Cross-Cultural Social Intelligence

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Brunel Business School MSc INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS Academic Year 2010-2011 HRM Practices – CCSI And Its Importance In Achieving Superior Organisational Performance: A Study Of Foreign MNESs Operating In Romania Roxana Buzetelu, Student ID: 1033166 A report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science Brunel University Department of Information Systems and Computing Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 3PH United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) 1895 203397 Fax: +44 (0) 1895 251686

Transcript of Cross-Cultural Social Intelligence

Page 1: Cross-Cultural Social Intelligence

Brunel Business School

MSc INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Academic Year 2010-2011

HRM Practices – CCSI And Its Importance In Achieving Superior Organisational Performance: A Study Of Foreign MNESs Operating In Romania

Roxana Buzetelu,

Student ID: 1033166

A report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science

Brunel University

Department of Information Systems and Computing

Uxbridge, Middlesex UB8 3PH

United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0) 1895 203397

Fax: +44 (0) 1895 251686

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           2         Student  ID:1033166  

ABSTRACT  

The  actual  business  environment  is  the  result  of  a  continuous  development  and  growth.  In  the  1980s  

major  important  changes  happened,  one  of  the  most  important,  being  the  appearance  of  MNEs,  and  

with  this,  the  shift  towards  an  international  division  of   labour  (Legge,  2005).  Facing  these  changes,  

companies   had   to   adapt   and  develop   their   strategies   in   order   to   successfully   compete  with   other  

major  important  players  on  the  market.  Thus,  it  was  very  important  to  develop  new  ways  of  thinking  

and  acting  in  a  multinational  and  complex  society.    

In   order   to   achieve   individual   and   organisational   performance,   companies   must   offer   a   lot   of  

attention   to   the   mix   of   Human   Resources  Management   practices   they   use.   Nowadays,   having   in  

consideration  the  global  economical  environment  and  the  fact  that  citizens  from  different  cultures  

are   working   together,   it   is   very   important   to   understand   any   cross-­‐cultural   differences,   and   to  

ensure  that  such  differences  are  dealt  effectively.    

The  aim  of  this  research  paper   is  to   identify   if  the  mix  of  HRM  practices  used  by  five  multinational  

enterprises  operating  in  Romania,  are  successful  enough.  Additionally,  the  concept  of  cross  cultural  

social   intelligence  was  explained  and  an  attempt  was  made  to  highlight  its   importance  in  achieving  

superior  organisational  performance.  

Having  obtained   results   from  designed  questionnaires,   the   findings  of   the  present   study   show   the  

fact  that  even  if  the  current  mix  of  HRM  practices  adopted  by  companies  operating  in  Romania  leads  

to   organisational   performance,   it   is   recommended   to   improve   and   pay   more   attention   to   the  

expatriate   and  employee’s   needs  by  offering   them  more   trainings   and  development  programmes.  

Moreover   the   current   research   paper   identified   the   importance   of   CCSI   in   the   present   global  

economical  context.  

Keywords:  HRM  practices,  cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence,  expatriates,  organisational  performance.  

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           3         Student  ID:1033166  

AKNOWLEDGEMENT  Firstly,  I  would  like  to  thank  and  show  my  appreciation  to  my  tutor  Mr.  Mustafa  F.  Ozbilgin,  for  his  

help,  guidance,  support  and  encouragement.  His  contribution  was  significant  for  the  accomplishing  

of  this  study.        

I  wish  also  to  thank  all   the  people  that  were   involved   in  this  research  and  more  specifically  all   the  

employees  of  the  five  MNEs  that  helped  me  with  their  responses.    

I  want  also  to  show  my  love  and  appreciation  to  my  family,   friends  and  especially  to  my  boyfriend  

who  never  stop  supporting  and  love  me.  Without  their  support,  this  study  would  be  unattainable.  

Last  but  not   least,   thank  you  God,   for  providing  me  all   the   strength  and  courage   to   complete   this  

project.    

 

 

I  certify  that  the  work  presented  in  the  dissertation  is  my  own  unless  referenced  

Signature..........................................  

Date.....28th  September,  2011.  

 

Total  number  of  words:  12,311  

 

 

 

 

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           4         Student  ID:1033166  

TABLE  OF  CONTENTS  

 

ABSTRACT  ..............................................................................................................................................  2  

AKNOWLEDGEMENT  ..............................................................................................................................  3  

Chapter  1:  INTRODUCTION  ....................................................................................................................  8  

1.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence  ............................................................................................  9  

1.2.  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  .................................................................................................  10  

1.3.  Aims  and  objectives  ..............................................................................................................  10  

1.4.  Research  Outline  ...................................................................................................................  11  

Chapter  2:  LITERATURE  REVIEW  ..........................................................................................................  13  

2.1.  Human  resources  management  ...........................................................................................  13  

2.2.  HRM  practices  –  HRM  performance  .....................................................................................  14  

2.3.  HRM  practices  .......................................................................................................................  15  

2.3.1.  Recruiting  and  hiring  ......................................................................................................  16  

2.3.2.  Training  and  development  .............................................................................................  17  

2.4.  HRM  in  Multinational  Enterprises  ........................................................................................  17  

2.5.  Expatriate  managers  .............................................................................................................  18  

2.6.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  ..................................................................................................  20  

2.6.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  approaches  .......................................................................  22  

2.6.2.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  interaction  ........................................................................  22  

2.7.  Cross  Cultural  Social  Intelligence  ..........................................................................................  25  

2.8.  Romanian  Managers  and  HRM  .............................................................................................  27  

Chapter  3:  METHODOLOGY  .................................................................................................................  29  

3.1.  Introduction  ..........................................................................................................................  29  

3.2.  Research  Design  ....................................................................................................................  29  

3.2.1.  Primary  Data  ..................................................................................................................  30  

3.2.1.1.  Closed  Ended  Questions  .........................................................................................  30  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           5         Student  ID:1033166  

3.2.1.2.  Open  -­‐  Ended  Questions  .........................................................................................  32  

3.2.2.  Secondary  Data  ..............................................................................................................  32  

3.3.  Context  and  Sample  of  the  Study  .........................................................................................  33  

3.4.  Ethical  Issues  .........................................................................................................................  33  

3.5.  Limitations  ............................................................................................................................  34  

Chapter  4:  DATA  ANALYSIS  AND  FINDINGS  .........................................................................................  35  

4.1.  Introduction  ..........................................................................................................................  35  

4.2.  Findings  –  HRM  Practices  in  MNEs  .......................................................................................  36  

4.2.1.  Training  and  development  .............................................................................................  36  

4.2.2.  Team  work  .....................................................................................................................  37  

4.2.3.  Selective  hiring  ...............................................................................................................  37  

4.2.4.  Related  payment  ............................................................................................................  39  

4.2.5.  Information  sharing  and  participation  ...........................................................................  40  

4.3.  Findings  –  CCSI  and  Organisational  Performance  .................................................................  41  

4.3.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  Social  Intelligence  ...................................................................................  42  

4.3.2.  Organisational  Performance  ..........................................................................................  44  

4.4.  Findings  –  Open  Questions  ...................................................................................................  51  

Chapter  5:  DISCUSSION  PART  ..............................................................................................................  55  

5.1.  Introduction  ..........................................................................................................................  55  

5.2.  HRM  Practices  .......................................................................................................................  55  

5.3.  Cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence  ..........................................................................................  57  

5.4.  CCSI  –  Performance  ..............................................................................................................  57  

5.5.  HRM  practices  and  CCSI  in  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  ......................................................  58  

Chapter  6:  CONCLUSIONS  ....................................................................................................................  60  

6.1.  Introduction  ..........................................................................................................................  60  

6.2.  Research  Findings  and  Recommendations  ...........................................................................  60  

6.3.  Research  contribution  ..........................................................................................................  62  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           6         Student  ID:1033166  

6.4.  Research  limitations  .............................................................................................................  62  

6.5.  Recommendation  for  future  research  work  .........................................................................  62  

LIST  OF  REFERENCES:  ...........................................................................................................................  63  

APENDIX  A  ...........................................................................................................................................  67  

APPENDIX  B  .........................................................................................................................................  68  

 

Figure  2-­‐1  .............................................................................................................................................  15  

Figure  2-­‐2  .............................................................................................................................................  24  

Figure  2-­‐3  .............................................................................................................................................  25  

 

Table  4-­‐1:  Response  Rate  ....................................................................................................................  35  

 

Graph  4-­‐1  .............................................................................................................................................  36  

Graph  4-­‐2  .............................................................................................................................................  37  

Graph  4-­‐3  .............................................................................................................................................  38  

Graph  4-­‐4  .............................................................................................................................................  39  

Graph  4-­‐5  .............................................................................................................................................  40  

Graph  4-­‐6  .............................................................................................................................................  41  

Graph  4-­‐7  .............................................................................................................................................  42  

Graph  4-­‐8  .............................................................................................................................................  43  

Graph  4-­‐9  .............................................................................................................................................  44  

Graph  4-­‐10  ...........................................................................................................................................  45  

Graph  4-­‐11  ...........................................................................................................................................  46  

Graph  4-­‐12  ...........................................................................................................................................  47  

Graph  4-­‐13  ...........................................................................................................................................  48  

Graph  4-­‐14  ...........................................................................................................................................  49  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           7         Student  ID:1033166  

Graph  4-­‐15  ...........................................................................................................................................  50  

Graph  4-­‐16  ...........................................................................................................................................  51  

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           8         Student  ID:1033166  

Chapter  1: INTRODUCTION    

Even   if   the   financial   crisis   hit   the   whole   world   and   the   business   environment   had   to   suffer,  

globalization  is  unstoppable.  The  economy  is  expanding,  and  businesses  all  around  the  world  tend  to  

develop  by  finding  new  opportunities  and  by  conquering  new  markets.    Because  of  this,  today’s  work  

force   tends   to   be  more   and  more  diverse   in   race,   gender,   culture,   family   structures,   religion,   and  

educational  backgrounds.  According   to  Bovee,  Thill,  Mescon   (2007),  managing   the  workforce   is,  at  

the  moment,  an   international  challenge:  different   teams  from  different  parts  of   the  world  have  to  

work  together,  and  companies  have  to  understand  and  coexist  with  their  business  partners.  

Thus,  human  resources  management  (HRM)  represents  one  of  the  most  important  and  challenging  

functions  of  a  business.  HRM  includes  all  the  tasks  involved  in  acquiring,  maintaining,  and  developing  

an   organization’s   human   resources   (Dessler   2004).   The   human   resource   (HR)   department   has   six  

different   functions:   1)   planning   for   staffing   needs,   2)   recruiting   and   hiring,   3)   training   and  

development,  4)  appraising  performance,  5)  administering  compensation  and  benefits,  6)  overseeing  

changes   in   employment   status   (Bovee,   et   al,   2007).   According   to   Gould-­‐Williams,   “the   more   HR  

practises   used   within   the   organisation,   the   greater   the   impact   on   performance”   (Gould-­‐Williams,  

2003,  p.43).  

Due  to  the  fact   that  the  actual  global  economical  environment   is  changing  really   fast,   this  practice  

started  to  be  seen  as  strategic,  but  also  as  very  challenging  because  of   the  difficulty  of  developing  

employees  who  can  work  successfully  across  cultures  (Bovee,  et  al,  2007).  

 

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           9         Student  ID:1033166  

 

1.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence  

In  order  to  function  across  cultures  members  of  staff  have  to  understand  different  ways  of  thinking,  

taking  action,  and  behaving  in  different  international  social  contexts.  In  order  to  do  that,  employees  

need   to   have   Cross-­‐Cultural   Social   Intelligence   (CCSI).   CCSI   represents   an   amalgam   of   knowledge,  

skills,  abilities  and  other  characteristics  (Ascalon,  Schleicher,  Born,  2008).  

It  can  be  seen  as  a  tool  to  analyze  one  of  the  major  reasons  why  expatriates  return  to  their  home  

country   before   the   termination   of   the   assignment.   This   is   represented   by   their   lack   of   cultural  

knowledge  of  the  host  country  which  leads  to  multiple  challenges  in  adapting  and  understanding  the  

new  environment  (Jasawalla,  Truglia,  Garvey,  2004).  These  unsuccessful  assignments  can  cause  the  

failure  of  an  entire  project  within  an  organisation,  which  might  even  lead  to  huge  financial  loss.    

In  order  to  avoid  this,  it  is  the  role  of  the  HR  department  to  select  and  train  the  right  employees  to  

help   reducing   the   failure   rate  of   the  assignments.  To  do   that,   in  a   recent  study,   Jasawalla,  Truglia,  

Garvey   (2004),   identified   three  major   points   of   focus:   1)   selecting   expatriate  managers   with   high  

emotional  intelligence,  2)  providing  extensive  pre-­‐departure  cultural  training  (not  only  cultural  facts,  

but  interpersonal  skills  as  well),  3)  to  utilize  sensitive  training  techniques  to  better  prepare  managers  

for  new  situations.    

Another   solution   to   the   problem   was   suggested   by   Ascalon,   Schleicher,   Born,   (2008)   who   have  

created   a   Situational   Judgment   Test   which   enables   the   measurement   of   CCSI.   They   have  

recommended  in  their  study,  the  use  of  this  test  as  a  tool  for  training  and  recruiting  expatriates  or  

any  other  employees  who  have  to  face  an  international  business  environment.  

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           10         Student  ID:1033166  

 

1.2.  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  

Even   Multinational   Enterprises   (MNEs)   do   know   about   the   importance   of   HRM   practices   and  

selecting   the   right   candidates   in   order   to   achieve   organisational   performance,   they   still   fail   in  

adapting  the  right  techniques  for  avoiding  this.  

After  1989,  Romania  became  a  developing  economy  and  many  MNEs  have  seized  the  opportunity  of  

opening  new  subsidiaries  on   its   territories.   Following   the  communist   regime,  Romania  was   lacking  

the  right  people  to  manage  new  international  businesses.  Nowadays,  the  situation  has  changed  and  

we   can   see  a   shift   towards  Romanian  highly   skilled  managers   (Capital,   2004,   July).   Even   so,  MNEs  

sometimes   prefer   to   bring   their   actual   employees   from   other   countries   in   their   subsidiary   in  

Romania  to  manage  different  departments  of  their  business.    

