has recently moved from Dallas to Hong Kong for an expatriate assignment. Shelly is feeling disoriented, irritable, and stressed about her new job and living arrangements in Hong Kong, which means that she is most likely experiencing ________.
A) uncertainty dislocation
B) melancholy
C) culture shock
D) cultural transition
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
44) The most common predeparture training for an expatriate is ________.
A) an informational briefing
B) role playing
C) in-depth cultural seminars
D) language training
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
45) According to research, expatriates posted to ________ encounter the greatest difficulty in finding accommodations, locating health care, and setting up finances.
A) Australia
B) Saudi Arabia
C) Thailand
D) South Africa
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
46) The ________ approach to expatriate compensation equalizes purchasing power across countries; this helps employees enjoy the same living standard in their foreign posting that they enjoyed at home.
A) balance sheet
B) equalization
C) merit
D) differential
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
47) The ________ of compensation determines an expatriate's compensation on the prevailing pay scales in the locale of the foreign assignment.
A) headquarters-based method
B) home-based method
C) culturally based method
D) host-based method
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
48) The ________ sets the expatriate's salary in terms of the salary of a comparable job in the city where the MNE has its headquarters.
A) host-based method
B) home-based method
C) headquarters-based method
D) culturally based method
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
49) Cost-of-living allowances given to an expatriate during his or her foreign assignment ________.
A) usually involve a compensation reduction because of lower costs abroad
B) are due to the difficulty of duplicating a particular way of living abroad
C) are usually eliminated over time
D) increase the longer the individual is overseas
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
50) Kevin, a marketing executive with Ace Electronics, has relocated to India for an expatriate assignment. Kevin's wife, Julia, and three children have joined him. Ace Electronics provides the family with money intended to help Julia find a job and develop cross-cultural skills. Which of the following is Ace providing the family?
A) repatriation allowance
B) hardship allowance
C) housing allowance
D) spouse allowance
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
51) Johnson Construction is an MNE that designs and builds commercial buildings around the world. Johnson has a new contract to construct a building in Pakistan. Tom, a construction manager, will be relocating to Pakistan with his wife, and he will receive additional pay to compensate for the dangerous environment. Which of the following has Johnson Construction most likely offered Tom?
A) repatriation allowance
B) hardship allowance
C) housing allowance
D) spouse allowance
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
52) Terrell, a manager with Qualsys Technologies, has been on an expatriate assignment in Russia for the last three years. Terrell's foreign assignment has ended, and he is working with HR to return to the U.S. and begin a new job at the firm's headquarters in Philadelphia. In which activity is Terrell most likely involved?
A) expatriation
B) repatriation
C) demotion
D) promotion
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
53) Which of the following is NOT an area in which expatriates experience repatriation frustration?
A) change in personal finances and compensation
B) readjustment to home country corporate structure
C) change in technical competence
D) readjustment to life at home
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Reflective thinking
54) Companies often face problems repatriating executives from foreign assignments to the home nation due to which of the following?
A) The vacant position cannot be filled overseas.
B) The firm must increase compensation substantially.
C) Different departments compete excessively to hire the repatriated manager.
D) The returning expatriate has less social status and autonomy than when abroad.
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
55) All of the following would most likely improve the successful repatriation of expatriates EXCEPT ________.
A) encouraging repatriated workers to take sabbaticals upon return
B) developing mentoring programs to smooth transitions
C) integrating foreign assignments into career plans
D) providing repatriated workers with desirable jobs
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
56) Studies indicate that the main cause of nearly half of failed expatriate assignments is the inability of the expatriate to ________.
A) meet performance expectations
B) initiate a fair compensation package
C) adapt to the host culture
D) learn the local language
Answer: C
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
57) Which of the following trends has LEAST likely led to the increased demand for expatriate talent?
A) market developments
B) technology changes
C) globalization
D) nationalism
Answer: D
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Dynamics of the global economy
58) Which of the following best explains why MNEs often employ more locals than expatriate managers in foreign facilities?
