ABSTRACT
There is a growing literature on the field of international HRM (IHRM). However, much of it has been devoted to large multinational or transnational companies and in particular to the study of expatriates in these organizations. Yet many organizations are now faced with the prospect of becoming international if they are to survive in an increasingly global economy (Benito and Welch 1994) The evidence suggests that the majority will be of small or medium size and the growing research emphasis on the internationalization strategies of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) reflects the growing importance of SMEs in most economies (Mulhern 1995). However, relatively little attention has been given to the HRM issues arising from the internationalization of such organizations, despite the growing evidence that smaller firms appear to experience significant problems and high failure rates in the process of internationalization (Loustarinen et al. 1994).