Having  in  mind  the  importance  of  HRM  practices  in  achieving  organisational  performance,  CCSI  can  

be  seen  as  the  key  to  achieving  success  in  any  business  operating  in  an  international  environment.    

Therefore   this  paper  aims   to  analyze   if  CCSI   leads   to  better  achievements   in  MNEs   in  Romania,  as  

well  the  need  of  adopting  new  HRM  practices,  having  in  consideration  the  actual  global  economical  

environment.  

 

1.3.  Aims  and  objectives  

This   study   aims   to   identify   if   the   MNEs   operating   in   Romania   have   adopted   cross-­‐cultural   HRM  

practices   and   consequently   analyze   the   importance   of   CCSI   with   regards   to   achieving   superior  

organisational   performance.   In   addition   an   effort   will   be   made   to   determine   if   the   actual   HRM  

practices  are  enough,  or  is  it  needed  to  adapt  and  utilize  CCSI  Situational  Judgement  Test.    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           11         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Aims  and  Objectives:  

1. To   analyze   if   cross-­‐cultural   HRM   practices   increase   the   organisational   and   individual  

performance.  

2. To   investigate   what   are   the   HRM   practices   used   by   MNEs   in   Romania   when  

recruiting/training  their  employees.  

3. To  analyze  if  CCSI  enhances  the  individual  and  organisational  performance.  

4. To  investigate  if  CCSI  Situational  Judgement  Test  (SJT)  is  currently,  or  needs  to  be  adopted  as  

a  tool  in  MNEs  in  Romania.  

Consequently  this  paper  will  be  organised  around  three  research  questions:  

1. Are  the  employees  cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligent?  

2. Do  companies  who  adopt  CCSI  achieve  organisational  performance?  

3. Is   the   adoption   of   CCSI   SJT   a   necessity   in  MNEs   in   Romania,   or   whether   the   actual   HRM  

practices  are  successful  enough?  

 

1.4.  Research  Outline  

This  project  has  been  structured  as  follows:  

Chapter   One:   Introduction   -­‐   Presenting   an   overview   of   HRM   and   CCSI   background   and   will   also  

include  research  questions  and  aims  and  objectives  of  the  study.  

Chapter   Two:   Literature  Review  –  The   theoretical   framework  will   offer   a  deeper  understanding  of  

the   theories   behind   HRM.   Here,   concepts   like   HRM   practices,   performance,   cross-­‐cultural   social  

intelligence  will  be  analyzed  having  in  consideration  previous  books,  papers  and  journals.  

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Chapter  Three:  Research  Methodology  –  This  part  will  present  the  methodological  approach  used  for  

the   present   paper,   having   in   consideration   both,   primary   and   secondary   data   and   as   well   as  

limitations.  

Chapter  Four:  Analysis  –  The  forth  chapter  of  the  paper  aims  to  carefully  analyze  the  findings.  

Chapter   Five:   Discussion   -­‐   Here,   the   findings   analyzed   in   the   previous   chapter   will   be   argued   in  

relation  with  various  literature  theories.  

Chapter   Six:   Conclusion   and   Recommendation   –   Here   the   conclusions   will   be   presented   together  

with  recommendations  and  the  importance  of  this  study.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           13         Student  ID:1033166  

Chapter  2: LITERATURE  REVIEW    

This  chapter  aims  to  analyze  the  most  important  theoretical  aspects  of  the  present  research  paper.  

In  order  to  offer  a  clear  explanation  of  the  link  between  HRM  practices,  CCSI  and  performance,  the  

following  topics  will  be  discussed:  Human  resources  management,  HRM  practices,  expatriates,  cross-­‐

cultural  management  and  cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence.  

2.1.  Human  resources  management  

HRM   can   be   defined   as   “the   function   within   an   organization   that   focuses   on   recruitment   of,  

management  of,  and  providing  direction  for  the  people  who  work   in  the  organization”  (Hafemann,  

2008).  Additionally,  HRM  is  a  function  which  specializes  in  hiring  the  right  people  in  order  to  reach  

the   company’s   goals   and   objectives.   In   order   to   do   that,   the   HR   department   has   to   oversee   the  

employee’s  training  and  development,  to  evaluate,  to  motivate  and  to  compensate  them  (Bovee,  et  

al,  2008)    

Analyzing  previous  work  in  the  this  field,   it  can  be  seen  that  there  is  a   lack  in  clearly  defining  HRM  

and  its  practices:  some  of  the  studies  focus  on  the  effectiveness  of  the  HR  department  (Teo,  2002),  

others  on  the  value  of  HR  in  terms  of  knowledge  and  skills  (HItt,  2001),  but  most  of  them  as  a  mix  of  

individual  practices  (Batt,  2001;  Capelli  and  Neumark  2001).  Thus,  Pauwee  and  Boselli  (2005)  identify  

a  total  of  26  practices,  out  of  which  only  4  are  most  commonly  used:  1)  training  and  development,  2)  

contingent   pay   and   reward   schemes,   3)   performance   management,   4)   careful   recruitment   and  

selection.  

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           14         Student  ID:1033166  

2.2.  HRM  practices  –  HRM  performance  

The  link  between  HRM  practices  and  organisational  performance  is  still  a  debated  subject.  A  recent  

study,   in   which   the   whole   previous   studies   and   researches   were   analyzed,   a   statement   is   made  

about   the   HRM   impact   on   performance:   “in   much   –   though   by   no   means   all   –   of   the   empirical  

research  HRM  in  its  ‘system’  form  has  been  found  no  matter  (in  a  positive  sense)  for  organisational  

performance”  (Boselie  et  al,  2005).    

Moreover,   Theriou   et   al,   (2009)   examine   in   their   study   the   linkages   between   the   best   human  

resources  practices,  knowledge  management,  organisational  learning,  organisational  capabilities  and  

organisational   performance   and   affirm   that   better   performance   is   achieved   by   the   interaction  

between  HRM  practices  and  the  above  mentioned.  

In   order   to   better   understand   the   link   between   HRM   practice   and   organisational   performance,  

Bowen   et   al   (2005),   assume   two   perspectives:   1)   the   systems   approach   and   2)   the   strategic  

perspective  of  HRM.  The  first  one  refers  to  the  overall  set  of  HRM  practices  and  firm  performance  

(rather   than   focusing   on   separate   practices   and   employee   performance),   while   the   second   one  

refers   to   the   fact   that   organizations   should   align   their   various   practices   horizontally   and  practices  

must  complement  one  another  in  order  to  achieve  the  firm’s  business  strategy.  

Figure  1.1.,  Becker,  et  al.,   (1997),  shows  an   insightful  way  of  understanding  the   link  between  HRM  

and   organisational   performance.   In   the   figure   below,   it   is   presented   the   fact   that   a   good   HRM  

strategy   leads   to  better  HRM  practices,  better  HRM  outcomes,  better  behaviour  and  performance  

outcomes  and  in  the  end  to  financial  outcomes.    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           15         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Figure  2-­‐1  

 

2.3.  HRM  practices  

Human  resources  managers  have  to  help  the  organization  to  run  efficiently  at  every  level,  to  plan  for  

company’s  needs,  to  recruit  and  hire  employees,  to  train  and  develop  them,  to  appraise  employee  

performance,   to   keep   them   motivated,   to   administer   compensations   and   to   retain   valuable  

employees  (Dessler,  2004).  

To  do  that,  there  can  be  identified  6  main  functions  of  the  HRM,  Bovee  et  al,  (2007):  

1. Planning  for  staffing  needs  

2. Recruiting  and  hiring  

3. Training  and  development  

4. Appraising  performance  

5. Administering  compensation  and  benefits  

6. Overseeing  changes  in  employment  status  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           16         Student  ID:1033166  

Having  in  consideration  the  purpose  of  this  study,  we  will  have  focus  on  only  2  of  them:  1)  recruiting  

and  hiring,  2)  training  and  development.  

 

2.3.1.  Recruiting  and  hiring  

Recruiting   represents   one   of   the  most   important   functions   for   companies   in   today’s   international  

business  environment.  It  represents  the  process  through  which  appropriate  applicants  are  attracted  

for  an  organization’s  jobs  (Greengard,  2004).    

Nowadays,  hiring   is   a   very   complex  and   important  process   for  MNEs  as  expanding  globally  means  

meeting  other  cultures  and  experiencing  other  habits  and  work  environments,  all  with  the  final  goal  

of   a   cross-­‐cultural   business   environment.  According   to   Jing   and  Bing   (2010)   the   essential   features  

that   distinguish   a   multinational   corporation   from   an   ordinary   enterprise   is   trans-­‐culture   and  

multicultural  environment.    

Thus,  besides  the  normal  stages  which  are  followed  in  the  recruitment  process,  HR  managers  have  

to  pay  extra  attention  to  the  cultural  aspects.  

Cross-­‐cultural   communication   represents   a   very   important   factor   in   the   actual   social-­‐economical  

context.   Deresky   states   that   “When   a   member   of   one   culture   sends   a   message   to   a   member   of  

another   culture,   intercultural   communication   takes   place”   (Deresky,   2007:140).   According   to  

Caligiuri   (2000),   employees   should   no   longer   be   recruited   by   only   keeping   in  mind   their   technical  

skills,  but  also   carefully  analyzing   their  emotional   intelligence,   their  personality   characteristics  and  

their  intercultural  communication  capabilities.  

 

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           17         Student  ID:1033166  

2.3.2.  Training  and  development  

Applicants  usually  begin   their  new   jobs  without  knowing  everything   they  need   to  know  about   the  

organisation,   industry   or   position,   and  without   having   all   the   skills   they   need   in   order   to   achieve  

superior  performance.    In  order  to  help,  companies  offer  their  employees  trainings  and  orientation  

programs   through  which   they   learn  more  about   the  new  business  environment  and  are  helped   to  

improve  or  to  learn  new  skills  (Hacker,  2004).  

Due  to  language  barriers,  cultural  differences,  cultural  prejudices  and  stereotypes,  the  potential  for  

conflict   in   culturally   diverse   workgroups   is   greater   than   culturally   homogeneous   workgroups  

(Harrison   et   al.,   1998;   Triandis,   2000;   Vodosek,   2007).   Thus,   it   is   very   important   to   offer   the  

employees  trainings  with  which  cross-­‐cultural  communication  can  be  improved  or  developed.  

 

2.4.  HRM  in  Multinational  Enterprises  

There  are  different  reasons  why  HRM  practices  of  MNEs  differ  from  those  who  have  only  a  domestic  

activity.  Working  in  an  international  environment  is  a  very  complex  and  diverse  process,  not  only  in  

that   every   subsidiary   has   to   follow   the   company’s   rules   and   regulations,   but   also   it   has   to   be  

concerned  with  the  social  and  political  environment  of  the  host  country  (Bamber,  1998).    

Thus,   the  HR  department  of   each  MNE  has   to   carefully   select   and   train   its   employees   in   order   to  

reduce  the  risk  of  appearance  of  cultural  barriers   (Hiltrop,  2002).  Usually,  every  organisation  has  a  

unique  approach.  Even  if  practices  are  the  same,  it  is  important  to  know  how  to  implement  them  in  

the  actual  context  (Hiltrop,  1999).  

Besides  the  normal  HRM  practices,  which  are  usually  adopted  by  companies,  MNEs  have  to  pay  extra  

attention   to  offer   their   expatriates   and  employees  who  are  working   in  multicultural   environment,  

different  types  of  trainings  and  development  programs.  Fenwick  (1999)  highlights  the  importance  of  

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HR   activities   that   are   not   necessarily   in   domestic   firms,   these   include   relocation   and   orientation  

support   for  expatriates,   job-­‐rotation  programmes  and  coordinating   international   training  activities.  

Besides   these   activities   specific   to  MNEs,   Hiltrop   (2002)   identifies   the   fact   that  MNEs   are   usually  

using  same  tools  as  any  other  domestic  company  (staffing,  assessment  and  compensation,  training  

and  development,  and  industrial  relations/employee  participation)  but  it   is  the  way  these  activities  

are  performed  that  leads  to  major  differences.  

 

2.5.  Expatriate  managers  

In   order   to   successfully   compete   in   the   international  marketplace,  managers   have   to   understand  

how   operations   work   outside   their   home   country.   One   way   to   do   that   is   through   expatriate  

assignments.  Expatriates  are  persons  who  have  citizenship  in  at  least  one  country,  but  who  are  living  

and  working  abroad  in  one  of  the  firm’s  subsidiary  (Hill,  2007).    

One   of   the   main   reasons   why   expatriates   are   sent   on   new   assignments   is   to   oversee   foreign  

subsidiary   when   the   local   market   place   lacks   managers   with   the   right   skills   (Yeaton   et   al,   2008).  

Besides  this,  there  are  several  other  reasons  why  they  are  sent  to  a  foreign  subsidiary,  some  of  these  

reasons  are  to  gain  foreign  experience,  to  improve  their  managerial  skills  or  alternatively  to  control  

the  operations  like  the  headquarters  (Bateman,  2004).  

However,   the  choice  of  using  an  expatriate  must  be  carefully  analyzed  as  companies  must  benefit  

through   the   assignment.   Unfortunately,   a   lot   of   these   assignments   tend   to   fail.   According   to   Jack  

Stage   (2005)   and   Srivastava   and  Moorman   (2005)   if   an   expat   fails   or   underperforms   the   costs   is  

tough  to  quantify,   leading  to  big  losses.  Failure  rates  are  between  25  percent  and  70  percent,  with  

total  losses  resulting  varying  from  $40.000  to  $1.000.000  (Crocitto  et  al,  2005:522).  

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In   order   to   solve   this   problem  a   lot   of  measures   have   been   taken,   including   the   global   relocation  

trends  report  by  GMAC  Global  Relocation  Services,  but  unfortunately  expatriate  failure  rates  haven’t  

been   reduced   yet   (Ascalon   et   al,   2008).   Thus,   organisations   nowadays   have   to   focus   more   on  

discovering  the  causes  of  failures  in  order  to  implement  new  strategies  and  avoid  them.    

