Japan, Korea and Taiwan: Issues and Trends in Human Resource Management

Convergence-divergence of HRM in the Asia-Pacific: Context-specific analysis and future research agenda

“…Interestingly, a large number of qualified females (typically in their late 30's) voluntarily withdraw from the workforce to raise families (see Templer, et al, 2014), but when they are ready to return, they find it difficult to re-join the workforce. Also, in countries like Japan, Taiwan, China, Malaysia and Korea, females struggle to get to middle and senior managerial positions, despite having the required competencies (see Rowley & Yukongdi, 2008;Peng et al, 2009;Debroux et al, 2012). The existence of such barriers is also a strong reflection of the dominant socio-cultural and institutional set-up of AsiaPacific societies, and fits clearly with the macro level factors of our framework.…”

“…These include studies on keiretsus in Japan, chaebols in Korea, guanxi qiye in Taiwan, qiye jituan in China and Hong Kong, the traditional four pillars of management in Japan, as well as other unique aspects of Chinese management, and the management models of Singaporean, Chinese, Korean and Indian businesses (see Rowley & Abdul-Rahman, 2007;Budhwar & Debrah, 2009). However, in the present context, the validity of a number of such established ideal-typical management models is questionable (see Conrad, 2009;Capelli et al, 2010;Debroux et al, 2012). During such periods of transition, the HR function can play a significant role, but, for this to happen, it needs to be allowed to play a more strategic and change agent role.…”

“…It should be noted that this behavior is linked to the traditional hierarchical social structure of many Asia-Pacific countries which emphasize respect for superiors, be they family elders, teachers or superiors at work (see Hofstede, 1991;1993). As a result, managers are shown to prefer centralized decision making and practice tight control and do not like to delegate authority (e.g., Debroux et al, 2012). This practices often results in the exploitation of employees who tend not to raise their voice against ill-treatment and poor management practices (e.g., Mellahi et al, 2010;Malek et al, 2014).…”

“…Research has also revealed the unique influence of the socio-culture context on HRM systems --for example, several Malaysian firms operate on strict Islamic work principles, which many firms in China, Taiwan, and Japan, incorporate Communist, Confucian and Buddhist principles in their policies and practices (see Budhwar & Fadzil, 2000;Beresford, 2008;Collins et al, 2012;Debroux et al, 2012;Malek et al, 2014). Further, the vocational and educational set-up of a country is directly responsible for the employable skills of its graduates.…”

The transfer of HRM practices to Indian subsidiaries in a South Korean MNC in the auto industry

“…It was reported that HRM practices in Korea changed dramatically after the Asian financial crisis in 1997 (e.g., Bae and Rowley 2001;2003;Debroux et al 2012). Before then, the HRM practices of Korean firms were largely characterized as having an internal-labor-market orientation, longterm employment, and seniority-based systems, similar to Japanese HRM practices in many ways (Bae and Rowley 2003).…”