Comparative Analysis: Google and Zappos in International HRM

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the International Human Resource Management (IHRM) strategies employed by Google and Zappos. It begins by examining Google's approach to fostering a positive and productive work environment, highlighting its unique culture, employee perks, and emphasis on collaboration and innovation. The report then delves into Zappos' conscious efforts to build and reinforce its corporate culture, outlining its core values, hiring processes, and training programs. The second part of the report focuses on the importance of pre-departure training for international assignments, detailing a sample training program including cultural briefings, adaptation exercises, and business etiquette, along with the program's objectives and schedule. The report emphasizes the significance of cultural understanding and adaptation for the success of international employees and overall organizational performance. The report also incorporates the importance of pre-departure training to help expatriates in adapting to new environments, and the key components that make up this training to ensure a smooth transition.

Running head: INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
International Human Resource Management
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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Table of Contents
Assignment 1...................................................................................................................................2
Assignment 2...................................................................................................................................5
Assignment 3.................................................................................................................................11
Assignment 4.................................................................................................................................14
References and bibliography.........................................................................................................19

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Assignment 1
1. Google is an organization that leads the way when it comes down to supporting their
employees, making them happy and helping them be productive. The different offices and
campuses all across the globe mirrors the organization’s overarching philosophy of becoming the
happiest and the most productive workplace all over the world. It is very well documented that
Google possesses a unique culture and not a typical corporate culture. Google’s
accomplishments can be accredited to their culture. They have employed people who have been
given the sole job of keeping all employees happy and at the same time maintaining productivity.
Some might think it is too controlling, but this is the way this world changing organization
operates. Many companies are following Google and catching up fast, boosting their employee
engagement activities and motivation by means of including employees in creative activities and
presenting them with rewards that would assist them in enjoying their work and feel good about
themselves (Gillett 2016).
Google’s success completely depends on collaboration and innovation. Everything that they
carry out is in the direction of making things easy for all the employees. As all operations happen
on one floor, it has assisted in removing psychological barriers for interaction and that has been
attempted to be preserved. Among the innovations that have sprang up from such interactive
office encounters, Google Art Project is one of them. It has helped put millions of museum
works online. There are also enhancement innovations like AdSense and AdWords advertising
platforms. To travel around the huge extended floors, Razor scooters are used that present with a
chance to move across a large conceivable gathering space, including large open spaces, nooks
and corners with whimsical furniture. Every year Google, gets more than 2.5 million of
applicants, which is approximately around 7000 per day and 5 per minute. The most important

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thing is that Google goes through each one, in all their branches. Across all their offices in
countries like USA, China, Brazil and Switzerland, Google provides perks like free meals, free
health check-ups, free grooming sessions, free dressing makeovers, subsidised massages, gyms
and swimming pool facilities, video games, on-site physicians, death benefits and many more.
This culture has paid off for Google, with them being steadily ranked as among the best places to
work (Manjool 2013).
2. Zappos is an organization that consciously builds and reinforces their corporate culture.
The work environment that they provide for their employees might not be feasible for every job
searcher or suitable for every employee. But, for those whom the culture fits, they thrive while
working at Zappos. Zappos very consciously decides what type of corporate culture they require
and they accordingly support that culture with the help of all human resources and management
work strategies. The organization defined their corporate culture with the help of ten core values.
The human resources management strategies that were determined, different employee job
descriptions, the recruitment and retention process, on-the-job training and the daily world
environment repeat and strengthen these core values along with the employees, partners,
customers and visitors of the company. These core values of Zappos are:
 Delivery of “WOW” with the help of service
 Embracing and driving change
 Creating fun and a little quirkiness
 Being adventurous, imaginative and open-minded
 Pursuing growth and learning
 Building open and honest relationships with communication
 Building a positive team and creating a family spirit among all employees

