Intercultural And Global Challenges

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

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Colbourne College

Student: Shaneka Gapour

Lecturer: Mr. Melton Watkis

Course Index: BA203

April 30, 2013

Table of Contents

Introduction & Objectives 3

Methodology 4

Literature review 5

Intercultural and global challenges 6

Forecasting 7

Laws of Human Resource Management in Jamaica 8

Recruitment and Selection 9

Training and Development 10

Employment Contract 11

Compensation and Rewards 12

Performance Evaluation 13

Recommendation 14

Conclusion 15

References 16

Introduction

Human resource management can be one of the most difficult jobs in any organization. In this project I have been assign the post of director of human resources for a new subsidiary that my company will be opening in Jamaica, the name of the company is fabulous feet, this a shoes company that provide footwear for oversized feet.

This project seeks to find out the process of planning the operations of human resources by recruiting the most suitable person to fill the positions that are available within the organization. The development of the human resource department will also be discussed and the management of the human resource once the recruits have been selected.

Forecasting the needs of human resources by strategically planning for the future will be discussed in the chapters ahead this will explain how the business plan to make preparations for staff shortages and how to set out the organizational structure of the business.

We will look at the laws governing the Jamaican labor force such the holiday with pay act . the maternity leave act, the redundancy and termination act and the national housing trust act just to name a few. These act were put in to place to protect the rights of the people of this country.

There was not much limitations in gathering the information for this research as most of the information was taken from text books and the websites of the different international companies located in Jamaica however I did not receive any primary data because of the challenge of not being able to meet with an actual human resource manager to get an interview.

The significance of this study is to show the reader the steps and processes in recruiting and selecting new employees for a business and the challenges likely to be face by the human resource manager. The first part of this research tells of the global challenges faced by human resource personnel and the latter parts tell you about the planning for human resource and the recruitment and selection process of human resource management.

Objectives

To set up the most successful shoe company in Jamaica

To have a vibrant and motivated staff working in the organization

To have a fully functioning human resource department

Methodology

The research methods use in this project is the qualitative method this method enables me to get accurate information through secondary sources such as books, the daily news paper and the internet where most of my information came from. I viewed the websites of international companies to see their organizational structures and how they are set up and the new job description that are available.

The other source of getting information for my research was through my lecture notes. I found my lecture notes to be very informative because they are more inclined with the theorist principles and functions of management which is what we will use to guide our recruitment and selection process.

The internet is also an important source that was chosen to provide information because it keeps us up to date with new trends in footwear and we were able to watch videos online to see the type of individuals working the shoe stores and how they interacted with customers so we could seek the same type of people to place in our store here in Jamaica.

Literature Review

The future success of any organizations relies on the ability to manage a diverse body of talent that can bring innovative ideas, perspectives and views to their work. The challenge and problems faced of workplace diversity can be turned into a strategic organizational asset if an organization is able to capitalize on this melting pot of diverse talents. With the mixture of talents of diverse cultural backgrounds, genders, ages and lifestyles, an organization can respond to business opportunities more rapidly and creatively, especially in the global arena (Cox, 1993).

The government set rules and laws to govern employment practices in Jamaica so the workers’ rights will be protected and workers will be treated fairly, these legislations can be found on the ministry of justice website. The legal issues affecting human resource will be analyze carefully to avoid any implications on the process of recruiting and employing individuals.(Doing Business in Jamaica 2011)

Training is process whereby people acquire capabilities to perform jobs, training provides employees with specific identifiable knowledge and skills for use in their present jobs organizational training may include teaching of hard skills such as teaching sales representatives how use intranet resources. Soft skills are critical in many instances and can be taught as well, these skills may include communicating and mentoring (Mathis, Jackson,2010)

The organization itself can influence employees behavior through its reward structure, culture and job design. Rewards structure focuses on the types of reward an organization uses, how rewards are distributed and the criteria for reward distribution. Further rewards may include not only tangible things such as financial bonuses and plaques but also intangible such as recognition and acceptance(Werner, De Simone 2000)

Intercultural and Global Challenges

Discrimination amongst workers can be one of the challenges faced by the HR department, quite often in many organization and especially in Jamaica, people tend to discriminate against gay workers and this organization does not discriminate against gays because we believe that people have the right to live their life freely and make their own decisions without being scorn or look down on. The HR department will be responsible for choosing the right people to work in the organization who will not discriminate and be willing to share space with any and everyone within the organization regardless of their sexual preferences.

