ABSTRACT

Much of the literature on International Human Resource Management (IHRM) has focused on comparative HRM practices across countries or on aspects of HRM in multinational firms. In particular, the selection and training of expatriate managers has been center stage in many discussions of IHRM activities. However, several developments in the global economic arena have affected the context of IHRM and hence require that we adjust our focus to more clearly define a systematic and holistic approach to International HRM. This chapter draws on the first author's prior work on managing overseas assignments (Tung 1981; Tung, 1998a) and extends these concepts to provide a global perspective on HRM with an emphasis on valuing cultural diversity, both cross-nationally and intra-nationally. Crossnational diversity refers to the differences across countries, while intra-national diversity arises from the growing ethno-cultural diversity within nation-states (Tung, 1998a). Both of these types of cultural diversity are critical considerations in framing international human resource management in a global context.