One  key  reason  why  expatriates  finish  their  assignment  before  it  officially  ends  is  represented  by  the  

insecurity   and   disappointment   resulting   from   poor   cross-­‐cultural   adaptation.   However,   previous  

literatures  fail   in  providing  information  regarding  the  interpersonal  conflicts  expatriates  experience  

at   the   work   place   and   tend   to   focus   more   on   the   HR   practices   rather   than   analyzing   personal  

reasons.    

Caligiuri(2000)   agrees   that   expatriates   must   adapt   to   the   differences   that   exist   in   physical,  

psychological,   and   communication   environments   in   order   to   reach   a   cognitive   and   emotional  

comfort  level  in  the  host  culture.  Moreover,  Sanchez  et  al  (2000)  affirms  that  trying  to  adapt  and  to  

understand  the  accepted  behaviours,  language,  and  expressions  can  lead  to  stress.  Also,  because  of  

their   inability  to   learn  new  behaviours,   it   is  more   likely  that  expatriates  will   reject  the  host  culture  

and  end  up  in  finishing  their  assignment  earlier.  

In   his   study,   Sanchez   et   al   (2000)   blames   firms   for   two   main   reasons.   One   reason   being   that  

companies  tend  to  select  their  candidates  by  only  taking  only  their  technical  skills  into  consideration,  

ignoring  issues  of  personality,  and  the  other  that  expatriates  are  offered  poor  pre-­‐departure  training  

which  is  usually  focused  only  on  cultural  aspects  and  less  on  analyzing  their  interpersonal  skills.  

Cross-­‐cultural  adaptation  is  the  biggest  challenge  that  ruins  expatriate  success.  In  order  to  be  cross  –

cultural  successful,  expatriates  should  be  flexible,  open  to  new  ways  of  living,  have  a  lot  of  patience  

and  optimism  but  also  have  sense  of  adventure  (Jassawalla  et  al.,  2004).    

At  the  same  time,  emotional  intelligence  (EI)  is  a  very  important  indicator.  Golemann  (1998),  states  

that  EI  is  a  very  important  indicator  for  measuring  manager’s  performance.  In  his  study  he  suggests  

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that   expatriate   selection   should   be   based   on   self-­‐awareness   (ability   to   recognize   one’s   emotions,  

reactions),   self-­‐regulation   (ability   to   control   or   express   emotions),   suspend   judgement,   self-­‐

motivation,  empathy  (being  able  to  place  oneself  in  another’s  shoes),  and  social  skills.  

Thus,   it   is   the   role  of   the  HR  department   to   carefully   select   and   train   their   employees   in  order   to  

reduce  the  failure  rate.  Yeaton  et  al.  (2008),  identifies  four  main  factors  of  failure  in  MNEs,  which  are  

inefficient   selection   process,   lack   of   providing   pre-­‐departure   and   post   departure   trainings,   poor  

repatriation  efforts  and  the  inadequate  knowledge  of  the  culture  and  country.      

To   ensure   success   and   to   achieve   superior   organisational   performance,  MNEs   have   to   focus   their  

attention  on  their  employees.  Sending  an  expatriate  in  a  new  assignment,  might  be  a  good  decision  

for   the   company  at   that  moment,  but  without   carefully   analyzing  all   the  possible   consequences   it  

might  turn  out  to  be  a  big  loss  for  the  company.  Cross-­‐cultural  skills  are  a  major  player  in  the  actual  

global   economical   context,   as   without   having   the   abilities   and   capabilities   to   adapt   in   the   host  

country’s  culture,  expatriates  risk  failing  to  finish  their  assignments.  

 

2.6.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  

Previous   studies   show   us   the   fact   that   there   is   a   relationship   between   culture   and  management  

style.   ‘Culture   is   the   values  and  attitudes   shared  by   individuals   from  a   specific   country   that   shape  

their  behaviour  and  their  beliefs  about  what  is  important’  (Robbins,  Coulter,  2009,  p.97).    

Therefore,  cultural  differences  mean  that  management  styles  vary  globally.  What  may  be  the  right  

way  of  managing  in  one  country  may  not  be  the  right  way  of  managing  in  another  (Drucker,  2008).  

It  is  clearly  identifiable  that  managerial  styles  are  linked  to  the  notion  of  culture  (Warner,  2003).  As  

no   one   culture   is   the   same,   no   one   managerial   style   will   be   the   same.   It   is   important   for  

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management  to  understand  this,  especially  when  doing  business  from  country  to  county,  or  dealing  

with  expatriates.    

Globalization  is  changing  our  way  of  thinking,  acting  and  perceiving  other  cultures.  Harrison  (2006)  

identifies  the  fact  that  at  the  moment  there  is  a  “clash  of  cultures”  and  that  it  is  relevant  to  focus  on  

how   cultures   learn   from   each   other,   and  moreover,   how   they   inspire.   Also,   Bird   and   Fang   (2009)  

argue  the  fact  that  the  collision  of  cultures  is  leading  to  a  “global/world  culture”  which  threatens  the  

national  identities.  

In  their  research  paper,  Bird  and  Fang  (2009)  explain  the  Oriental  Philosophy  of  Ying  and  Yang.  The  

theory  was  introduced  to  “cross  cultural  theory  building  and  crafted  an  ‘ocean’  metaphor  of  culture  

as  an  alternative  metaphor  to  Hofstede’s  ‘onion’  metaphor  of  culture”  (2009:140).  Also,  they  explain  

that   globalization  has  given   rise   to  a  paradoxical  movement  of   cultures,  which   can  be  understood  

having   in   consideration   two   constructs:   cultural   ecology   (political   institutions,   climate,   language,  

traditions   and   customs)   and   cultural   learning   of   values   and   practices.   These   two   constructs   are  

believed   to   integrate   and   to   coexist   with   each   other   in   order   to   shape   the   dynamic   identity   of  

cultures.  

Furthermore,  having  the  above  in  mind,  Bird  and  Fang  (2009),  tried  to  identify  new  ways  of  thinking  

and   studying   the   influence   of   culture   on   management   in   the   age   of   globalization.   Their   findings  

concluded   with   the   idea   that   managers   nowadays   need   to   display   greater   awareness   of  

governmental   visions   and   actions,   and   also   to   give   importance   to   politically-­‐driven   practices   “by  

which   managers   in   global   firms   can   not   only   lead   their   multicultural   units   to   more   effective  

performance,   but   also   engage   local   cultures   and   sub-­‐cultures   in   efforts   to   foster   a   new   type   of  

citizenship  behaviour”  (2009:142).  

 

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2.6.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  approaches  

People   have   different   cultures   because   their   values   are   different.   Although,   a   cross-­‐cultural  

environment   doesn’t   necessarily   mean   that   it   is   international.   When   analyzing   Hofstede’s   (1980)  

definition  of  culture  –  programming  of  the  mind  that  differentiates  one  group  from  another  -­‐  it  can  

be  seen  that  he  focuses  on  all  kinds  of  groups,  not  limited  to  ethnic  groups  or  nationality.    

Thus,   cross-­‐cultural  management   can  be  understood   through  various  approaches.   Fontaine   (2007)  

highlights  the  idea  that  cross-­‐cultural  management  has  various  approaches  and  identifies  6  different  

perspectives  as  follows:  1)  classical  approach  (cross-­‐cultural  managers  are  experts  on  Hofstede),  2)  

the   anthropological   approach   (cross-­‐cultural  managers  must   be  more   like   anthropologists),   3)   the  

psychological   approach   (cross-­‐cultural   managers   sometimes  must   think   like   psychologists),   4)   the  

stereotyping   approach   (cross-­‐cultural   managers   should   act   as   psychological   counsellors,   helping  

team-­‐members   in   identifying   and   change   negative   stereotypes),   5)   the   knowledge   management  

approach   (cross-­‐cultural   managers   are   knowledge-­‐management   facilitators   –   they   transform   tacit  

knowledge   into  explicit  knowledge)  and  6)  the  systems  thinking  approach  (cross-­‐cultural  managers  

have   the   role   to   design/redesign   the   system   inside   the   organisation   to   improve   cross-­‐cultural  

relationships).  

Therefore,  “cross-­‐cultural  management  represents  more  than  managing  cultural  differences.   It  has  

to   focus  on   “management”,   on  determining  what   are   the  policies  managers   can   take   to  minimize  

cross-­‐cultural  friction  and  leverage  the  sharing  of  cultural  knowledge”  (Fontaine,  2007:134).  

 

2.6.2.  Cross-­‐cultural  management  interaction  

Cross-­‐cultural   interaction  might  be  impeded  by  critical   incidents.  In  order  to  understand  why  these  

incidents   appear   and   to   comprehend   their   importance,   it   is   required   a   new   way   of   analyzing  

management  interaction.  Thus,  Kolling  (2007:39)  mentions  the  fact  that  “the  decisive  issue  is  not  the  

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existence   of   cultural   differences   per   se,   but   the   way   behavioural   differences   are   perceived,  

interpreted   and   managed   by   individuals   of   different   national   cultures   in   the   context   of   doing  

business.”  

In  their  research,  Fink,  et  al.,  (2007)  discuss  the  idea  that  cultural  dimensions,  personality  traits  and  

cultural   standards   are   interrelated,   and   that   it   requires   a   deeper   understanding   of   the   relations  

between   these   three   strands   to   determine   the   processes   that   lead   to   the   appearance   of   critical  

incidents,  and  other  reactions  of   individuals  to  critical   incidents.  This  allows   individuals  to  enhance  

their   performance   in   cross-­‐cultural   relations   and,   thus,   also   the   performance   of   the   business   to  

which  they  belong.  

In  order   to  better  understand  cross-­‐cultural   interactions  and  how  the  above   three  dimensions  are  

interrelated,  Neyer   and  Kolling   (2003)  have  developed  based  on  Parson  and   Shills  model   (1962)   a  

cross-­‐cultural  interaction  model.  

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Figure  2-­‐2  

Figure   2.1.   shows   the   fact   that   cross-­‐cultural   interaction   takes   place   among   the   social   systems   of  

different  cultures,  and  in  doing  so,  build  up  a  new  space:  a  common  cross-­‐cultural  space.   It   is  very  

important   to   understand   that   there   is   no   direct   interaction   between   the   value   systems   or   the  

personality  systems,  and  action  and  interaction  takes  place  only  in  the  social  sphere.  

In   order   to   achieve   superior   organisational   performance,   employees   who   are   facing  multicultural  

contexts   must   apply   these   three   strands   (cultural   dimension,   personality   traits   and   cultural  

standards)  all  together  (fig.2.2,  Neyer  and  Kolling  (2003).  

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Figure  2-­‐3  

 

2.7.  Cross  Cultural  Social  Intelligence  

Cross-­‐cultural   social   intelligence   (CCSI)   represents   a   key   factor   in   the   future   development   of  

companies   (Ascalon,  Schleicher  and  Born,  2008).  CCSI   is  defined  by  employees  who  can  effectively  

function   across   cultures   and   it   can   be   explained   as   a  mix   of   social   intelligence   and   culture.   Social  

intelligence   represents   “the  capacity   to  know  oneself  and   to  know  others   is  an   inalienable  part  of  

the  human  condition  as  is  the  capacity  to  know  objects  or  sounds,  and  it  deserves  to  be  investigated  

no   less   than   these   other   ‘less   charged’   forms”   (Howard   Gardner,   1983:243).   At   the   same   time  

culture   is   a   complex   term   which   influences   people’s   preferences   of   conflict   management   styles  

(Yuan,  2006).  According   to  Ascalon,  Schleicher  and  Born   (2008)   there  are   two  dimensions   that  are  

essential  for  CSSI:  ethnocentrism  and  empathy.  

Ethnocentrism   is   “the   view   that   one   particular   ethnic   group   is   somehow   superior   to   all   others”  

(Unknown,  1999)  and  according  to  Gil-­‐White  (2010)  is  a  temporary  negative  moral  judgment  on  how  

others  organize  their  lives  ethnically,  driven  by  their  tendency  “to  see  their  cultural  group  as  proving  

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the   norms   for   acceptable   behaviours   and   preferences”   (Erdogan,   2010:395).   Nevertheless,  

ethnocentrism   represents   a   very   important   step   in   cross-­‐cultural   communication   (DiStefano   and  

Maznevski,  2000).    

Empathy   is   a   key   element   for   social-­‐intelligence   (Marlowe,   1986)   and   it   means   to   identify   with  

another's   feelings,   and   the   ability   of   putting   yourself   emotionally   in   the   place   of   another   (Hein,  

1999).  Unfortunately  sometimes  managers  have  the  tendency  to  recreate  their  conception  of  what  it  

means   to   be   a   social   person   (Waele   and   Harre,   1976)   and   they   fail   in   accepting   the   fact   that  

understanding   social   behaviour   and   social   interaction   is   about  understanding   the   rules   that   shape  

human  conduct  (Unknown,  1996).    

Cross-­‐border   business   failures   represent   a   very   important   case   for   intercultural   training  

(Wederspahn,   2002).   In   order   to   better   train   future   expatriates   or   current   employees  who  might  

interact  with  a  multicultural  environment,  companies  have  to  be  aware  of  CCSI  importance.  

One  big  mistake  nowadays  is  that  “organizations  worldwide  often  react  to  economic  downturns  and  

uncertainty   abroad   by   cutting   training   for   expatriates   and   international   business   travellers”  

(Wederspahn,   2002:67).   Even   if  Hightower   (2003)   suggests   that   creativity   is   the  heart  of  business,  

when  speaking  about  cultures,   creativity   shouldn’t  be  mentioned  because  “expatriate   failure   rates  

suggest  the  need  for  more  robust  support  programs”  (Stage,  Jack,  2005:48).    