Colleen Reinhart a professional writer since 2006 stated in one of her article that communication can become a problem in workplaces where some workers speak English as a second language. She also stated that in order to limit misunderstanding and confusion, English-speaking employees shouldn't use jargon and slang in team meetings and emails. It’s ok for employees to use their mother language while talking to friends over lunch but it should not be use during any formal discussions at work.

The legal system in Jamaica is set up differently from the ones abroad and it can pose global issues for international employees who come here to work. In America fathers are given paternity leave when their spouse gives birth to a child, this privilege is not granted in Jamaica and this can cause family breakdown for the international employees.

The host country economic situation can have major impact on the organization development and success, if the country’s economic situation is poor then there is a possibility that the business will not succeed as well as the establishment of a new business can help to boost the economic condition by providing more jobs for the working population and improving the lives of individuals in the country.

The organization can also encounter difficulties if the country human resources does not have the necessary skills and academic qualifications to fill the vacancies available in the organization, this would mean that the human resource department would have to source employees from outside the country and this would have a negative impact on the economy as these outsiders would come here to earn and send the money back home to their family.

Forecasting

I will first set up an organizational chart base off the overseas firm which is the mother firm which will outline the different departments needed to get the business up and running. There will not be much departments because there will be no production done at this location, this location will be focusing on selling the products that the firm manufacture. The products will be sent from the overseas production center. Using the overseas organizational chart will make it easier for me to see what departments I will need to set up and estimate the amount of staff members I will need to fill the vacancies available.

Analyzing the post to be filled is very important in order to advertise job in the media so people will know exactly what the business is looking for in terms of qualifications, personality and other important attributes that will add value to the business and its development

Checking the cost of wages before starting to send out notices for job vacancies, this will enable us to have an estimate of how much it will cost the business for wages and salaries on a weekly or monthly basis

Assessing the economic situation of the country to see if it’s safe to take on temporary staff or permanent staff because we would not want to be face with the expense of redundancy if the business fails and closing down would be an only option.

Make plans for staff shortage by ensuring that the business employs all rounder’s who can fill post in the case of a staff being absent for sickness or sudden resignation this will help to eliminate chaos in the business when un foreseen circumstances happen. As the business progress we will gradually assess the business to see if there is any need for additional staffing.

Laws of Human Resource Management in Jamaica

The laws that govern the labor force in Jamaica is set up to protect the rights of each individual so that they can be equally and fairly treated by their employers. It is critical for each organization or employers to know the laws that govern the workforce in order to follow them so they don’t get on the wrong side of the law. These acts can be found on the ministry of justice website in Jamaica below is a list of few acts we will follow to keep up with the labor laws of the country.

The minimum wage act was last amended in 2011 by the government,(Amendment Act 2011,s#2) the new minimum wage for a forty hour work week(40hrs)for an employee is five thousand Jamaican dollars ($5000) this means that no employee should be paid less once they have completed their 40 hours for the week.

The holiday with pay act was also amended in 2009(Amendment Act 2009, s #14), this act states that each employee whose work day falls on a holiday should be paid for the day if the employees are not at work but if the employee has to work then the employee should be paid at double time.

The Employment termination and redundancy payments act (Termination and Redundancy payment Act1974) state that employees be paid if made redundant once the employees has been working for over a period of time with the same company and also if a employee is terminated should receive at least two week notice along with vacation leave and two weeks payment after being redundant

The maternity leave act(Maternity Leave Act 44 of1979) , it is the right of the employer to grant maternity leave to an employee who has become pregnant and has reached her 28th weeks of pregnancy and has requested to be sent on leave.

There is also the National Insurance act, National Housing Trust Act and the Education Tax Act these act will assist in the preparation of employee’s salary how to deduct taxes from the employees’ salaries and wages to contribute towards the country’s development. (http://www.hrmaj.org/)

Recruitment and Selection

The recruitment and selection process will be done through reference mostly and the reason for this is that it is a small store and not a lot of persons will be needed for starting out the business so for the few staff that is needed we will be asking good friends and family for references of person that they know who has the capabilities the fill the position that will be available at the store.

