HRM and Training: Challenges and Solutions for Overseas Employees

This report delves into strategic human resource management, specifically focusing on international assignments within organizations like Marks and Spencer. It explores various strategies and approaches for preparing and training employees for overseas projects, including virtual training, cultural simulation, mentoring, and field simulation. The report also examines the challenges employees often face when working abroad, such as adjusting to new routines, language barriers, healthcare and education issues, and cultural differences. It emphasizes the role of management and HR in assisting employees to cope with these difficulties by providing solutions like housing, language support, insurance, and cross-cultural training, ultimately contributing to their success and the achievement of organizational goals in the global market.

HRM AND TRAINING

TABLE OF CONTENT
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..............................................................................................................................................3
Explain strategies and approaches an internationalizing organization can take to prepare and train
groups of employees to work in overseas locations on projects...............................................................3
Discuss what challenges employees often face when working abroad and how management and HR can
assist them in coping with the difficulties and being successful..............................................................5
CONCLUSION...........................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES............................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Strategic human resource management defines as integration between company
strategies, goals, objectives and human resources. The main tenacity of strategic human resource
management is to encourage flexibility, innovation and competitive advantage that help in
developing the organizational culture in positive manner. In current business environment
several companies are engaged in foreign investment due to this they need to send their
employees on international assignments for gaining profitable results in competitive global
market (Emeagwal and Ogbonmwan, 2018). To complete the assignments Marks and Spencer is
to be undertaken that is a leading multinational British company in UK. It specializes in
providing food products, clothing, home wares, financial services etc. since 1884. This report
includes several strategies and approaches an internationalizing organisation needs to prepare or
train employees for work in overseas locations on projects. Further it also includes the several
challenges that employees face while working in abroad along with several measures that
management assists in coping the difficulties to being successful so that sustainable results are to
be attained on time on global level.
MAIN BODY
Explain strategies and approaches an internationalizing organization can take to prepare and train
groups of employees to work in overseas locations on projects
Internationalization organisation represents the products and services in such a manner
that is easily consumed and used by the customers on the international level. For international
business enterprise it is very prominent to manage and organize the work efficiently so that
productive results are enjoyed in their long term sustainability. For instance- In terms of Marks
and Spencer, it is very essential to prepare and train employees to work on international level to
attain several projects. For this management need to focus on implement several strategies and
approaches to offer training to groups of employees so that successful results are attained on time
and it also helps in gaining competitive advantage in an international market. There are several
strategies and approaches for company for employees to work on overseas location on attaining
particular projects that are presented below:

Provide virtual training- It is one of the best strategy that is adopted by an organisation like
Marks and Spencer to train and prepare employees for work in overseas locations. There are
several companies who work on global level because it strengthens the relationship between
countries that develops the economy of home and foreign nation also. Virtual training is an
effective tool to train and prepare employees of Marks and Spencer so that they effectively fulfill
international projects (Zehir, Karaboğa and Başar, 2020). It is an effective training tool in the
present business scenario as it helps in reducing the gap between working hours, business and
personal commitments that is more in the traditional training methods. For doing the business on
international market it is very essential for company to choose modern way of train to employees
so that they understand the working criteria effectively along with managing their working hours.
It represents the successful results over the several years for an organisation. In terms of Virtual
training employees are getting the foreign management team who provide training to employees
so that they get adequate knowledge regarding the working environment within foreign country.
For instance- If Marks and Spencer do their business in Germany for this they need to select the
skilled and experienced employees to offer virtual training to them. By using virtual training
management of Marks and Spencer hires management team of that country who provides
training to employees virtually that helps in presenting the successful results in their long term
survival.
Cultural simulation training- It is another strategy that is used by an organisation in
offering training and preparing them to work internationally. It is very essential for employees
who work on international level to understand the foreign culture and values where they need to
adjust in future time. In this management of Marks and Spencer, need to organize the cultural
simulation program where they create a role play situation that demonstrates foreign culture
where employees are responding sensitively. It helps employees to understand the foreign
working culture so that they effectively share thoughts and ideas to other person on international
level (Boxall, 2018). The key aim of providing this training to employees is to adequate exposure
to cultural norms along with effectively deals with the challenges of cultural differences. It
represents the positive results while working on international level. For example- In terms of
Marks and Spencer, management need to focus on providing cultural simulation training so that
employees are effectively understand the culture of Germany that helps employees to work
efficiently and effectively that presents the positive results in firm long term sustainability.