The   lack   of   proper   training,   through   which   the   employee/expat   clearly   understands   cultural  

dimensions,  can  have  a  tremendous  impact  in  the  success  of  the  company.  HRM  practices  nowadays  

tend  to  be  inefficient.  In  a  normal  recruiting  process,  according  to  Earley,  (2006)  candidates  usually  

have  to  complete  a  personality  test.  Personality  tests  represent  “any  of  several  tests  that  consist  of  

standardized  tasks  designed  to  determine  various  aspects  of  the  personality  or  the  emotional  status  

of   the   individual   examined”   (Merriam,   2004).   But   studying   just   personality   is   not   enough   to  

understand  how  a  person  will  behave  in  different  cultural  situations.  

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In  their  study,  Ascal,  et  al,  (2008)  have  constructed  a  tool  for  assessing  CCSI.  By  creating  a  Situational  

Judgement  Test  they  can  measure  the  two  dimensions  of  CCSI:  ethnocentrism  and  empathy.    Their  

findings  suggest  that  the  ordinal-­‐level  effectiveness  of  cross-­‐cultural  communication  styles  (most  to  

least  effective)  is  empathetic  –  non-­‐ethnocentric,  empathetic  –  ethnocentric,  non-­‐empathetic  –  non-­‐

ethnocentric,  and  non-­‐empathetic  –  ethnocentric.    

Due  to  the  fact  that  at  the  moment  there  are  insufficient  tools  for  assessing  CCSI,  the  CCSI  SJT  can  

have  multiple  uses.  It  can  be  used  in  the  selection  and  promotion  process  of  applicants  who  would  

work  in  a  multicultural  environment,  in  the  selection  for  expatriate  assignments,  and  for  training  and  

development  initiatives.  

 

2.8.  Romanian  Managers  and  HRM  

After  the  communist  era,  the  Romanian  society  faced  a  lot  of  changes.  Terms  like  HRM,  leadership  

and  management   started   to  be  acknowledged  and  discussed.  Unfortunately  even   so,   still   today   in  

Romania,  economical  problems  are  more  important  for  managers  than  the  style  of   leadership  they  

practice   –   a   Romanian   manager   can   hold   a   top   position   but   that   doesn’t   necessarily   mean   that  

he/she  will  be  effective.  This  problem  can  be  analyzed  through  the  fact  that  most  of  them  received  

their  education   in   the  communist  years,  years   in  which  terms   like   free  economy,  private  property,  

management  and  the  like,  weren’t  discussed.    

Being  responsible  for  all  the  strategies  adopted  by  a  company  was  managers’   influence  as  well  the  

HRM  strategy  of  the  organisation.  Analoui  (2004)  in  an  interview  for  Capital  magazine  declares  that  

the  Romanian  style  of  management  is  a  traditional  one  and  that  “an  integrated  policy  of  HR  does  not  

exist  in  most  Romanian  companies”  (February,  2004:35).  

Furthermore,  there  seem  to  be  three  different  types  of  management  style  (Capital,  June,  2001):  

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1. Romanian   state  companies  –   characterized  by   the  capability   to  accept  uncertainty,  and  by  

direction  toward  the  superiors  in  order  to  get  their  rewards  

2. Romanian  private  companies  –  characterized  by  consideration  towards  employees  

3. MNEs   from   Romania   –a   very   complex   pattern   of  management   style,   characterized   by   the  

power  to  influence  others,  by  the  accuracy  of  predictions,  and  by  integration.  

In  a  study  conducted  by  Constantin,  et  al.,   (2006),   in  which  the  HRM  practices  from  Romania  were  

analyzed,   they  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  HRM  doesn’t  seem  to  be  a  priority   for  Romanian  

managers.  Some  of  them  have  never  solicited  HRM  services  or  training  programs.  Overall   it  seems  

that  they  prefer  to  hire  external  HRM  services  rather  than  to  hire  an  internal  expert.  Moreover,  they  

have   pointed   out   the   idea   that   the   size   of   the   organization   matters   when   speaking   about   HRM  

practices.    

To  be  more  precise,  in  Romania,  multinational  companies  are  using  their  own  mix  of  HRM  practices.  

Moreover,  even  if  they  are  not  totally  aware  of  the  importance  of  these  practices,  managers  of  large  

Romanian  companies  are  soliciting  external  consultancy  and  training  services,  while  in  smaller  firms  

HRM  practices  are  totally  ignored.  

In  this  chapter  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  explain  past  literature,  more  precisely  to  highlight  the  

importance   of   HRM   practices   and   CCSI   in   the   current   global   economical   environment.   Also   the  

relationship  between  the  above  mentioned  and  organisational  performance  was  described.  

 

 

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Chapter  3: METHODOLOGY    

3.1.  Introduction  

This   chapter   aims   to   understand   the   concept   of   research,   and   to   explain   the   methodological  

approach  used  in  order  to  fulfil  the  aims  and  objectives  of  this  dissertation.    

Here,   an  understanding  of  data   collection  methods  will   be   covered,  questionnaire  design,   reasons  

for  choice  of  methods  used,  as  well  as  limitations  of  the  study.    

The  methodological  approach  and  process  of  a  study  are  important  and  essential  for  the  quality  of  

every  research  project  and  for  achieving  precise  and  trustworthy  results  (Bryman  &  Bell,  2007).  This  

is  because  it  is  the  overall  research  process  for  collecting  and  analysing  data  (Collis  &  Hussey,  2003).  

For  this  reason  the  methodological  approach  of  this  study  was  designed  very  carefully  and  took  into  

consideration  all  the  important  issues  in  order  to  discover  things  that  they  have  a  clear  rationale  and  

thus  increase  knowledge  (Saunders,  Lewis  &  Thornhill,  2007).  

 

3.2.  Research  Design    

It   is   commonly   known   that   the   two   main   categories   of   research   strategies   are   qualitative   and  

quantitative   research   strategies   (Bryman  &  Bell,   2007).   From   the   one   hand  qualitative   research   is  

based   mostly   on   the   quantification   of   data   and   on   the   other   hand   qualitative   is   related   to   the  

measurement  of  things  and  to  the  social  world  (Berg,  2001).    To  achieve  better  results,  in  this  study  

it  was  used  a  combination  of  qualitative  and  quantitative  methods.  

In  order  to  carefully  examine  the  aim  of  this  study  which  is  the  exploration  of  key  HRM  practices  and  

their   relationship   to   organizational   performance   and   as   well   the   importance   of   CCSI   in   MNEs  

operating  in  Romania,  a  combination  of  methods  is  required.  Gilbert  (1993)  mentions  the  fact  that  

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the  researcher  should  not  limit  the  study  to  a  single  method  of  data  collection  and  at  the  same  time  

highlights  the  fact  that  the  values  of  all  methods  shouldn’t  be  underestimated.  Furthermore,  almost  

always  there  are  some  favouritisms  related  with  the  collection  methods,  and  thus  by  collecting  data  

through  more  than  one  way  there  are  less  possibilities  for  biased  results  (Sekaran,  2000).      

The  data  for  this  study  was  gathered  using  a  questionnaire  consisted  by  both,  close-­‐ended  questions  

and  open-­‐ended  questions.  In  this  way  there  is  a  use  of  both  qualitative  (open-­‐ended  questions)  and  

quantitative  method  (closed-­‐ended  questions).  Quantitative  method  has  the  advantage  that  is  cost-­‐

effective,  and  it  is  a  well  approaching  method  for  participants,  while  qualitative  method  offers  an  in-­‐

depth   exploration   and   understanding   of   the   phenomenon   by   offering   a   broader   picture   of  

participants’   views   (Bryman   and   Bell,   2007).   Overall   the   data   gathered   for   the   conduct   of   this  

research  were  both  primary  and  secondary.  Below  there  will  be  a  detailed  analysis  of  primary  data  

including  open  and  closed  questions.    

 

3.2.1.  Primary  Data  

Primary   data   collection   refers   to   original   data   that   is   collected   for   a   specific   purpose   by   the  

researcher  (Zikmund,  2000)  and  are  essential  for  a  study  as  they  are  close  to  the  ‘event’  and  to  the  

‘truth’   (Walliman,   2005).   They   are   considered   as   more   valuable,   accurate   and   reliable   than  

secondary  data.    

3.2.1.1.Closed  Ended  Questions    

The  questionnaire  I  have  used  in  the  first  and  last  part  of  my  research  is  an  adaptation  of  a  previous  

study  by  Gould-­‐Williams  (2003).  Gould-­‐Williams  conducted  a  research  in  public-­‐sector  organisations,  

investigating  the  operation  of  HR  practices  and  their  impact  on  the  organisational  performance.  The  

results   of   this   study   underline   the   “important   role   of   HR   practices   in   generating   superior  

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performance:   the   more   HR   practices   used   within   the   organization,   the   greater   the   impact   on  

performance”  (Gould-­‐Williams,  2003,  p.43).    

Thus,   the   first   part   of   the   questionnaire   will   be   investigating   if   HRM   practices   and   CCSI   lead   to  

satisfied   and   committed   employees   that   contribute   in   achieving   superior   organisational  

performance.  

Moreover,  having  in  mind  the  fact  that  the  questionnaire  was  distributed  before,  it  ensures  the  fact  

that   all   the  questions  will   be   clearly  understood.  However,   parts  of  Gould-­‐William’s  questionnaire  

will  be  excluded  from  this  study  because  they  are  irrelevant.  

Overall   the  questionnaire   is  consisted  of  6   items  measuring  the  HRM  policies  and  practises  and  10  

measuring   CCSI   and   the   individual   and   organisational   performance   (3   measuring   CCSI   and   7   the  

individual  and  organisational  performance).  More  specifically   there  will  be  six   items  measuring  HR  

practices:  one  measuring  training  and  development,  one  team  work,  two  items  selective  hiring,  one  

item   measuring   related   payment,   and   one   measuring   information   sharing   and   participation   (see  

Appendix   B).   Additionally,   there   are   3   items   measuring   CCSI,   and   6   more   measuring   individual  

outcomes:  one  measuring  satisfaction,  one  commitment,  one  employees’  intention  to  remain,  three  

measuring   the   efforts  made   for   the   organisation.   Last   but   not   least   there   are   2   items  measuring  

organisational  outcomes.  

Additionally,   with   the   help   of   closed   questions,   participants  were   asked   to   indicate   the   extent   to  

which   they   strongly   agree   or   disagree  with   each   statement   using   a   five-­‐point   Likert   scale.  On   the  

scale  1  represents  ‘strongly  agree’  and  5  ‘totally  disagree’  (see  Appendix  B).            

However,  there  will  be  some  open  questions  as  well.    

 

 

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3.2.1.2.Open  -­‐  Ended  Questions    

Having   in  mind   the   idea   that  qualitative  approach  offers  a  better  and  deeper   investigation,   it  was  

considered  as  appropriate  to  add  open-­‐  ended  questions  in  the  questionnaire  (see  Appendix  B).  The  

open  questions  were  designed  by  the  researcher  of  this  study  in  order  to   identify  challenges  faced  

by   expatriates   and   employees   in   cross-­‐cultural   environments,   to   analyze   the   HRM   practices   and  

furthermore   to   investigate   future   recommendations   for   expatriates   and  HR  departments   in  MNEs  

operating  in  Romania.    

This  section  was  divided  in  two  parts:  The  first  one  is  addressed  to  expatriates,  while  the  second  one  

is  addressed  to  Romanian  employees  who  are  interacting  with  people  from  different  cultures.  To  be  

precise,   the   first   question   analyzes   the   challenges   faced   by   expatriates/Romanian   employees;   the  

next   two   questions   analyze   the   HRM   practices,   while   the   last   two   set   of   questions   analyzes   the  

employees’   recommendations   for   future   expatriates/Romanian   employees   and   HR   managers.  

Finally,   the   last   one   gives   them   the   opportunity   to   mention   if   they   have   had   the   opportunity   to  

answer  to  a  situational  judgment  test.  With  open  questions,  participants  will  have  the  opportunity  to  

express  their  views  and  beliefs  further  and  add  some  details  and  comments  to  their  responses.    

 

3.2.2.  Secondary  Data  

Even  if  secondary  data  are  not  as  important  as  primary  data,  they  support  the  primary  data  and  the  

findings   of   this   research.   For   this   paper,   secondary   data   was   collected   from   books,   journals   and  

electronic  database.  The  accent  was  put  on  journals  from  the  Brunel  University  Library  to  make  sure  

the  validity  and  reliability  of  the  study.  Most  of  the  journal  articles  were  from  good  quality  academic  

journals.  Also  the  time  frame  of  the  secondary  sources  was  kept  under  a  check  so  that  the  findings  

were  not  too  old  and  irrelevant.    

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Such   sources   were   used   for   obtaining   information   for   this   study   around   HRM   practices,   HRM  

outcomes,   CCSI,   and   regarding   the   importance   of   HRM   practices   in   the   actual   global   economical  

context.   These   data   allow   the   researcher   to   have   access   to   appealing,   essential   and   considerable  

information.    

 

3.3.    Context  and  Sample  of  the  Study    

This  study  was  conducted  in  five  MNEs  operating  in  Romania:  

1. IKEA  

2. Xerox  

3. SAP  

4. IBM  

5. DHL  

The   sample   of   this   study   is   comprised   by   the   employees   working   in   these   organisations.   More  

specifically,  the  sample  was  sent  to  10  employees  of  each  organisation.  

Finally,  a  brief  description  of  those  organizations  is  available  as  an  appendix  (see  Appendix  A).      

 

3.4.          Ethical  Issues    

When   conducting   a   research,   ethical   principles   have   to   be   considered.   The   researchers  must   take  

into  consideration  to  respect  the  ethic  rules  for  those  who  participate  in  a  study.  Informed  consent  is  

a   requirement   to   participate   in   a   survey,   as   well   as   the   assurance   not   to   harm   participants,   to  

protect   their  privacy  and  prevent  deception   (Bryman  and  Bell   2007).   For   this   reason   this   research  

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was  carried  out  to  the  highest  standards  of   integrity,  by  ensuring  trust,  dignity,  confidentiality  and  

anonymity.    

The   participants’   rights  were   recognized   and   respected.   They  were   informed   that   there  would   be  

privacy  and  confidentiality,  and  that  the   information  given,  would  be  used  only   for   the  purpose  of  

this   study.   All   of   the   respondents   in   this   survey   were   informed   of   these   rights   before   the  

administration  and  those  who  agreed  to  participate  were  requested  to  complete  the  questionnaires.  