The social media, face book will also be used to advertise the opening of the new store so people will be aware of the setting up of the business in Jamaica and can send messages to the inbox if they are interested in working with the company.

These references will be interviewed by the director of human resources to see if they meet the requirements or if their personalities match up to the expectations of the director, after interviewing the references the most suitable applicants will be selected to move on to the next stage which is the training process.

I chose these two strategies because of the high unemployment rate in Jamaica the company might not be able to deal with the large number of mails that will be received if the advertisement of the job is placed in the local newspaper or advertised on public notice boards. We would not be able to handle the high turnout of people coming to ask for job.

Training and Development

Training of the selected employees will be trained by a training specialist over a 2weeks period to get them up to speed with the company. They will learn about the mother company by watching a video of the overview of the company where they get to see the chairman with his welcome speech and see the operations that take place in the production department. They will also see the staff on the job and see how they operate on the job on a daily basis.

In addition to the introduction of the company the employees will trained specially on the areas of customer service and sales techniques. This training will be important as this store will need individuals who can give the best service to each and every customer that walks through the door whether the customer is just browsing or interested in making a purchase at the store.

The employees will learn about the products offered and the materials use to manufacture each product, they will learn about the different styles offered and what style is suitable for each body type. This product knowledge is beneficial to the employee’s development within the company.

The Employment Contract

The employment contract to be used will be a one year contract for each individual to be renewed every year based on the performance of the individual and the performance of the company after the year end the companies senior managers will have to check on the profitability of the company to see how profitable the business is in order to renew each individuals contract.

The reason for choosing this type of contract is because of the economic state of the country we need to be careful not to take on any employee permanently so we the company don’t end up with the expense of funding redundancy in case of a unforeseen turn for the worst in the business. We have forecasted in our plans and budgeted for a year of finance so it would be wise to use the one year contract to start out. The one year contract will mean no provision for pension and this can be costly expense on the business.

Compensation and Rewards

The staff will compensated base on their hours of work the store will be open six days per week and each staff will be paid for a 40 hour work week at five thousand base bay and have the opportunity to earn more by meeting their sales target for the week each employee working on the floor is expected to sell at least five peers of shoe for the week in order to meet their target, upon meeting the target they will earn additional cash incentive of two thousand five hundred for the week. Senior staff such as supervisor and managers will get a set pay for the month base on their position, these supervisory staff wages will be negotiated upon the date of interview.

The rewards to be given will take the form of monetary and non monetary rewards. The non monetary reward will be in the form of recognition such as plaques placed on the walls for most outstanding employee on the month. Monetary rewards will be given to persons who have maximized on their sale target for the month. These rewards will also act as motivational support for the staff to continue to serve the company at their best.

Performance Measurement

The evaluation methods to be used to measure the performance of the employees will be firstly through observation, this observation will be done on a daily basis by the immediate supervisor and manager on location at the store there will also be cameras installed in the store to keep a close watch on the service that is given to the customers on a daily basis. Observation is known to be one of the most accurate form measuring an individual performance because you get to see firsthand the behavior and attitude of the individual on the job.

Performance appraisal will be done every 3 months to assess the performance and make recommendations where necessary for further training and development of the employees. The performance appraisal is necessary because this allows not only the human resource manager but the immediate supervisor and other member of staff is given the opportunity to assess the staff performance.

Conclusion

Staffing a company is not an easy task it takes a lot of planning and forecasting especially when a business decides to set up in another country. The setting up of a business in another country calls for a great amount of concern in terms of globalisation which could cause conflicts in terms of language barriers and cross cultural differences.

The laws that govern the labor force of the country one wish to set up business in, will have great impact on the staffing of the organization and the work schedule that one wish to use in the host country.

It is best to use a training specialist from you’re company to train the staff of a new company because they will have the same level of product knowledge and training to keep up with the other company and maintain the same level of standards .

Recommendation

Human Resource Managers need to be trained to meet the changes that occur through to globalisation these managers should do courses that teach about different cultures so they will be better able to cope with the changes as they arise.

The HR managers need to carefully assess the legal requirements for the workforce for the country in which they wish to set up business so they can know whether setting up a business in this location will be a wise idea.

Staff should receive training twice per year, managers should ensure that there is a training specialist from the parent or home office to train the new staff so they will be on par with the other staff from the parent company back home this will enable the company to keep the standard at one level.