With an emerging service industry and growing innovation sector, managing educated employees within offices and organizations well seems key for a company its performance in China. With Foreign companies entering China as a market or sourcing purposes, companies are seeking for more Human resources and management of those Human resources.
HR China means Chinese
Having operations in China means that you work with local Chinese people, in the Chinese culture and thus working in the Chinese way. Management of human resources in China requires a sufficient understanding of China as a country, its local employment laws & regulations and its people. Examples such as national holidays, employment contracts and terms, management structures and approach, awareness of backgrounds and nations, lead time of employees and recognizing talent are China HR characteristics which are significantly different. Being aware that you are in China will, therefore, tell you that you will need to do things differently to create a workable and profitable team.
Human resources management in China
Hiring and running human resources will create challenges. Depending on the company’s scope, finding the right people and keeping those people onboard are two common difficulties found. Same as Hong Kong, China has a high replacement rate of employees. It is commonly seen that employees leave after 1 or 2 years. Creating human resource management that anticipates on people leaving the company is as crucial as keeping human resources onboard. Processes are therefore less depending on people but more on infrastructures with positions that expects replacement rate. However, management of human resources is in its principle not different from any other location in the world. The difference is only found in the execution. In China, other working structures, rules and motivators are needed to manage human resources well enough to create productivity and quality execution in China.
Foreign management with Chinese HR management
As a foreign company in China, your office and staff will need to work along with your other offices anywhere in the world. Causing culture breaches and difficulties in language, understanding and management. To bridge these offices and people, a foreigner in management is commonly judged to be the most effective. In fact, most of the foreign SME’s would like to have management in China speaking the same language as the or is at least coming from a similar background as the mother company.
However, to be a good manager in human resources in China as a foreigner, you will encounter difficulties because you are not local enough. To recognize risks, company staff rules, the satisfaction of employees, emotional status, or to understand better how to motivate staff is just better executed by an HR manager. Chinese locals being more suitable China Human resource management in China is actually at the end, a logical conclusion. Defining foreign management with Chinese HR management seems the best practice in China.