For  this  reason,  participants  were  given  a  document  (see  Appendix  A)  in  which  they  were  informed  

about  the  questions  they  were  going  to  answer  and  the  reasons  of  the  study.    

Last  but  not   least,  there   is  not  a  misrepresentation  of  data  during  the  survey;  the  research  design  and  

the  data   are  presented   very   clearly   leaving  no   room   for  misunderstandings   and   confusion.  Moreover,  

the   questionnaire   was   sent   to   each   HR   manager   of   each   company   in   order   to   check   it,   to   avoid  

misinterpretation,  to  ensure  the  relevance  of  the  questions  asked,  and  to  eliminate  ambiguity.    

 

3.5.  Limitations  

During  the  research  process  some  difficulties  have  been  observed.  

First  of  all,   there  was  a   lack  of  secondary  data.  Past   literature  doesn’t  discuss   too  much  about   the  

HRM  practices   in  MNEs,  especially  MNEs  operating   in  Romania.  Moreover,  another   impediment   is  

represented  by  the  small  number  of  people  who  participated  in  the  study.  Unfortunately,  even  if  all  

five  organizations  have  a   lot  of  employees,  the  main  point  of   focus  was  to  assess  expatriates,  who  

represent  just  a  small  number  in  the  entire  organisation.    

Furthermore,  a  lot  of  words  had  to  be  removed  due  to  the  size  of  this  study.  

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Chapter  4: DATA  ANALYSIS  AND  FINDINGS    

4.1.  Introduction  

The  present  chapter  aims  to  analyse  and  interpret  the  findings  of  the  research.  In  the  first  part,  the  

closed  questions  were  analysed  with  the  help  of  Microsoft  Excel,  while  the  second  part  will  analyse  

the  findings  of  the  open  questions.  

Overall  response  rate  was  of  98%,  as  shown  below:    

Table  4-­‐1:  Response  Rate  

ORGANISATION   RESPONSE  RATE  

IKEA   100%  

IBM   100%  

XEROX   100%  

SAP   100%  

DHL   90%  

Overall   98%  

 

The  findings  will  be  structured  in  three  different  parts:  the  first  part  is  analysing  the  HRM  practices  in  

MNEs  via  closed  questions,  the  second  part  is  analysing  the  open  end  questions,  while  the  third  part  

will  interpret  the  results  of  the  last  series  of  closed  questions  by  analysing  CCSI  and  its  outcomes  and  

its  impact  on  individual  and  organisational  performance.  

 

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           36         Student  ID:1033166  

4.2.  Findings  –  HRM  Practices  in  MNEs  

This   part   aims   to   analyse   the   results   regarding   the   use   of   HRM   practices   in   MNEs   operating   in  

Romania  via  closed  questions.  The  findings  are  interpreted  one  by  one  as  it  follows:  

4.2.1.  Training  and  development  

The   first   question  examines   the  use  of   training  and  development   in  5  MNEs   from  Romania.  More  

specifically,   the   respondents   were   asked   if   they   are   provided   with   sufficient   opportunities   for  

training   and   development.   The   graphic   below   indicates   the   percentage   responses   of   the  

organisations:  

 

Graph  4-­‐1  

   

As   shown   in   the   above   chart,   the   employees   of   IKEA   totally   agreed   with   the   fact   that   they   are  

provided  with   sufficient  opportunities   for   training  and  development  with  a  percentage  of   60%.  At  

the  same  time  50%  of  the  employees  in  IBM  agreed  with  the  above  statement;  followed  by  XEROX  

and  SAP  employees  who  agreed  as  well,  but  in  a  percentage  of  40%.  On  the  other  hand,  the  graph  

shows  that  DHL’s  employees  disagreed  with  a  percentage  of  66.66%.  

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4.2.2.  Team  work  

Team  work  was  examined  as  well  using  a  closed  question.  Employees  were  asked  if  team  working  is  

strongly  encouraged  in  their  department.    

 

Graph  4-­‐2  

 

According  to  the  above  chart  employees  from  DHL  totally  agreed  with  a  percentage  of  77.77%  with  

the  above  statement.  At  the  same  time,  participants  from  IBM  totally  agreed  with  a  percentage  of  

60%,   while   only   50%   of   the   employees   working   at   IKEA   agreed.   Moreover,   40%   the   participants  

working  at  SAP  don’t  know  what  to  answer  regarding  team  work  in  their  department,  while  30%  of  

them  agree.  

 

4.2.3.  Selective  hiring  

Another  practice  assessed  in  the  questionnaire  referred  to  selective  hiring.  In  order  to  offer  a  better  

understanding,  there  were  two  questions  formulated  regarding  the  above  mentioned  practice.    

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The   first   one  question  was   examining   the  use  of   a   rigorous   selection  process  when   selecting  new  

recruits.  

 

Graph  4-­‐3  

 

The  above  chart  indicates  the  fact  that  the  majority  of  the  employees  working  at  SAP  totally  agrees,  

with  a  percentage  of  70%,  followed  by  XEROX  whom  employees  are  agreeing  with  a  percentage  of  

50%.  Moreover,  as  it  seems  from  the  graph,  almost  half    (44.44%)  of  the  employees  working  at  DHL  

and  half   of   the   participants   from   IKEA  don’t   know  anything   about   the   processes   of   selecting   new  

recruits.   More   than   that,   nearly   35%   of   DHL   employees   disagree   with   the   above   mentioned  

statement.  

The  second  question  regarding  selective  hiring  was  measuring  the  fact  that  when    new  management  

positions   come   up,   the   department   normally   tries   to   fill   them   with   people   from   within   the  

department  or  authority  rather  than  recruiting  from  outside.  

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Graph  4-­‐4  

 

From   the   above   chart   it   seems   that   employees   from   three   out   of   five   companys   agree   with   the  

above  statement.  Precisely,  80%  of  the  participants  from  IKEA  strongly  agree,  while  the  rest  of  20%  

agrees.  Moreover,   employees  working   at   IBM   totally   agree   in   a   percentage  of   60%.  At   Xerox,   the  

majority   of   70%   agrees   and   20%   totally   agree.   On   the   contrary,   there   is   a   high   percentage   of  

disagreement  (55.55%),  followed  by  a  totally  disagreement  of  22.22%  from  the  participants  working  

at  DHL.  

 

4.2.4.  Related  payment  

The   fifth   question   aims   to   analyse   related   payment.   The   participants   were   asked   to   asses   if   the    

department  they  are  working  in  tries  to  relate  pay  with  their  performance.  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           40         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐5  

 

As  the  above  chart  indicates,  the  majority  of  the  employees  from  all  companies  agrees  with  the  fact  

that   their   payment   is   related   to   their   performance,  with   the   exception   of   DHL,  whom   employees  

disagrees   with   a   percentage   of   66.66%   followed   by   participants   from   IKEA  who   diasagree   with   a  

percentage   of   40%.   More   specifically,   employees   from   SAP   and   IBM   agree   the   most   with   a  

percentage  of  60%,  respectively  50%.  While  only  40%  of  the  employees  working  at  Xerox  agree  with  

the  above  mentioned  statement.  

 

4.2.5.  Information  sharing  and  participation  

Last   but   not   least,   the   sixth   question   was   related   to   information   sharing   and   participation.   The  

participants  were  asked  if  management  involves  people  when  they  make  decisions  that  affect  them.  

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Graph  4-­‐6  

 

As  it  is  shown  in  the  above  chart,  there  was  a  strong  disagreement  (70%)  at  IKEA.  At  the  same  time,  

it   can   be   seen   that   employees   from   SAP   tend   to   agree/strongly   agree   (40%)   with   the   above  

statement,   while   half   of   the   participants   from   IBM   don’t   know   what   to   answer.   Moreover,   the  

majority   of   employees   from   DHL   is   disagreeing   in   percentage   of   44.44%   while   33.33%   of   their  

participants  totally  disagrees.  

 

4.3.  Findings  –  CCSI  and  Organisational  Performance  

The   last   part   of   this   chapter   aims   to   analyze   the   third   part   of   the   questionnaire.   Here,   the  

participants  were  asked   to  answer   to   ten  questions.  The   first   three  questions  are  measuring  CCSI,  

while   the   last   seven   questions   aim   to   analyse   the   impact   of   HRM   practices   and   CCSI   on  

organisational  performance.  

 

 

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4.3.1.  Cross-­‐cultural  Social  Intelligence  

There  were  three  questions  assesing  CCSI.  The  first  one  was  measuring  if  the  participants  were  able  

or  not  to  recognize  and  understand  (non)verbal  cues  of  persons  form  a  variety  of  cultures.  

 

Graph  4-­‐7  

 

Acoording  to  the  above  chart,  most  of   the  employees  who  participated  at   the  study  were  neutral.  

More  specifically,  60%  from   IBM  followed  by  Xerox  with  a  percentage  of  50%.  Moreover   it  can  be  

seen   that   there   is  a  high  percentage  of  disagreement  at  SAP   (50%)  and  Xerox   (40%),  while  almost  

half  of  the  participants  working  at  DHL  (44.44%)  totally  disagrees  with  the  above  statement.    

The  second  qustion  assesing  CCSI  aims  to  analyze  if    employees  can  make  accurate  social  inferences  

in  a  variety  of  cultural  contexts.    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           43         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐8  

 

The   above   chart   shows   the   fact   that   there   is   a   strong   disagreement   among   the   companies.  More  

specifically,   both   SAP’s   and   Xerox’s   employees   disagreed   with   a   percentage   of   50%   while   the  

participants  from  DHL  totally  disagreed  with  a  percentage  of  44.44%.    At  the  same  time  50%  of  the  

emplyees   working   at   IKEA   are   neutral   with   the   above   statement.   Having   in   mind   the   size   of   the  

sample  used  for  this  research,  it  is  important  to  analyze  the  small  percentage  who  agreed  from  IBM  

(20%),  Xerox  (20%),  IKEA  (10%)  and  SAP  (10%).  

The   last   question   assesing   CCSI,   had   the   objective   to   analyze   if   the   participants   can   accomplish  

relevant  social  objectives  across  cultural  negotiations  and  interactions  through  one’s  acceptance  and  

understanding  of  other  cultures.  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           44         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐9  

 

As  the  above  chart  shows,  it  can  be  seen  that  opinions  are  distributed  somehow  equally  among  the  

companies.  More  specifically,  40%  of  the  participants  working  at  IKEA  agree,  followed  by  30%  of  the  

employees  working  at   IBM  and  SAP.  Moreover,  the  rest  tend  to  distribute  their  answers  somehow  

equally   between   those   statements.   At   Xerox,   half   of   them   are   neutral,  while   3   of   them   disagree.  

Compared   with   the   other   companies   there   is   a   high   percentage   of   totally   disagreement   at   DHL  

(44%).  

 

4.3.2.  Organisational  Performance  

In  order  to  get  a  better  understanding  of  the  impact  CCSI  and  HRM  practices  have  on  organisational  

performance,  participants  were  asked  to  answer  seven  more  questions.    

The  forth  question  of  the  second  part  in  the  questionnaire  aims  to  asses  the  employees  satisfaction  

at  their  jobs.  The  results  are  as  follows:  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           45         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐10  

As  the  above  chart  shows,  it  can  be  seen  that  the  majority  of  the  participants  is  satisfied  with  their  

current   job.   More   specifically,   70%   of   the   emplyees   working   at   IBM,   followed   by   60%   of   the  

participants  from  IKEA  and  SAP  agree  with  the  statement.  Moreover,  there   is  a  percentage  of  40%  

totally  agreeing  and  40%  agreeing  at  Xerox.  The  only  company   that  highly  disagrees   is  DHL  with  a  

percentage  of  44.44%.    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           46         Student  ID:1033166  

The  next     three  questions   in   the  questionnaire  aim  to  asses  exployees’  commitment.  The   first  one  

asked  the  employees  if  they  feel  like  they  are  part  of  their  department.    

.  

Graph  4-­‐11  

 

The  result  were  mostly  possitive  as  it  can  be  seen  from  the  above  chart.  There  is  a  high  percentage  

of   agreement   and   totally   agreement   in   all   the   companies.  More   specifically   IBM,   IKEA  and  XEROX  

scoring  the  most.  Even  if  the  results  in  the  previous  questions  weren’t  quite  possitve  for  DHL,  here  

55.55%  of  their  employees  agrees  with  the  fact  that  they  belong  in  the  department  they  are  working  

in.  

The  second  question  assesing  commitment,  aims  to  identify   if  the  employees  feel   like   leaving  their  

jobs.  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           47         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐12  

 

The  above  chart  shows,  like  the  previous  one  that  most  of  the  employees  do  like  the  company  they  

are   working   for,   and   they   do   not   want   to   leave   their   actual   emplyment.   More   specifically,   IKea  

scored  the  most  (90%),  followed  by  SAP  (80%),  while  IBM  and  Xerox  scored  the  same  percentage  of  

60%.  The  only  participants  who  have  scored  negatively  (55.55%  disagreement)  at  this  question,  were  

the  employees  working  at  DHL.  

The   third  question  assessing   commitment  asks   the  employees   if   they   feel   like   they  are  making  an  

effort  not  only  for  themselves,  but  for  the  department  they  are  working  in  as  well.  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           48         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐13  

 

The   findings   for   the   above  mentioned   statement   show   that   the  majority   agrees.  More   precisely,  

there   is   a   high   percentage   of   agreement   in   all   companies.   Employees  working   at   IBM   agreed   the  

most  with  a  precentage  of  80%,  followed  by  IKEA  (70%),  DHL  (66.66%),  SAP  (60%)  and  Xerox  (50%).  

The  eight  question  of  the  third  part  of  the  questionnaire  has  the  purpose  to  analyse  the  employee’s  

effort.  The  participants  had   to  answer   if   they  seek  out   training  and  other  ways  of  development  at  

work.  The  findings  are  as  follows:  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           49         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐14  

 

As   the   above   chart   shows,   almost   all   the   employees   from   all   the   companies   participating   at   this  

study  totally  agreed  with  a  percentage  of  90%.    

