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With globalization shrinking the world
map on a daily basis, technology stepping
ahead at a rate that is difficult to
keep up with and a work force that is
often hard to recognize,
Human Resources Management (HRM)
is in a state of great upheaval and
constant
change. It is important to remember,
however, that this dilemma is nothing
new. For instance, globalization as
we know it today has been in the works
for
decades, and people have long seen
the need to adapt to the increasingly
fluid
labor pool, using the racing growth
of technological development to connect
employers to the work force, rather
than
isolate them. Still, the speed at which
things are changing leaves many at
a loss, providing Human Resource Management
with a great opportunity
to step in and lead the way – all
it takes is a positive attitude and
the ability to sail through uncharted
waters.
One of the biggest temptations for North
American businesses today is to send
jobs overseas. With recent university
graduates in developing nations earning
wages anywhere from a fifth to a tenth
of an American worker, all kinds of work
can be sent out at incredibly cheap rates.
Such jobs include outsourcing call
centers, credit card processing, scanning
of medical
records-anything that has a set of simple
instructions that an employee can repeatedly
follow throughout the work shift. This
is the direct product of the gift of
technology. The interconnectedness provided
by the Internet has made it possible
to decentralize the processing of information,
and has provided access to an entire
world of workers.
Indeed, there is no
shortage of such workers, as India
and China - the population boomers -
lead the
way for American outsourcing. In addition,
cheap labor pool abound in the former
Soviet Union, South and Central America,
and the Philippines. With such an abundance
of worker resources opening up to the
market, those involved in the management
of Human Resources are struggling
to stay ahead.
If it
succeeds
in connecting
workers with employers in a way that
is beneficial to both parties, HRM
could be one of the foremost beneficiaries
of globalization.
For many employers, the cheap labor
pool provided by globalization has finally
offered to make their wildest dreams
come true. Profit margins have the potential
to soar as wages are cut dramatically,
worker benefits are stripped and stringent
U.S. labor laws do not have to be adhered
to. But many are finding out that overseas
jobs aren’t turning out to be as
profitable as expected. On top of this,
it should be remembered that out of all
the businesses that attempt to start
up overseas, about half of them do not
survive. While many proponents of sending
jobs overseas will confidently herald
the unheard of increases in profit, they
will do little to warn of the rates of
failure associated with this type of
business maneuver.
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