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 Doing more things with less resources
 Being passionate and determined
 Being humble (Zappos.com 2017)
Every day, Zappos is taking special actions for reinforcing their culture of an interactive
workplace that is also a bit weird. This makes sense for most of the call center employees. These
ideas can be taken where possible and used for reinforcing specific cultures in a workplace. A
Zappos, the training team trains their employees in each of the above-mentioned core values.
Therefore, each employee gets to know the same message, learns the core values and even learns
how to behave according to the expectations of living the core values each day at work. At
Zappos, the hiring process is more like a form of courtship instead of a conventional recruitment.
Before every employee is hired, he or she would meet and interact with multiple employees and
generally attend any type of sectional or company event. It permits the employees who do not
partake in interviews in meeting the potential employee informally. For Zappos, cultural fit is
serious and their hiring process is slow. It has happened that months have passed between a
preliminary cultural fit interview with an HR recruiter and a real job offer. If any possible
employee fails passing the cultural fit interview he or she is no more invited for meeting with the
hiring manager and other employees of the organization. While not every hire has to wend this
slow road, cultural fit is the first thing Zappos hires for. The interviewers have with themselves
some behaviorally based questions for the candidates, based on which they attempt at
illuminating the congruence of any candidate by means of each of the Zappos core values that
were discussed previously. This interviewing approach permits interviewers in assessing a
candidate’s prospective capabilities for fitting within the culture and display prerequisite skills.
Every interviewer has some specific feedback regarding the candidates; some of them need

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consent from the interviewers, some need vote. The interviewers enter comments straight inside
a computer system. They answer some precise questions, which are followed by some free forms
for assessing their thoughts regarding the candidate’s fit at Zappos (Pontefract 2015).
An HR consultant, who would review the work culture at Zappos, he or she would find it a
bit different to implement all those elements in their own organization. Following a similar
hiring process, the selected candidates would be spending their first one-month training and
learning to respond to customer needs. This would act as introduction to the soul of the business,
also acting as a practical method to serving customers all through. There would be no concept of
temporary employees. The initial training would assist employees in helping their customers
professionally. Pay raises would be provided on the basis of skills and capabilities. Skill tests
needs to be passed and then pay raises would be received. All managers would be expected to
spend at least 10-20% of their time in helping employees work as a team. Managers would also
have the responsibility of maintaining and promoting the organizational culture. The HR
department would be involved in deciding the retention of any employee or hiring one. For
reinforcing organizational culture, performance evaluations would take place regularly. The
senior management would look out for building career paths within departments, while making
sure all employees are completely capable of serving customers. Similar to Zappos, customer
service would be the only way of sustainable advantage (Feloni 2016).
Assignment 2
Sending high potential delegates and chairmen abroad is ordinary practice for some
overall affiliations and empowers them to use their workforce's present aptitudes to lead or
develop an area office or deal with a widespread wander. Working in another social setting can

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be trying, in any case and the ability to viably acclimate to the new social and master culture is
basic to finishing amazing results.
This change methodology can require some speculation however as working inclinations
and social regards can be absolutely interesting in connection to the overall picked one's own
particular manner of life. A failure to change in accordance with the target culture will make
disillusionment and bombshell the execution of all inclusive divinely selected individuals.
Giving them the learning and contraptions to adjust to the various social differentiations they
stand up to at work and in their social life is key. The program will give the data and aptitudes
anticipated that would understand and effectively manage the possible social troubles that
foresee in the midst of general undertaking. Pre-Departure Training are basic for those who are
sent for the all-inclusive errand. To guarantee people is presently great with the association
goals. In case it goes well then it would decrease the likelihood of premature homecoming of the
expatriates and besides keep the specialist viewpoint substantial (for undertaking, not for
journey). Pre Departure Training is drove by association to coach the overall individual’s
personality directed to the host country and guarantee they could alter with the new circumstance
and do well. Pre Departure Training would drive in the structures of social care (in step by step
life and work life), yet interchange aspects also would be fuses to help their execution (Koo
Moon, Kwon Choi and Shik Jung 2012).
The subsequent essentials would be counted in the PDT:
Culture Profile: Variances and resemblance of the host and home country
Cultural Adaptation: Intercultural and Culture Shock training
Country Briefing: Over-all information regarding the host country

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Business Etiquette: The elementary measures of business technique
Logistical Information: The custom of gift and philanthropy, whom to call in crisis
Sensitivity Training: Parts that would be assumed by employees and partners in new location
Paper Orientation: Make a statement based on case study
Table Manner: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Coffee time
Critical Incident: Problem analysis
Language: Arabic language
Movie: Arabic Movie
The methods used in the midst of the pre departure training rely upon cognitive (country
briefings, social briefings, language training) and brimming with sensitivity method (case study,
talk). Some redirection method similarly would be consolidated (videos, games, watching
movie).
The Pre Departure Training Program would be lead in 5 days (talk, classroom), a half
year (language training). Three days training (08.00-17.00 pm) in progression, and it would not
be considered a leave. The half yearly language training (1 hour normally), association would
call the Arabic language coach to the work environment. It would be considered as a work hour
(17.00-18.00 pm). The trainee ought to be capable and consider both culture (UAE and Britain).
Objectives
The major focuses of this pre departure training is to make the specialist feels incredible
stay in remote country and to elude or perhaps restrict the lifestyle blow, to engage the