 

The   last   two   questions   in   the   questionnaire   are   aiming   to   analyse   the   employees   perception  

regarding   the   organisational   performance.   The   first   one,   is   assesing   the   quality   of   the   services  

provided.    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           50         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐15  

 

As  it  seems  from  the  above  chart  only  the  majority  of  the  employees  working  at  IKEA  totally  agrees  

with   a   percentage   of   80%,   while   more   than   50%   of   the   rest   of   the   participants   from   the   other  

companies  are  agreeing.  Moreover,   it  can  be  seen  that   the  employees  working  at  DHL  are  divided  

and   have   two   different   opinions:   44.44%   agree,   while   33.33   disagre   with   the   above   mentioned  

statement.  

The   last   question   in   the   questionnaire   aims   to   analyse   if   employees   believe   that   overall   their  

department  performs  extremely  well.      

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Roxana  Buzetelu           51         Student  ID:1033166  

 

Graph  4-­‐16  

 

As  it  seems,  all  the  companies  are  agreeing  with  the  fact  that  the  organisation  performs  really  well.  

More  precisely,  70%  of  the  participants  working  at  IKEA  totally  agree,  while  the  employees  from  the  

rest  of  the  companies  agree  as  well  in  a  high  percentage.    

 

 

4.4.  Findings  –  Open  Questions  

The   second   part   of   the   questionnaire   has   five   open   questions   which   are   aiming   to   analyze   the  

challenges   the   employees   have   faced   in   cross-­‐cultural   interactions   and   to   identify  which   are   their  

recommendations  to  future  expatriates,  employees  or  HR  managers.  

More  precisely,  the  first  question  asked  the  participants  which  were  the  challenges  they  have  faced  

during   their   overseas   assignments/business   trips.   Almost   all   the   employees   mentioned   the   same  

problems.  More   specifically,   they  have   found   themselves   in   different   situations  where   they  didn’t  

know   how   to   react,   how   to   interpret   interactions   and   discussions   with   employees   from   another  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           52         Student  ID:1033166  

country.  One  of  the  employees,  working  at  IKEA,  mentioned  the  fact  that  even  if  he  is  at  the  moment  

in   his   forth   assignment   in   another   country,   he   still   finds   sometimes   difficult   to   understand   ones  

culture.  But,  at  the  same  time,  having  in  mind  his  experience  with  different  cultures,  he  started  to  be  

more   open,   trying   to   understand   that   everybody   has   his/her   own   way   of   behaving.   The   biggest  

challenge   he   experienced  was   during   his   first   assignment   abroad   in   Vietnam,  where   after  moving  

from   a   country   like   USA,   he   found   himself   in   very   awkward   situations,   because   he   didn’t   know  

exactly   what   to   expect.   He   mentioned   the   fact   that   with   the   help   of   the   people   working   in   the  

company  he  started  to  accommodate  and  to  learn  new  things,  which  in  the  end  made  things  easier  

for  him  even  in  future  assignments.  

Moreover,  one  of  the  participants  from  SAP  said  that  before  starting  his  new  assignment  had  more  

business  trips  to  Romania,  and  this  fact  helped  him  to  accommodate  easier  in  the  new  environment.  

He  also  mentioned  that  even  if  the  whole  culture  was  new  for  him  at  the  beginning,  now  he  feels  like  

being  home,  but  speaking  another  language.    

Another   interesting  answer  came  from  one  of  the  participants  working  at  DHL  who  mentioned  the  

fact  that  even  if  she  is  interacting  on  a  daily  basis  with  other  employees  from  all  over  the  world,  she  

is  still  trying  to  understand  how  other  cultures  work.  One  of  the  challenges  mentioned  was  even  the  

fact  that  sometimes  it  is  difficult  to  interact  with  them  due  to  the  language  barriers.  

The  most   interesting  answer  came  from  an  employee  working  at   IBM,  who  said  that  he  didn’t  find  

himself  in  difficult  situations,  but  his  family  did  and  that  was  the  reason  why  his  wife  and  kids  had  to  

move   back   to   their   home   country.   Moreover,   he   mentioned   the   fact   that   even   in   these  

circumstances  he  continued  his  assignment  until  the  end  and  when  he  was  asked  to  start  a  new  one,  

he  accepted  again,  but  this  time  being  more  careful  with  the  decisions  he  took  for  his  family.    

The  second  question  asked  the  participants  what  types  of  training  and  support  they  received  from  

the   company   before   starting   a   new   assignment,   and   respectively   before   interacting   with   people  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           53         Student  ID:1033166  

from  other  cultures.  The  answers  received  were  very  diverse.  Most  of  the  expatriates  answered  that  

they   did   receive   training,   but   most   of   them   were   trainings   offered   to   them   in   order   to   better  

understand  their  new  position  and  the  company.  Few  of  them  mentioned  the  fact  that  they  didn’t  

receive   too   much   information   regarding   the   country   they   were   moving   to,   just   informative  

discussions,  and  what  they  knew  before  moving  to  another  country  was  mostly  from  their  personal  

experiences,  and  not  from  trainings  offered  by  the  company.  

On  the  other  hand,  Romanian  employees  mentioned  the  fact  that  they  weren’t  offered  any  cultural  

training.   Employees   working   at   IKEA   answered   that   the   most   useful   support   offered   by   their  

company  was  the  participation  at  different  team  buildings  and  social  events  in  their  company,  which  

offered  them  the  opportunity  to  better  understand  their  colleagues.  One  of  them  said  that  “Kick-­‐off”  

(team  building  organised  annually,  at  which  employees   from  Romania,  Bulgaria,  Turkey,  and  Egypt  

gather  for  a  weekend  in  order  to  get  to  know  each  other)  is  one  of  the  most  important  events  in  the  

company  because  everybody  is  relaxed,  joyful  and  by  being  so,  it  becomes  easier  to  interact  and  to  

understand   each   other.   The   impact   of   this   programme   is   quite   big,   as   someone   else   mentions,  

because   even   after   they   go   to   work   again   the   following   week,   the   bounds   are   made   and  

communication  becomes  easier  among  employees.    

The  next  two  questions  aim  to  analyze  the  recommendation  the  current  employees  have  for  future  

expatriates  and  HR  managers.    

The   findings   here   were   most   of   them   the   same   for   the   first   question,   almost   all   the   employees  

mentioned  the  fact  that  there  should  be  more  trainings  and  more  support  offered  by  the  companies.  

Two  expatriates  working  in  IBM  said  that,  even  if  they  do  feel  like  succeeding  in  their  assignments,  

they   feel   like   they   could  do  more  with   a  bit   of   help.  One  of   them   said   that,   he   thinks   expatriates  

should  have  a  trial  period  with  their  families,  for  at   least  one  month  in  order  to  better  understand  

the  future  challenges  they  are  going  to  face.  Moreover  he  said  that  they  should  be  offered  language  

classes   at   the   beginning,   so   that   they   could   at   least   communicate   basic   things  when   going   to   the  

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supermarket  or  interacting  with  people  who  don’t  speak  English.  The  other  employee  said  that  even  

if  he  feels  like  he  is  part  of  this  country,  sometimes  he  finds  it  difficult  to  understand  some  cultural  

aspects,  and  that  it  might  be  helpful  to  have  some  more  guidance  from  the  company.    

The  answers  received  from  the  participants  working  at  the  other  companies  were  quite  similar.  For  

example,  most  of  the  employees  working  at  DHL,  mentioned  the  fact  that  in  their  company  there  is  a  

huge  lack  of  training  and  support  even  for  expatriates  and  because  of  this,  the  overall  atmosphere  in  

the  company  tends  to  be  tense.  Moreover,  two  expatriates  from  SAP  said  that  the  HRM  practices  in  

their   company   are   good,   but   unfortunately   some   of   them   fail   because   they   do   not   analyse   the  

situation  before  moving  and  they  find  themselves  in  the  end  in  a  new  environment  in  which,  even  if  

trained,  sometimes  it  is  difficult  to  integrate  without  having  good  social  and  personal  skills.  

One   of   the   questions   asked   the   Romanian   employees   if   they   think   that   the   expatriates   in   their  

company   did   a   good   job.   The   majority   answered   that   they   did,   even   if   sometimes   they   faced  

different  unexpected  situations.  In  IKEA,  it  looks  like  team  work  is  strongly  encouraged  and  with  the  

help   of   the  people   from   the  department,   expatriates   integrated   and   learned   really   fast   about   the  

new   environment.   Another   interesting   answer   came   from   the   participants   working   at   DHL   who  

mentioned  the  fact  that  they  have  seen  a  really  big  effort  coming  from  the  new  expatriates,  and  that  

after  a  period  of  time  and  with  their  help,  positive  results  appeared.  

The  last  question  in  the  second  part  of  the  questionnaire,  aims  to  analyze  the  use  of  the  Situational  

Judgement  Test  as  a  tool  to  asses  future  employees/expatriates.  The  concept  was  defined,  and  then  

the  participants  had  to  answer  simply  with  yes  or  no.  The  findings  show  that  all  the  employees  from  

all  five  companies  never  had  the  chance  to  participate  in  such  kind  of  test.  

 

 

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Chapter  5: DISCUSSION  PART    

5.1.  Introduction  

In  this  chapter,  the  findings  will  be  analyzed  and  discussed.  This  part  will  be  divided  in  four  sections,  

all,  of  them  having  the  purpose  of  answering  the  research  questions.  The  first  discussion  will  focus  

on   the  HRM  practices  adopted  by  companies   in  Romania,  and  will   try   to  analyze   the   link  between  

them   and   individual/organisational   performance   in   five   MNEs   operating   in   Romania.   The   second  

part,   aims   to   analyze   if   expatriates   and  Romanian  employees,  who  are  working   in   a   cross-­‐cultural  

environment,  are  Cross-­‐Cultural  Social   Intelligent.  Furthermore,   in   the   third  part,   the   link  between  

CCSI   and   performance   will   be   analyzed   having   in   consideration   the   findings   from   the   previous  

chapter.   Last   but   not   least,   it   will   be   discussed   how   successful   are   the   current   HRM   practices   in  

MNEs  in  Romania.  

5.2.  HRM  Practices    

The  link  between  HRM  practices  and  performance  is  a  subject  that  has  been  debated  many  times  by  

researchers   in  the  past  years   (Pauwee,  et  al.,  2005;  Theriou,  et  al.,  2009;  Kramar,  2009;  Bowen,  et  

al.,  2009).    

Considering  the  responses  of  employees  working  in  five  MNEs  operating  in  Romania,  this  paper  aims  

to   analyze   if   the   HRM   practices   adopted   by   those   firms   lead   to   organisational   and   individual  

performance.   The   findings   analyzed   in   the   previous   chapter   show   the   fact   that,   opinions   and  

practices  differ  quite  a  lot  from  one  company  to  another.  For  example,   in  IBM  it   is  considered  that  

employees  are  offered  enough  opportunities  for  training  and  development,  while  participants  from  

DHL   disagree   with   that.   On   the   contrary,   in   the   following   question,   employees   working   at   DHL  

agreed,   while   participants   from   IBM   didn’t   feel   like   team   work   is   strongly   encouraged   in   their  

company.    

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It  is  known  that  a  good  mix  of  HRM  practices  leads  to  high  organisational  performance  (Hill,  2007).  If  

carefully  analyzed,  the  findings  of  this  paper  show  that  each  company  focuses  on  a  different  mix  of  

practices.   For   example,   in   IKEA,   even   if   trainings   and   development   programmes   are   offered,  

employees   don’t   feel   like   their   pay   is   related   to   their   performance   or   that   they   are   involved   in  

decisions  by  managers,  which  affect  them.    While  at  SAP,  even  if  expatriates  start  new  assignments  

after  a  rigorous  selection,  they  do  not  consider  they  are  offered  enough  training  and  development  

programmes.    

One   of   the   most   interesting   results   regarding   the   HRM   practices   can   be   found   by   analyzing   the  

answers  received  from  participants  working  at  DHL.  Here,  almost  all  the  employees  agreed  only  with  

one   question  which  was   assessing   team  work,  which  means   that   all   the   other   HRM  practices   are  

ignored  in  their  department.  Moreover,  it  seems  that  in  IBM  there  is  a  very  good  use  of  all  practices  

compared  to  SAP  where  participants’  opinions  varied  from  a  practice  to  another.  Therefore,  it  can  be  

stated   that   each   company   has   a   different   strategy   and   has   different   ways   to   keep   its   employees  

motivated.  

It  is  a  very  interesting  finding  to  see  that  all  participants  from  all  companies  agreed  with  the  fact  that  

their  department/company  achieves  performance,  except  employees  working  at  DHL  (fig.  4.14,  fig.  

4.15).   Having   this   taken   into   consideration,   it   can   be   stated   that   the   use   of   a   good  mix   of   HRM  

practices  in  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  is  linked  to  organisational  and  individual  performance.    

 

 

 

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5.3.  Cross-­‐cultural  social  intelligence  

The  major  point  of  focus  of  this  paper  is  to  analyze  CCSI’s  importance  as  a  tool  to  assess  expatriates  

and  employees  working   in  multicultural  environments  and  to   investigate   if  CCSI   leads  to   individual  

and  organisational  performance.    

Participants  of   this   study  had  to  answer   three  questions,  which  had  the  aim  to  measure  CCSI.  The  

findings  show  that  none  of  the  participants  have  strong  CCSI  skills.  Some  of  them,  mostly  employees  

working  at  IKEA,  IBM  and  Xerox  had  higher  positive  results,  but  none  of  them  totally  agreed  with  any  

of  the  statements  (Fig  4.6.,  fig.  4.7.,  fig.4.8.).  This  means  that  there  is  not  even  one  employee  having  

strong  CCSI  skills  in  any  of  the  companies.  

 

5.4.  CCSI  –  Performance  

According  to  Ascalon,  et  al.,  (2008),  CCSI  can  be  used  as  a  tool  when  selecting  expatriates  or  hiring  

new  employees,  in  order  to  reduce  failure  rates  and  to  achieve  superior  organisational  performance.    

