Introduction

MANAGEMENT’ Searching for a European approach to human resource management (HRM) is no easy undertaking. A look at the piles of books about European HRM published in recent years shows that the topic can be treated in many ways: we can look at how specific HRM issues interact from a European perspective (Supiot/Meadows 2001; Sofer 2004) at country-specific practices and context variables (Brewster et al. 1992; Brewster/Mayrhofer/Morley 2004); at country-specific approaches to specific HRM topics (Brewster/Mayrhofer/Morley 2000); and at international companies with their specific problems, such as international recruitment or management of expatriates (Harzing/Ruysseveldt 2004; Dowling/Welch 2005; Linehan/Scullion 2005).