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representative to manage his/her obstruction and troubles. To empower expatriates to alter with
correspondence exercise and leadership style in have country. That is the reason this pre
departure training has been made for giving the specialist backing to manage the social,
individual, capable, and social troubles they would go up against in the midst of the errand
(Wurtz 2014).
Day 1: Cultural Profile and Country Briefings
Time and Activities
08.00-08.20 Welcome beverage
08.20 - 09.15 Introductory
09.15 - 10.30 Country Briefings
11. 30 - 12.00 In sequence discussion
12.00 -13.10 Lunch Pause + pray
13.10-15.10 Cultural Outline
15.10-16.05 Coffee Pause + pray
16.05-17.00 Brief of session
Day 2: Cultural Adaptation + Critical Incident
Time and Activities
08.00-08.20 Welcome beverage
08.20-09.05 Assessment of Last Session
09.05-12.05 Cultural Adaptation
12.05-13.10 Lunch Pause + pray
13.10-15.40 Critical Incident + Conversation
15.40-16.20 Coffee Pause + pray

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16.20-17.00 Brief of session
Day 3: Logistic Information + Paper Orientation
Time and Activities
08.00-08.20 Welcome beverage
08.20-09.15 Assessment of Last Session
09.15-10.35 Logistic Information
11. 35-12.05 Paper Orientation
12.05-13.10 Lunch Pause + pray
13.10-14.50 Discussion
14.50-15.30 Games
15.30 - 16.10 Coffee Pause + pray
16.10-17.00 Brief of session
Day 4: Sensitivity Training + Arabic Movie
Time and Activities
08.00-08.20 Welcome beverage
08.20-09.15 Assessment of Last Session + Report Submission
09.15-12.10 Sensitivity Training
12.10-13.10 Lunch Pause + pray
13.10-15.40 German Movie + Conversation
15.40-16.10 Coffee Pause + pray
16.10-17.00 Brief of session + Closing
Day 5: Business Etiquette + Table Manner
Time and Activities

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08.00-08.40 Welcome beverage + Breakfast (Table Manner)
08.40-09.15 Business Custom
09.15- 11.05 Business Custom
11.05-13.05 Table Manner (Lunch break) + Pray
13.05- 15.20 Guest Speakers
15.20 - 16.10 Coffee pause (Table Manner) + Pray
16.10-17.10 Brief of all sessions
19.00 - 21.00 Dinner break (table manner) + closing
Language Training
Day, Time and Activities
Monday - 17.00 - 18.00 Language Training
Tuesday - 17.00- 18.00 Do
Wednesday - 17.00 - 18.00 Do
Thursday - 17.00 - 18.00 Do
Friday - 17.00 - 18.00 Do
UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) or the Emirates, is a federal absolute monarchy,
established mostly along the Persian (Arabian) Gulf.
Location: In Middle East, neighboring the Persian Gulf and gulf of Oman, between Saudi Arabia
and Oman. It is strategically situated slightly south of Strait of Hormuz.
Size: 83,600 km2

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Neighboring states: Saudi Arabia, Oman
Capital: Abu Dhabi
Largest city: Dubai
Fact about UAE:
Currency: United Arab Emirates dirham
Phone dial code: +971
Official language: Arabic
Climate: Hot and sunny generally. Hottest months are July and august. Temperatures reach
above 50 °C (122.0 °F).
Religion: Islam
Festivals: Eid-Al-Adha, Ramadan, Eid Al Fitr, National Day Festival, Dubai International Film
Festival, Dubai Shopping Festival.
Economy: Second largest economy in the Arab world.
Assignment 3
Mazda
Mazda sees that its people are its most fundamental assets and expects to be an
association operated by people who capitalize on their work. To this end, Mazda propels human
resources training in perspective of the Mazda Way decide that are followed all through the
whole Mazda Group the world over. In like manner, the Company has set up broad human
resources courses of action and measures nearby headway of various exercises.