The  purpose  of  the  open  questions  was  to   identify   if  expatriates  had  during  their  assignments  and  

what  those  challenges  were.  The  results  show  us  the  fact  that,  even  if  the  majority  had  encountered  

few  impediments  in  their  assignments,  they  have  never  failed.  Analyzing  these  findings,  we  can  see  

that  even  if  employees  do  not  have  CCSI  skills,  they  have  managed  to  finish  their  assignments.    

Therefore,   the   lack   of   CCSI   skills   does   not   necessarily   mean   that   the   company   is   not   achieving  

organisational  performance.    

Even   if   employees  are  achieving  performance  without  having  CCSI   skills,  most  of   them  mentioned  

the   fact   that   they   find   it  difficult   to   interact  with  people   from  other  cultures.  Because  of   this,   it   is  

sometimes   possible   to   face   embarrassing   or   strange   situations   which   might   lead   to   unsuccessful  

deals  or  business  negotiations  (Shih,  et  al.,  2006).    

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In  order   to  avoid   that,   all   the  participants  have  mentioned   the   fact   they  need  more   support   from  

their   companies.   Unfortunately,   after   analyzing   the   findings,   it   can   be   seen   that   most   of   the  

companies  failed  in  offering  their  employees  enough  trainings  and  development  programmes.  

 

5.5.  HRM  practices  and  CCSI  in  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  

The  results  of  this  study  show  us  different  aspects  on  how  companies  perform  in  Romania.  It  can  be  

seen  that  each  company  is  using  a  different  technique  and  a  different  mix  of  HRM  practices.  Some  of  

them  focus  more  on  team  work,  some  more  on  related  payment,  while  others  do  not  focus  on  any  

practice  at  all.  Moreover,  none  of  them  has  employees  with  strong  CCSI  skills.  

Because  all  the  companies  participating  at  this  study  achieve  organisational  performance,   it  can  be  

stated  that  the  current  HRM  practices  used  at  the  moment  are  successful.  At  the  same  time,  it  must  

be  considered  the  fact  that  expatriates/employees  are  not  totally  satisfied  with  their  jobs  and  that,  

sometimes,  they  are  facing  difficult  cross-­‐cultural  situations.  

The   story  of   the  expatriate  working  at   IBM  who  didn’t   stop  his  assignment  after  his   family  had   to  

move   back   to   their   home   country,   shows   the   fact   that   a   lot   of   factors   must   be   taken   into  

consideration   by   companies   when   selecting   a   new   expatriate.   Failing   in   doing   so   can   lead   to   the  

failure  of   an  entire   assignment.   In   this   situation,   the   company  had  a   strong  and   skilled  employee,  

who  understood  and  found  a  compromise  in  order  to  solve  the  situation  without  causing  too  much  

trouble  to  the  company.    

Furthermore,   one  of   the  most   important   findings   of   this   study   is   that   all   the  participants   strongly  

agreed  with  the  fact  that  they  need  more  trainings  and  development  programmes.  Having  the  above  

in   mind,   it   can   be   seen   that   companies   risk   a   lot   by   not   offering   sufficient   support   to   their  

expatriates.  

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Therefore,  companies  should  improve  their  HRM  practices  and  should  start  paying  more  attention  to  

new   tools   for   assessing   their   employees.   Even   if   these   five   companies   achieve   organisational  

performance,  they  are  facing  big  risks  by  keeping  their  current  strategy.    

The  Situational  Judgement  Test  is  the  assessment  tool  proposed  by  Ascalon,  et  al.,  (2008)  in  order  to  

measure  CCSI.  This   test   is   recommended   in   their   study   to  all  organisations  which  are   facing  cross-­‐

cultural  environments,  and  which  want  to  achieve  superior  organisational  performance.    

As  mentioned  before,  the  MNEs  operating  in  Romania  have  a  successful  mix  of  HRM  practices,  but  at  

the   same   time,   in   order   to   achieve   superior   performance   and   to   have   skilled   and   well   prepared  

expatriates  for  their  assignments,  they  should  start  adopting  new  strategies.  Thus,  CCSI  SJT  is  a  tool  

that   should   be   adopted   by   most   of   the   companies,   among   other   trainings   and   development  

programmes.    

It  can  be  concluded  that  each  company  has  a  different  strategy  and  a  different  mix  of  HRM  practices.  

Even   if   their   practices   are   different,   somehow   each   company   manages   to   achieve   organisational  

performance.   In   order   to   successfully   compete   in   today’s   global   economical   environment,  

companies   must   be   aware   of   the   fact   that   sometimes   they   should   pay   more   attention   to   their  

employees’  needs  and  wants.  Thus,  it  is  very  important  to  improve  the  current  practices  and  adopt  

new  strategies  in  order  to  achieve  superior  organisational  performance.  

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Chapter  6: CONCLUSIONS    

6.1.    Introduction  

This  chapter  aims  to  summarize  the  entire  study  and  to  link  the  results  with  the  literature  review  and  

research  objectives.  Also,  here   it  will  be  explained  which  are   the   limitations  of   this   study,  and  will  

offer  future  recommendations  for  further  research  and  managerial  implications.  

 

6.2.    Research  Findings  and  Recommendations  

Employees   are   the  most   important   asset   of   a   company.   In   the   current   socio-­‐economical   context,  

they  are   facing  major  challenges  every  day.  Due  to   the  big   impact  globalization  has,  all  businesses  

are  expanding  globally  and  are  opening  subsidiaries  all  over  the  world.  Thus,  employees  are  working  

in   a   cross-­‐cultural   environment,   an   environment  which   is   full   of   people   originating   from  different  

cultures.    

In  order  to  be  successful,  sometimes  companies  decide  to  send  an  employee  from  his  home  country  

to   another   country,   in   order   to   apply   there   the   managerial   skills   he/she   has   learnt   at   the  

headquarters.   By   doing   this,   companies   risk   a   lot.   Moving   from   a   country   to   another   and  

experiencing   a   totally   new   environment   might   not   be   as   easy   as   it   looks   like.   In   the   case   an  

expatriate  fails  in  finishing  his  assignment  he  can  cause  a  huge  financial  loss  for  the  company.  

In  order   to  avoid   that   and   to  be   successful,   employees  must  be   trained  and  offered  development  

programmes.   Thus,   it   is   the   role   of   the   HR   department   to   offer   in   the   company   a   good   mix   of  

practices  which  leads  in  the  end  to  individual  and  organisational  performance.  

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The  current  paper,  aimed  to  analyze   if  there   is  a  good  mix  of  HRM  practices  adopted   in  five  MNEs  

operating  in  Romania  and  their  impact  on  the  organisational  performance.  Moreover,  another  point  

of  focus  was  to  highlight  the  importance  of  CCSI  for  companies  in  the  current  economical  context.    

The  findings  presented  in  the  current  paper  show  the  fact  that  each  company  has  a  different  way  of  

doing   business.   More   precisely,   each   of   the   five   MNEs   participating   at   this   study   is   adopting   a  

different  mix  of  HRM  practices  and  achieves  organisational  and  individual  performance.  Even  if  they  

achieve  performance,  employees  are  not  100%  satisfied  with   their   jobs  and  with   the  programmes  

offered  by  their  companies.    

Thus,   MNEs   should   be   more   careful   with   their   employees   by   offering   them   training   and  

development  programmes  in  order  to  enhance  their  performance.  At  the  moment,  companies  adopt  

a  rigorous  selection  process,  followed  by  few  trainings  which  are  mostly  trainings  aimed  to  develop  

their  technical  skills,  and  then  few  development  programmes.    

In  order  to  be  successful,  expatriates  must  have  strong  personal  and  cross-­‐cultural  skills.  To  develop  

this,  even   if   their  current  practices  are  bringing  good  results,  companies  must  adopt  new  ways  for  

recruiting  and  training.  

This   paper   aims   as   well   to   present   CCSI   and   its   implications   in   the   current   global   economical  

environment.  The  CCSI  Situational   Judgement  Test  was  presented   in   the  present  paper  a   tool   that  

should   be   adopted   by   most   of   the   companies   which   are   doing   business   in   a   cross-­‐cultural  

environment.  After  analyzing  the  findings,  a  very  interesting  statement  can  be  concluded:  Even  if  at  

the  moment  the  present  practices  are  successful,  CCSI  SJT  is  a  tool  that  should  be  adopted  in  order  

to   improve  the  chances  to  achieve  superior  organisational  performance  by  companies  operating   in  

an  international  environment.  

 

 

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6.3.  Research  contribution  

The  findings  from  the  study  offer  a  contribution  to  the  knowledge  of  HRM  practices  and  CCSI.  This  

study   provided   theoretical   and   empirical   evidence   on   the   link   between   HRM   practices,   CCSI   and  

organisational  performance.  Moreover,  this  research  found  out  that  in  the  five  MNEs  participating  at  

this  study  and  operating  in  Romania,  there  is  a  good  mix  of  HRM  practices.  Even  so,  practices  should  

be   improved   by   offering  more   trainings   and   development   programmes   to   the   employees   and   by  

adopting  the  CCSI  SJT.  

 

6.4.    Research  limitations  

Although,   the   study  provides  a   significant   contribution   for   companies  operating   in  Romania,   there  

were  a  couple  of   limitations.  First  of  all,   it   is   important  to  mention  the  fact   that   the  present  study  

was  conducted  in  only  five  MNEs,  with  a  total  number  of  fifty  participants.  Thus,  the  findings  cannot  

be  generalised  for  all  the  MNEs  operating  in  Romania.    

 

6.5.    Recommendation  for  future  research  work  

Having  in  consideration  the  limitations  of  this  study,  and  the  fact  that  it  was  restricted  to  employees  

working   in   Romania,   further   research   should   be   conducted   by   analyzing   more   companies   from  

different   countries.   By   doing   so,   the   present   study   will   gain   more   credibility.   Moreover,   future  

researchers   should   focus   more   on   analyzing   CCSI’s   importance   and   impact   on   organisational  

performance,  by  conducting  the  study  on  a  larger  sample  of  participants.  

 

 

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Roxana  Buzetelu           63         Student  ID:1033166  

LIST  OF  REFERENCES:  

ANALOUI,  G.  (2004),  “Managerul  si  liderul  –  O  abordare  comparative”,  in  Stoica  –  Constantin,  A.(ed.),    Eu  si  psihologia  creativitatii,  Editura  Performantica,  Iasi  

ASCALON,  E.,   SCHLEICHER,  D.,   BORN,  M.,   (2008),  “Cross-­‐cultural   social   intelligence:  An  assessment  for   employees   working   in   cross-­‐national   contexts”,   Cross   Cultural  Management,   Vol.15   no.   2,   pp.  109-­‐130  

BAMBER,  GJ.,  (1998),  “International  and  Comparative  Employment  Relations.”,  Lansbury  RD,  Allen  &  Unwin,  Sidyney  

BATEMAN,  T.,   SNELL,   S.   (2004).  Management:   The  new  competitive   landscape   (6th   ed.).  New  York:  McGraw-­‐Hill  

BATT,  R.,  (2002),  “Managing  customer  services:  human  resources  practices,  quit  rates,  and  sales  growth”,  Academy  of  Management  Journal,  Vol.  45  no.3,  pp.  587-­‐597  

BECKER,  B.E.,  HUSELID,  M.A.,  PICKUS,  P.S.,  SPRATT,  M.F.,  (1997),  “HR  as  a  source  of  shareholder  value:  research  and  recommendations”,  Human  Resources  Management,  36:39-­‐47  

BIRD,  A.,  FANG,  T.,   (2009),  “Cross  Cultural  Management   in   the  Age  of  Globalization”,   International  Journal  of  Cross  Cultural  Management,  Vol.  9(2),  pp  139-­‐143  

BOSELIE,  P.,  DIETZ,  G.,  BOON,  C.,  (2005),  “Commonalities  and  contradictions  in  HRM  and  performance  research”,  Human  Resources  Management  Journal,  Vol.  15  no.3,  pp.  67-­‐94  

BOVEE,   C.,   THILL,   J.,   MESCON,   M.,   (2007),   “Excellence   in   Business”,   3rd   edition,   USA:   Pearson  Education  

BOWEN,  D.E.,  OSTROFF,  C.,  (2004),  “Understanding  HRM-­‐Firm  Performance  Linkages:  The  Role  of  the  ‘strength’  of  the  HRM  System”,  Academy  of  Management  Review,  Vol.2004  No.2,  pp.203-­‐221  

BRYMAN,  A.&  BELL,  E.  (2007),  Business  Research  Methods.  2nd  ed.  Oxford:  Oxford  University  Press.    

CALIGIURI,  P.M.,  (2000),  “Selecting  expatriates  for  personality  characteristics:  a  moderating  effect  of  personality   on   the   relationship   between   host   national   contact   and   cross-­‐cultural   adjustment”,  Management  International  Review,  Vol.  40,  No.  1,  pp.  61-­‐80  

CAPITAL   (2004),   “Managerii   vor   tot   mai   multe   cursuri   de   formare   si   perfectionare,   dar   pe   bani  putini”,  Capital,  No.8,  February  19.  

CAPPELLI,  P.,  NEUMARK,  D.,  (2001),  “Do  high-­‐performance  work  practices  improve  establishment-­‐level  outcomes?”,  Industrial  and  Labor  relations  Review,  Vol.  54  no.4,  pp.  737-­‐775  

COLLIS,   J.   &   HUSSEY,   R.   (2003)   Business   Research:   A   practical   guide   for   undergraduate   and  postgraduate  students,  2nd  Edition.  New  York:  Palgrave  Macmillan  CONSTANTIN,  T.,  POP,  D.,  (2006)  ”Romanian  managers  and  human  resource  management”,  Journal  of  Organizational  Change  Management,  Vol.19,  No.6    

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Roxana  Buzetelu           64         Student  ID:1033166  

CROCITTO,   M.,   SULLIVAN,   S.,   &   CARRAHER,   S.   (2005),   “Global   mentoring   as   a   means   of   career  development  and  knowledge  creation”,  Career  Development  International,  10,  522-­‐535.    

