A Theoretical Model Of Global HRM Integration In MNCs

In recent years, multinational corporations (MNCs) have grown rapidly and a key challenge for these MNCs therefore rests in being able to combine and manage disparate business across borders, thus prompted studies into the integration mechanisms that MNCs use (Ghoshal & Nohria, 1989; Harzing,1999). The business function that has been attributed a major role in addressing this new challenge is that of Human resource management (HRM).The purpose of this paper is to review the literature of HRM in MNCs from a knowledge transfer perspective, to identify some of the key weaknesses in extant research and design a theoretical model of the HRM integration in MNCs.In an in-depteh review of the extant literature on HRM in MNCs, the first chapter of this dissertation identify the major weakness that warrant further research. In order to focus on the process of HRM integration, the dissertation adopt knowledge transfer perspective, viewing the process of HRM integration as a process of HRM knowledge transfer, and outline the frame of the dissertation. According to the theory of knowledge transfer, the article identify four element of knowledge transfer, namely the knowledge source, the recipient, the content of transfer and the transfer method and design a conceptual frame of this research.From the second to fourth chapter, the research discuss the content of each element in the conceptual model and explore the potential relationship and mechanisms among them. The article argue that the context of HRM integration is determined by the characteristics of parent companies and subsidiaries, which influence the implement of integration strategy. What more, the dissertation pay more attention to the characteristics of HRM knowledge. Finally, we classify the method of HRM transfer into four main types and discuss their pros and cons.In viewing of the indicators of the HRM integration performance, the fifth chapter of the dissertation propose a whole theoretical model of HRM integration in MNCs and clarify the feature and content of this model, as well as the implication in research and practice.