A) lower compensation expense
B) better support from unions
C) improved economies of scale
D) better grasp of core competencies
Answer: A
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Diverse and multicultural work environments
59) Which of the following is a characteristic of India that discourages MNE investment?
A) slow market growth
B) restrictive labor laws
C) poor communication infrastructure
D) government controlled market
Answer: B
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
60) Fundamentally, the task of HRM is putting the right person into the right job in the right place at the right time for the right salary.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
61) The various activities of HRM perform best when managers link them to the strategy of the firm.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
62) There is a strong yet inconsistent relationship between the strategic performance of an MNE and the decisions it has made in managing its human resources.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Reflective thinking
63) Companies have found that superior human resources are instrumental to improving their ability to create and sustain competitive advantage.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 1
AACSB: Application of knowledge
64) Expatriates are locals from the country of the foreign subsidiary.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Analytical thinking
65) An example of an expatriate would be a Canadian manager working for a Canadian firm in China.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Application
Objective: 2
AACSB: Reflective thinking
66) Executives from the home office typically demand richer compensation packages and impose higher relocation costs than third-country nationals do.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Application of knowledge
67) The past few years have seen fewer females sent on international assignments.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Diverse and multicultural work environments
68) Companies around the world typically find it easy to locate a number of executives able and willing to run foreign operations.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 2
AACSB: Diverse and multicultural work environments
69) The ethnocentric and polycentric staffing policies, unlike the geocentric staffing policy, rely on extensive use of expatriate managers.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
70) The MNE that aims to control the transfer of its unique core competencies overseas usually prefers an ethnocentric staffing policy.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
71) Unlike the geocentric and polycentric mindsets, the ethnocentric mindset is not tied to a particular home or host nation.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
72) An executive with a polycentric staffing policy presumes that successful business practices at home need not change when transferred to foreign markets.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
73) A key disadvantage of a polycentric staffing policy is that it limits the career mobility of subsidiary executives.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
74) A geocentric staffing policy seeks the best qualified people for key jobs throughout the organization, irrespective of their nationality.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
75) A geocentric staffing policy is one in which all key management positions throughout the company's global operations are filled by host-country nationals.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Application of knowledge
76) An ethnocentric staffing policy is well matched with a multidomestic strategy.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Reflective thinking
77) A polycentric staffing policy is well matched with a transnational strategy.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 3
AACSB: Reflective thinking
78) Historically, companies searching their ranks for potential expatriates looked first for individuals with the necessary language proficiency and then evaluated their technical competence.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
79) Companies find it challenging to judge a potential expatriate's adaptability to foreign places, people, and processes.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
80) Expatriate failure, broadly defined, indicates there is a breakdown in a company's selection policies to staff its foreign operations.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
81) Failure rates for overseas postings fall typically between 30 and 50 percent, and usually reduce performance, sidetrack careers, and corrode morale.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
82) Upon selection of an executive for an expatriate posting, the most common predeparture training involves a range of instructive profiles of major aspects of the host country.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
83) Practical predeparture training for the expatriate is often geared toward developing his or her sensitivities to overcome culture fright.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
84) The headquarters-based compensation method bases the expatriate's compensation on the salary of a comparable job in the city where the MNE has its headquarters.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
85) A hardship allowance nullifies the risk that an expatriate will suffer a decline in his or her standard of living due to the exorbitant expense of a particular city.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
86) Historically, companies have not been particularly concerned with the challenge of repatriation in managing their international human resources.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
87) Studies of repatriated employees regularly report that most knew what their company position would be when they returned home but were uncertain about their likely new workplace practices.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
88) A growing number of MNEs are increasing expatriate allowances to entice employees to move overseas.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
89) A growing number of MNEs in Asia and Latin America are using performance-based pay to link compensation with business results.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 2
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Concept
Objective: 4
AACSB: Application of knowledge
90) What are the differences between ethnocentric, polycentric, and geocentric frameworks?