DERESKY,  H.,   (2006)  “International  Management:  Managing  Across  Borders  and  Cultures.”,    5th  Ed.  Prentice  Hall.  Pp.  6,  14-­‐15,  17-­‐18,  21,  23,  32,  35,  37,  83,  130.  

DESSLER,  G.,  (2004),  “Human  Resources  Management”,  Pearson  College  Div:  Harlow  

DISTEFANO,   J.J.,   MAZNEVSKI,   M.L.,   (2000),   “Creating   values   with   diverse   teams   in   global  management”,  Organizational  Dynamics,  Vol.29  no.1,  pp.45-­‐63  

DRUCKER,  P  F.  (2008)  “Managing  Oneself.”,  1st  Ed.  Harvard  Business  Press  

EARLY,  P.C.  (2006)  “Redefining  interactions  across  cultures  and  organizations:  moving  forward  with  cultural  intelligence”,  Research  in  Organizational  Behavior,  VOl.24,  pp.  271-­‐99  

ERDOGAN,   Z.,   UZKURT,   K.,   (2010),   “Effects   of   ethnocentric   tendency   on   consumers’   perception   of  product  attitudes  for  foreign  and  domestic  products”,  Cross  Cultural  Management:  An  international  Journal  

FENWICK,  S.M.,  DE  CLERI,  H.L.,  WELCH,  D.,  (1999),  “Cultural  and  Bureaucratic  Control   in  MNEs:  The  Role   of   Expatriate   Performance   Management”,  Management   International   Review,   Special   Issue  1999/3,  pp.107-­‐124  

FINK,  G.,  KOELING,  M.,  AND  A-­‐K  NEYER   (2005),   “The  Cultural  Standard  Method,”  EI  Working  Paper  no.62,  Europe  Institute  (university  of  Economics  and  Business  Administration),  Vienna  

FINK,  G.,  NEYER,  A.,  KOLLING,  M.,   (2006),   “Understanding  cross-­‐cultural  management   interaction”,  Int.  Studies  of  Mgt.  &Org.,  vol.36,  no.  4,  pp.  38-­‐60  

FONTAINE,  R.,   (2007),   “Cross-­‐cultural  management:   six   perspectives”,  Cross  Cultural  Management:  An  international  Journal”,  Vol.  14,  No.2,  pp  125-­‐135  

GARDNER,  H.,  (1983),  “Frames  of  Mind:The  Theory  of  Multiple  Intelligences”,  .pdf  

GIL-­‐WHITE,   F.,   “Is   ethnocentrism   adaptive?”,  http://www.hirhome.com/academic/Ethnocentrism.pdf  

GOLEMAN,  D.,  (1998),  “What  makes  a  leader?”,  Harvard  Business  Review,  Vol.77  No.3,  pp.93-­‐102  

GOULD-­‐WILLIAMS,   J.   (2003),   ‘The   importance   of   HR   practices   and   workplace   trust   in   achieving  superior  performance:  A   study  of  public-­‐sector  organisations’,  The   International   Journal  of  Human  Resource  Management,  14  (1)  pp.28-­‐54  

GOULD-­‐WILLIAMS,  J.,  (2003),  “The  importance  of  HR  practices  and  workplace  trust  in  achieving  superior  performance:  a  study  of  public-­‐sector  organizations”,  International  Journal  of  Human  Resources  Management,  14:1,  28-­‐54  

GREENGARD,  S.,  (2004),  “What’s  in  store  for  2004?”,  Workforce  Management,  Vol.82,  No.8,  pp.54-­‐55  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           65         Student  ID:1033166  

HARRISON,  L.,  E.,  HUNTINGTON,  S.P.   (2006),  “The  Central  Liberal  Truth:  How  Politics  Can  Change  a  Culture  and  Save  It  from  Itself”.  New  York:  Oxford  University  Press  

HIGHTOWER,  D.F.,  (1993),  “Creativity  in  your  business  too!”,  Planning  Review,  21(5),  pp.54-­‐56  

HILL,  C.,  (2007),  “International  Business”  (6th  ed.),  New  York:  McGraw-­‐Hill  

HILTROP,  JM.,  (1999),  “The  use  of  HRM  practices  in  international  and  domestic  organisations.”,  New  Zealand  Journal  of  Industrial  Relations  24(1):,  pp.  47-­‐61  

HILTROP,  JM.,  (2002),  “Mapping  the  HRM  practices  of  international  organizations”,    Strategic  Change  11,  pp  329-­‐338  

HITT,  M.A.,  BIERMAN,  L.,  SHIMIZU,  K.,  KOCHHAR,  R.,  (2001),  “Direct  and  moderating  effects  of  human  capital  on  strategy  and  performance  in  professional  service  firms:  a  resource-­‐based  perspective”,  Academy  of  Management  Journal,  Vol.  44  no.1,  pp.  13-­‐28  

HOFSTEDE,  G.  (1980),  “Culture’s  Consequences,  Sage,  Thousand  Oaks,  CA  

JACK,  D.,  STAGE,  V.,   (2005),  “Success  Strategies  for  Expat”,  Vol.59,   Iss.9,  pp.  48-­‐  54,  https://login.v-­‐ezproxy.brunel.ac.uk/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=19&did=898719611&SrchMode=1&sid=2&Fmt=4&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1295378686&clientId=29708  

JACK,  D.,  STAGE,  V.,  (2005),  “Success  Strategies  for  Expat”,  Vol.59  no.9,  pp.  48-­‐54  

JASAWALLA,   A.,   TRUGLIA,   C.,   GARVEY,   J.,   (2004),   “Cross-­‐cultural   conflict   and   expatriate   manager  adjustment;  An  exploratory  study”,  Management  Decision,  Vol.  42  no.7,  pp.837-­‐849  

JING,  S.,  BING,  X.,  (2010),  “A  study  on  transnational  enterprise  faces  cultural  difference  and  trans-­‐culture  management  under  economic  globalization  background”,  Vol.  6  Iss.2,  pp  48-­‐56,  http://web.ebscohost.com.v-­‐ezproxy.brunel.ac.uk:2048/ehost/detail?hid=8&sid=e7d15769-­‐4013-­‐4ec2-­‐949b-­‐8ad9094ebc4b%40sessionmgr10&vid=1&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=52225254  

KRAMAR,  R.,  (2005),  “HRM  Practices  and  Performance”,  Asia  Pacific  Journal  of  Human  Resources,  Vol.  43  no.1,  pp.  4-­‐5  

LEGGE,   K.   (2005),   Human   Resource   Management   Rhetories   and   Realities.   Anniversary   Ed.   Great  Britain:  Palgrave  Macmillan    

MERIAM.,  (2010),  Personality  Test,  http://www.merriam-­‐webster.com/dictionary/personality%20test  

PAAUWE,  J.,  BOSELIE,  P.,  (2005),  “HRM  and  performance:  what  next?”,  Human  Resources  Management  Journal,  Vol.  55  no.4,  pp.  68-­‐83  

PARSONS,  T.,  SHILLS,  E.,  (1962),  “Values,  Motives  and  System  of  Action”  In  Toward  a  General  Theory  of  Action,  ed.T.Parsons  and  E.  Shills,  47-­‐233.  Cambridge:  Harvard  University  Press.  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           66         Student  ID:1033166  

ROBBINS,  S.,  COULTER,  M.  (2009)  Management.  10th  Ed.  Pearson  Publishing.  Pp.  93,  95-­‐97,  118.    

SANCHEZ,   J.I.,   SPECTOR,   P.E.,   COOPER,   C.L.,   (2000),   “Adapting   to   a   boundaryless   world:   a  developmental  expatriate  model”,  The  Academy  of  Management  Executive,  Vol.14  No.2,  pp.96-­‐106  

SAUNDERS,  M.,  LEWIS,  P.,  THORNHILL,  A.,  (2007),  “Research  Methods  for  Business  Students”,  Financial  Times/Prentice-­‐Hall,  London  

SEKARAN,  U.  (2000),  Research  Methods  for  Business.  3rd  ed.  United  States  of  American:  John  Wiley  &  Sons.    

SHIH,  H.A.,  CHIANG,  Y.H.,  KIM,  I.S.,  (2004),  “Expatriate  performance  management  from  MNEs  of  different  national  origins”,  International  Journal  of  Manpower,  Vol.  26  no.2,  pp.157-­‐176  

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THERIOU,  G.N.,  CHATZOGLOU,  P.D.,  (2009),  “Exploring  the  best  HRM  practices  –  performance  relationship:  an  empirical  approach”,  Journal  of  Workplace  Learning,  Vol.21  No.8,  pp.  614-­‐646  

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YEATON,   K.,   HALL,   N.,   (2008),   “Expatriates:   Reducing   Failure   Rates”,   The   Journal   of   Corporate  Accounting  &  Finance,  March-­‐  April,  pp.  75-­‐78  

YUAN,  W.,  (2010),  “Conflict  management  among  American  and  Chinese  employees  in  multinational  organizations  in  China”,  International  Journal,  Vol  17  no.3,  pp.  299-­‐311  

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Roxana  Buzetelu           67         Student  ID:1033166  

APENDIX  A  Title of research: “HRM practices – CCSI and its importance in achieving superior organisational performance: A study of foreign MNEs operating in Romania”

Researcher: Ms. Roxana Buzetelu, Student of MSc International Business, Brunel Business School, Brunel University

Contact Information E-mail: [email protected]

Many thanks for agreeing to participate in my research project. The project has to be completed in part fulfilment of my degree programme and so your assistance is much appreciated.

Purpose of the research: The main idea of this study is to investigate Human Resources Management practices in five Multinational Enterprises operating in Romania. Also, another point of focus is to examine Cross Cultural Social Intelligence and its impact on achieving superior organisational performance.

What is involved in participating: I will ask you to complete a questionnaire which will help me in my research. Your signature below serves to signify that you agree to participate in this study.

The questionnaire is divided in 3 sections. The first and third part contains questions which have multiple choice answers, statements that you either agree or disagree. The second part of the questionnaire contains open ended questions. Your participation is voluntary and you can choose to decline to answer any question or even to withdraw at any point from the project. Anything you say will only be attributed to you with your permission: if not, the information will be reported in such a way as to make direct association with yourself impossible.

Confidentiality also means that the background information form and questionnaire will be coded and stored in such a way as to make it impossible to identify them directly with any individual (e.g. they will be organized by number rather than by name).

Consent:

I wish to be identified in the report: (please put a X) YES ____ NO____

I have read the above information and I agree to participate

in this study ______________________________

Researcher’s signature: _________________________________

Date: _________________

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           68         Student  ID:1033166  

APPENDIX  B    

Dear Participant,

Please answer the following questions. The questionnaire is consisted of three parts: Part 1,

Part 2 and Part 3. Part 1 and Part 3 are consisted by closed questions and you can choose

only one of the bellow answers, while part 2 is consisted of open ended questions.

Part 2a is addressed to expatriates, while Part 2b is addressed to Romanian employees.

Please choose only one number in order to show the extent you agree or disagree with each

statement as is shown below:

1= totally agree

2= agree

3= Neutral

4= disagree

5= totally disagree

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           69         Student  ID:1033166  

CLOSED  QUESTIONS  EXAMINING  THE  USE  OF  HRM  PRACTICES  

PART  1  

Strongly Agree

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

1 2 3 4 5

I am provided with sufficient opportunities for training and development.

Team working is strongly encouraged in our department.

A rigorous selection process is used to select new recruits.

When new management positions come up, the department normally tries to fill them with people from within the department or authority rather than recruiting from outside.

This department tries to relate your pay with your performance in some way.

Management involves people when they make decisions that affect them.

 

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           70         Student  ID:1033166  

OPEN  QUESTIONS  –EXAMING  EXPATRIATE  OPINIONS  REGARDING  HRM  PRACTICES  

PART  2a  

             PLEASE  ANSWER  THE  FOLOWING  QUESTIONS:    

1. What were the key challenges you faced during each overseas assignment?

2. What types of training (and other types of support) did you receive from your firm

before starting/during any new assignment?

3. What are your recommendations for future preparation of expatriate managers?

4. What are your recommendations for HR managers when starting new assignments

with expatriate managers?

5. Have you ever been asked to complete a cross-cultural situational judgement test?

 

 

 

 

 

 

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           71         Student  ID:1033166  

OPEN  QUESTIONS  –EXAMING  ROMANIAN  EMPLOYEES  OPINIONS  REGARDING  HRM  PRACTICES  

PART  2b  

             PLEASE  ANSWER  THE  FOLOWING  QUESTIONS:    

1. What are the key challenges you faced during overseas business trips?

2. What types of training (and other types of support) did you receive from your firm in

order to better understand the people from other cultures that you are working with?

3. Do you consider that the expatriate managers did a good job during their assignments

in this company?

4. What are your recommendations for future preparation of expatriate managers?

5. Have you ever been asked to complete a cross-cultural situational judgement test?

 

 

 

 

 

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           72         Student  ID:1033166  

CLOSED  QUESTIONS  EXAMINING  CCSI  ANDTHE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  ORGANISATIONAL  

PERFORMANCE  

PART  3  

 

Strongly Agree

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

1 2 3 4 5

I can recognize and understand (non)verbal cues of persons form a variety of cultures

I can make accurate social inferences in a variety of cultural contexts

I can accomplish relevant social objectives across cultural negotiations and interactions through one’s acceptance and understanding of other cultures

Overall I am very satisfied with my job and could not be more satisfied.

I sometimes feel like leaving this employment for good.

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HRM  PRACTICES  –  CCSI  AND  ITS  IMPORTANCE  IN  ACHIEVING  SUPERIOR  ORGANISATIONAL  PERFORMANCE:  A  STUDY  OF  FOREIGN  MNES  OPERATING  IN  ROMANIA  

Roxana  Buzetelu           73         Student  ID:1033166  

I feel myself to be part of the department.

In my work I like to feel I am making some effort, not just for myself but for the department as well.

I seek out training and other ways of improving my performance at work

This department provides excellent service

This department performs really well

 

 

 

 

          THANK  YOU!