Mentoring Training- This strategy is highly beneficial to train and prepare employees. In
this business enterprise provides mentoring to train those employees who are selected to work on
international projects. In this company hire experts who gives training for prepare employees to
work on foreign countries so that productive and proficient results are attained (Jiang and Li,
2019). For example- In context of Marks and Spencer, management of company offers
mentoring to skilled and efficient employees who have an ability to work in different company
so that productive results are attained on time. This also helps in attaining the competitive
advantage in international market. In this manager used digital tool for learning so that they
organize, test employees appropriately. This helps in understanding the various demands of
attaining international project so that frequent results are enjoyed by company within the
business industry.
Field Simulation training- It is an approach of HRM that is used by management of
company to prepare and train employees for effective working (Ooi and Richardson, 2019). In
this management of Marks and Spencer giving the assignments to employees related to
destination nation and organizes a trip for them by providing them simple task such as recruiting
local people, interacting with local people by spending time with them. This helps employees to
understand the way of working of foreign country and they are familiar with the local working
condition of foreign country in which they operate their business (Wiemann and Pilz, 2020).
After taking all the knowledge of foreign company manager discus the experiences and try to
examine what they have to be learned. This helps in attaining successful outcomes while doing
internationalizing business.
Discuss what challenges employees often face when working abroad and how
management and HR can assist them in coping with the difficulties and being successful
Employees are the essential resource of a company due to this organisation need to highly
focus on motivating and encouraging them so that they work proficiently and productively. Thus
an organisation offer high salary package to those employees who work overseas that also
includes additional allowance and benefits (Prasanthi and Rao, 2019). Therefore working on the
international market creates stress and pressure on employee’s mind that demotivates them
towards work proficiently. This report discusses the challenges that employees would face while
working on abroad that are discussed below:

The foremost challenge that was faced by employees during work overseas is setting
into a routine. A routine is an effective factor to attain productive and proficient result because
of having smooth routine of work employees are working with comfort for achieve results on
time (Ayakwah, Osabutey and Damoah, 2019). Employees who work on international projects
adopts new environment and also emphasis on familiarize with that environment to manage the
things effectively. In terms of facing challenge employees of Marks and Spencer face challenge
regarding specific time of opening stores, deal with the issue of closing the stores on particular
day’s etc. These factors may affect the working of employees in foreign countries. However,
employees are also facing the challenge in finding an appropriate residential house, cost of
renting a particular house or apartment is also often high. This is very challenging for workers to
work in foreign country. To overcome this issue management of Marks and Spencer provide
residential house to those employees who work abroad rather than offering house allowance
that helps in setting the routine. Therefore, getting a house in foreign country is very effective
because this attracts the workers to work in foreign country with free mind that helps in attaining
successful results in marketplace (Loane and Morrow, 2020). This also helps in providing
comfort to employees in foreign countries due to this they are able to perform their
responsibilities for which they set to foreign country in a proficient manner.
Language barrier is another challenge that was faced by employee while working
abroad. To done the effective communication understanding language is very essential.
Therefore workers who work on international assignments face the challenge to effectively
express themselves and understanding the foreign country local people language to get the
proficient results. For instance- if the employee of Marks and Spencer directly connect with the
customers of foreign country without having a knowledge regarding them language than
customer cannot understand them and it negatively affects the reputation of business along with
its profitability (Rodríguez-López and Souto, 2020). Therefore to work in the foreign country it
is very essential for employees to have an effective understanding of foreign language. If
employees are not having any idea of foreign country language than he/she face the major
challenge in completing assignments on time and in appropriate manner. This challenge creates
stress even in accomplishing easy task. To overcome this issue manager of Marks and Spencer
hires a language convertor or provide language class to those employees who work

internationally so that challenge related to language is to be resolved and targets are attained on
time while maintaining reputation of business.
Health care and education is the another challenge that was faced by employees while
working in the foreign countries. Employees who work in oversea countries and have to take
their family with them may face the challenge related to offer health care and education facilities
to their children and family (Onkelinx Manolova and Edelman, 2020). Due to this challenge they
cannot work properly and effectively because he/she cannot concentrate on working. In foreign
countries the cost of health care and education is also very high that create difficulty to pay the
fees of that. At this time children of that employee also face the issue of adjusting in new schools
due to which employees are not focused on work effectively. It also affects the regular results of
business in foreign market. To overcome this issue Management of Marks and Spencer should
focus on offering insurance covers with education facilities for children in foreign country so
that the stress of health and education problem is to be resolved and they work proficiently and
effectively.
The major challenge that an employee should face while working abroad is to
understand the culture, lifestyle where they work in. For instance- If Marks and Spencer work
in Germany than they focus on implementing the morning shift because in that country morning
time is for work and evening time is for family (Smuttrasen and Heo, 2020). If it is not suited by
employees than it negatively affects the performance of worker and also negatively affects in
attaining targets on time. To work in Germany, dress code is a major issue that is also a major
challenge. In this employees spend more time to select the wardrobe to work in that country. To
overcome this challenge management of Marks and Spencer provide cross cultural training to
employees before assigning task for abroad. This also helps employees to culturally handle the
situation more prominently and efficiently (Javed and Yasir, 2019).
CONCLUSION
From the above report it is to be concluded that for doing business on international level
it is very essential to prepare and train groups of employees so that productive and proficient
results are to be attained on time. This report inculcates several strategies and approaches such as
virtual training, cultural simulation training etc. that an organisation should use to train the

employees that develops the skills and knowledge for completing the targets on international
level. It reflects the practice of strategic HRM that helps business enterprise to effectively select,
train, and hires employees for completing the objectives on time on international level. Further it
also inculcates the several challenges that were faced by company at the time of
internationalizing the operation to manage workers properly and effectively. It is very essential
to examine the challenges that were faced by employees so that management can reflect several
measures to get the successful results in marketplace.

REFERENCES
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