When HR becomes International HR

How does a UK HR Generalist become an international HR expert?
by Alan Marshall

The world continues to shrink as businesses expand into Europe via the EU expansion or globally as India and China become increasingly attractive and competitive.

The HR Manager is faced with new challenges when managing employees and particularly managing expatriates who tend to be the pioneers of a new start up or joint venture overseas.

A recent client is expanding internationally and like many others sees India as an attractive proposition and is sending out a General Manager to start up the business there.

When this HR Manager asked for a typical checklist and narrative of what is entailed, an eight page response was produced highlighting the areas for consideration, some mandatory such as immigration and taxation, and some softer items such as cultural training and language skills.

The checklist actually has 43 individual items and shocked the HR Manager concerned who suddenly had to become an International HR manager overnight. This is neither practical nor cost effective for one international employee so an external specialist will obviously be required.

Below is a summary of the areas to consider:

• Search and selection - a failed assignment is very expensive so selecting the right candidate is essential
• The candidate’s family is just as important so it goes much further than technical job skills into the suitability of a family unit to cross cultures and adapt
• Immigration approval is the most important aspect and may take time
• What do you pay an expatriate? A whole range of compensation items need to be considered such as base salary, bonuses, cost of living, hardship, danger pay, assignment incentives
• Taxation is a complex element with both countries concerned requiring various filing of returns etc.,
• Getting an employee and their family to the host location requires air freight and sea freight shipments, storage, housing implications both at home and in the host country
• At the host location vehicles and maybe a driver will be required, educational and medical facilities will be very important. Cultural familiarisation training is money well spent
• Home country pensions needs to be maintained but how?
• Repatriation – reversing everything has it’s complications too

 

The start point of all this is a Company philosophy and policy that lays out clearly the Company’s intentions and commitments to its expatriate employees. Vendor selection is also very important and provides the HR Generalist with the expertise required, but only when they need it, thus managing the cost.

The solution is to use an International HR Specialist who has:

• the knowledge and experience to be able to write policies to suits individual business needs
• to counsel and advise employees and their families
• to source and manage appropriate vendors in this highly specialised area of Human Resources Management

 

For more information, you can contact Alan Marshall, Global HR Consultants Ltd
www.globalhrc.co.uk

Alan is the Managing Director of Global HR Consultants Ltd and has extensive HR experience which spans cultures and continents.