Answer:
a. Ethnocentric framework: Ethnocentrism is the belief that the values, practices, and behaviors of one's home country are intrinsically superior to those of other nations. An executive with an ethnocentric mindset believes that successful business practices at home need not change when transferred to foreign markets. Instead, he assumes that if his business design has already proven successful at home, then it will work anywhere in the world.
b. Polycentric mindset: A polycentric outlook accepts the importance of adapting to differences, real or imaginary, between the home and host country. A polycentric manager champions the ways of foreign markets as comparable, if not more enlightened, than the practices of his or her parent company and home nation.
c. Geocentric mindset: Unlike the ethnocentric and polycentric mindset, the geocentric mindset is not tied to a particular home or host nation. It looks for the best people for key jobs throughout the organization, regardless of their nationality.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Critical Thinking
Objective: 3
AACSB: Diverse and multicultural work environments
91) What types of employees are increasingly being chosen for expatriate assignments? What characteristics are firms seeking when selecting expatriates?
Answer: Traditionally, expatriates were midlevel, midcareer executives being groomed for greater responsibilities. Because of difficulties that arise from the relocation of the entire families of midcareer executives, HRM now looks more to younger employees who are single and more mobile, as well as to older employees whose children have grown and whose partners are more receptive to change. The gender dimensions of international assignments are also evolving. Though women still make up only about 20 percent of expatriates, that percentage is steadily rising. This increase is attributed to different roles of women in the workplace. Specifically, more and more women see an expatriate placement as an important step on the career ladder. The growing need for expats to run expanding international operations, along with the rising cost of failure, spur systematic selection processes. The stakes of the decision have expanded assessment to include a candidate's adaptability to foreign places, people, and processes. HRM considers career, cultural, and psychological measures, anchored in the company's staffing framework, to organize expatriate selection. These measures, applied through objective evaluations and in-depth interviews, screen candidates on many dimensions. Anecdotes and analysis emphasize technical competence, adaptiveness, and leadership.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Synthesis
Objective: 2, 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
92) Why is global HRM more difficult than domestic HRM? How can staffing a foreign facility with locals alleviate some of these HRM difficulties?
Answer: HRM is far more difficult for the MNE than its domestic counterpart. Besides dealing with situations in the home market, an MNE adjusts its HRM practices for the political, cultural, legal, and economic differences in foreign markets. For example, leadership styles and management practices vary from country to country, causing difficulties between people at different units—say, headquarters and a local subsidiary. Similarly, labor markets vary in the mix of workers, costs, productivity, and regulations. Regarding the latter, local labor laws often require that MNEs change their workplace standards. Adjusting labor management practices complicates decision making. Finally, dual career and family obligations, among other issues, make it tough to convince executives to take a foreign assignment. Consequently, MNEs continually evaluate how to staff international operations, fine-tuning the mix of recruitment, training, compensation, transfer, and retention programs that persuade and prepare executives to work abroad. The greater the need for local adaptations, the more advantageous it is for companies to use local managers, as they presumably understand local conditions better than expatriates would. When the host country feels animosity toward foreign-controlled operations, local managers may be perceived locally as "better citizens" because they presumably put local interests ahead of the company's global objectives. This local image may play a role in employee morale as well, because many subsidiary employees prefer to work for someone from their own country.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Synthesis
Objective: 1, 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
93) What individual characteristics and qualifications should a company consider when choosing managerial candidates for foreign assignments? Which one do you think is most important? Why?
Answer:
a. Technical competence: Usually indicated by past job performance, this is the biggest determinant of success in foreign assignments. At the least, an expatriate must command the functional skills to do the job and, if necessary, understand how to transfer or tailor them to foreign situations. Managers commonly have had several years' worth of work experience before a company sends them abroad. This tendency also reflects the fact that expatriate selections are usually made by line managers based on the candidate's operational track record. Moreover, many companies translate a record of outstanding technical competence into the self-confidence needed to do well abroad.
b. Adaptiveness: Although some companies rely only on technical competence to select expatriates, three types of adaptive characteristics are important for an expatriate's success when entering a new culture:
- the need for self-maintenance, such as being self-confident and able to reduce stress
- those related to the development of satisfactory relationships with host nationals, such as flexibility and tolerance
- sensitivities that help one to perceive correctly what is occurring with the host society
An expatriate who lacks these may be unable to function effectively. Unfortunately, companies cannot always assess these adaptability characteristics accurately. If the expatriate cannot adapt, he or she may leave the foreign assignment, either by choice or by company decision.
c. Leadership ability: Increasingly, companies see personal leadership as a key to an expatriate's success. Expatriates often find themselves as senior managers at foreign subsidiaries that are usually much smaller than the parent but nevertheless still require top-level leadership duties. Communication skills, motivation, self-reliance, courage, risk taking, and diplomacy become essential qualities for success. Successful expatriates often command, in descending order of importance, optimism (believes future challenges can be overcome), drive (has passion to succeed), adaptability (handles ambiguity well), foresight (imagines the future), experience (has seen and done a great deal), resilience (recovers quickly from failure), sensitivity (adjusts management style to cultural differences), and organization (plans ahead, follows through).
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Critical Thinking
Objective: 4
AACSB: Reflective thinking
94) List and compare the three common methods of implementing a balanced compensation plan.
Answer:
a. Home-based method: This method bases the expatriate's compensation on the salary of a comparable job in his or her home city. This method, by preserving equity with home country colleagues, treats the expatriate's compensation as if the person had never left home. The home-based method is the most prevalent expatriate compensation plan.
b. Headquarters-based method: This method sets the expatriate's salary in terms of the salary of a comparable job in the city where the MNE has its headquarters. This plan explicitly recognizes the disruption of a foreign assignment and goes to great lengths to make sure an expatriate lives like she had in her home country.
c. Host-based method: This method is sometimes called destination pricing or localization. It bases an expatriate's compensation on the prevailing pay scales in the locale of the foreign assignment. Essentially, it pays an expatriate less in order to reduce tension between the expatriate and his or her colleagues in the host country.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Critical Thinking
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
95) List and discuss the main components of an expatriate's compensation package.
Answer:
a. Base salary: An expatriate's base salary normally falls in the same range as the base salary for the comparable job in the home country.
b. Foreign-service premium: MNEs often award expatriates foreign-service premiums for accepting a foreign assignment.
c. Allowances: Often included in an expatriate's compensation package is extra pay to cover the peculiar burdens of a foreign assignment. For example, an expatriate earns a hardship allowance when sent to a particularly difficult environment or dangerous location.
d. Fringe benefits: Firms typically provide expatriates the same level of medical and retirement benefits abroad that they received at home, rather than those customarily granted in the host country. However, most companies expand these benefits to deal with local contingencies.
e. Taxation: If there is no reciprocal tax treaty between the expatriate's home country and host country, then he or she may be legally obligated to pay income tax to both governments. In such situations, the MNE ordinarily pays the expatriate's tax bill in the host country.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Critical Thinking
Objective: 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
96) What problems do managers commonly encounter when repatriated from foreign assignments? How can HRM improve the repatriation process?
Answer: Up to one-third of returning expatriates leave their companies within one year of repatriation. Problems with repatriation arise in three general areas: personal finances, readjustment to home country corporate structure, and readjustment to life at home. Companies give expatriates many financial benefits to encourage them to accept a foreign assignment. Returning expatriates often find that many of their peers were promoted above them while they were abroad, that they now have less autonomy in the job, and that they now have less in common with their friends than before the foreign assignment(s). Some human resource practices for smoothing reentry include providing expatriates with ample advance notice of when they will return, maximum information about their new jobs, placement in jobs that will build on their foreign experiences, housing assistance, and a reorientation program, as well as requiring frequent visits to headquarters and using a formal headquarters mentor to look after their interests while they are abroad.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Synthesis
Objective: 1, 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
97) What are the current trends in expatriate allowances? What are the reasons for these changes?
Answer: Spurred by cost pressures and unstable job markets, MNEs have begun reducing the range and extent of expatriate allowances. Foreign service premiums, for example, have been phased out by many companies. Globalization moves many employees to sustain their careers by working abroad, while more individuals see international assignments as a chance to develop business skills and leadership qualities. These folks are more willing to go abroad for less compensation; in fact, a recent survey found that 81 percent believe that broadening their horizons and gaining life experience, not financial gain, is the most important benefit of a foreign assignment. Cost-reduction techniques include dropping benefits and allowances and cutting "hardship" allowances for locales that are not as difficult as they once were, such as an assignment to Prague or Shanghai. Pressure to reduce pay and perquisites will continue, driven by cost control and skillful employees from developing countries eager to work worldwide.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Critical Thinking
Objective: 4
AACSB: Reflective thinking
'98) Why are third-country nationals increasingly being used to fill expatriate assignments? How do third-country nationals fit into the concept of geocentrism?
Answer: The changing workplace of globalization elevates the role of third-country nationals. MNEs often establish operations abroad in increasingly dissimilar markets—say, from the United States to Canada to England to India to Singapore to China to Vietnam. Third-country nationals often have the particular outlook and versatile competencies that are needed to adeptly implement this market sequence. Moreover, the move toward short-term assignments boosts the logistical appeal of third-country nationals—an executive living in London yet working for a U.S. MNE, for instance, may spend Monday through Friday working in Zurich, then return home for the weekend. Then, as the need arises for help in the MNE's Stockholm office, she can reset her commute. Such mobility lets an MNE more easily adapt its strategy, confident it has executives who are well-positioned to implement it. Geocentrism is a world-oriented set of attitudes and values that regards humanity as a single entity. It does not heed national boundaries, and it sees the blunt division of home-, host-, and third-country managers as needless. Rather, HRM's task is developing the best people for key jobs throughout the organization, regardless of their nationality.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Synthesis
Objective: 2, 3
AACSB: Analytical thinking
99) How do MNEs benefit from superior international HRM especially when filling expatriate positions? What costs do MNEs face when expatriate assignments are unsuccessful?
Answer: The relationship between superior HRM and high productivity, competitive advantage, and value creation confirms the significance of people to performance. The power of this relationship transforms HRM. The financial and personal costs of expatriate failure, no matter how infrequent, are destructive. The average cost per failure can be as high as three times the expat's annual domestic salary plus the cost of relocation. The financial cost can easily reach $1 million when one accounts for the time and money spent in selection, preliminary visits to the location, and the lost productivity as things fall apart. An incalculable cost is the personal implications of professional failure to the formerly high-performing executive's self-confidence and leadership potential. Finally, a potentially greater cost is the hardship imposed on the spouse and family.
Diff: 3
Learning Outcome: Identify and discuss the components of the global human resource management process
Skill: Synthesis
Objective: 1, 4
AACSB: Analytical thinking
------
VIDEOS
See full video List here - link
EBOOKS
Incoterms 2010 - Ebook - link
Incoterms 2010 - Guides - link
Incoterms 2010 - Guides - Light Version - link
Incoterms 2010 - Q & A - link
Incoterms 2010 - English Vietnamese - link
Incoterms 2010 - Reviews - link
Incoterms 2010 - Incoterms new 2016 - Made easy e-Guides - link
Incoterms 2010 - Case Study Guides - link
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS - FREE DOWNLOADS
International Business: The New Realities, 4th Edition, Cavusgil, Knight & Riesenberger
International Business: The Challenges of Globalization, 8th Edition, Wild & Wild
International Business, 15th Edition, Daniels, Radebaugh & Sullivan
International Business: A Managerial Perspective, 8th Edition, Griffin & Pustay
DOWNLOAD Ebooks - here
DOWNLOAD Slides - here
DOWNLOAD Video List - here
DOWNLOAD Test Bank - here
DOWNLOAD Case Study Guides - here
Any Question, email to: ecomftu2012@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment